Adventist Health

Someone Must Love Screening

Many of us are still not used to the reality of medical screening, even though some form of it is happening almost everywhere. Whether it’s at a restaurant, airport, or place of work, we have been stopped at the door, asked very personal questions, and checked for a fever. Screening can be awkward, difficult, and confusing.

I should know. I’ve been screened hundreds of times. However, if you want to really experience the complexity of screening, just spend a couple of hours as a screener. I should know—I’ve screened hundreds of people. Trust me, you’d rather been screened!

At Adventist Health Castle in Hawaii, our medical screeners encounter every situation imaginable. Symptomatic patients, associates running late, worried visitors, grieving loved ones, out-of-state vendors, and more. Our screeners strive to meet every person with a smile and a cheerful welcome. Most encounters are friendly and fast. Others are complex, even combative, and require careful and collaborative responses. Which makes a letter like this so special:

To the Guardian Angels (at the entrance to Castle):

Thank you for each little act of kindness and consideration you have shown to my precious bride and me. You are such a blessing in our lives.

May the Lord bless and keep each of you safe. In Christ we remain, R & B

Rick (not his real name) would visit his wife in the ICU as often as he could, each day telling the screeners he was there to see his bride. During her stay, he developed

“Thank you for each little act of kindness and consideration you have shown to my precious bride and me. You are such a blessing in our lives.”

symptoms that denied him access to our hospital. While he was unable to visit, his wife’s condition improved and she was discharged to a care facility that prohibited any visitation. After decades of marriage, he and his bride were separated for the foreseeable future.

One day, he realized an opportunity and called ahead to see if screeners could help. His wife was scheduled for outpatient services at our hospital and would be accompanied by the care facility’s staff. She would already have her permitted companion. Could an exception be made for her to have two companions that day? Could he be that second companion? Our screening team went to work, contacting the service line leaders to get their approval. Could Rick have a date with his bride at our hospital? Of course he could.

Throughout that red letter day, hundreds of patients were met at our entrance by screeners who greeted them, took their temperature, and screened them for travel, exposure, and symptoms.

But one patient had a special reception that day. Her husband was waiting with the screeners for her arrival. They welcomed her, assured her she was not alone, and guided her to the services she needed. She was not just a patient, and they were not just screeners. She was someone’s bride, and they were someone’s guardian angels.

____________________ By Jesse Seibel

Adventist Health Castle screeners work hard to keep patients and staff safe.