Don’t Forget Your Why
What’s the point of this post? To remind you not to forget 𝘄𝗵𝘆 you’re doing what you’re doing. Whether your occupation has a redemptive edge or you’re simply working to pursue excellence and provide for your family, don’t lose sight of the 𝘄𝗵𝘆.
Amid some pretty difficult work this fall, my 𝘄𝗵𝘆 was thrust back into my eyes the other day.
Samaritan is in Minneapolis for UnitedHealthcare Techstars this fall and so I’m grocery shopping at Trader Joe’s downtown.
I provide some food for a man I meet outside. In asking his story, he graciously lets me in…
Chris served in the army, working on satellite/radio towers. When he returned to KY, his wife left him and took the kids to MN. He followed but was estranged. The loss led him into depression and addiction, which led to homelessness.
Since we’re here to learn how homelessness affects one’s health, I asked Chris how many times he’d been to the ER in 2020. He said, “four times”:
Visit 1: His knee swells up, possibly from the dirt he was sleeping on. He shows up but is quickly discharged w/o treatment.
Visit 2: His knee grows painful and so he returns one night. He again is quickly discharged w/o treatment.
Visit 3: His kneecap grows to the size of a softball. Finally they admit him, and perform emergency surgery to clear it out.
Visit 4: In surgery rehab, Chris develops an infection. He temporarily loses feeling in his left hand & right foot. He returns to the ER and the sepsis spread results in a right toe amputation. Chris can no longer walk quickly or without pain.
These costly operations (absorbed as total losses for his insurer) and painful existence today developed from sleeping on dirt for months. Friends and colleagues, this did not have to be. Helping Chris access the social support, primary care, and housing navigation he needed was not impossible.
I’m glad Chris is still alive and is pressing on, as his story encourages me to continue to press on. My work is to give people like Chris access to the social and financial support he needs to reach housing and health goals sooner.
If you know human services, health system or a health plan that could leverage Samaritan to this end, please let me know.
If you want to be a part of preventing the next person from this situation, become a samaritan, and join someone’s team.
As a result of COVID-19’s added impact on homelessness, we announced Samaritan gift cards. Giving a gift card enables your loved ones to help Samaritan Members meet critical needs this season — read about it here.
