Last Wednesday, I noticed something was not right with my health. I decided on Thursday morning to make the call and be seen. After giving the phone nurse my symptoms, she told me to go to the emergency room.

Upon arrival, I was admitted within five minutes, and diagnosed within 20 minutes, tops. The ER nurses and doctors gave me great care; unfortunately the medicine I was given there did not correct my problem, and off to the SCU I went.

Upon arrival, the care I received was beyond extraordinary. As I sat there receiving care, I could not help but think every professional working to give me (and all the other patients in the SCU) the care we needed was not going to be there in the near future. I had sad and torn feelings. In my thoughts of this, not one single time did I hear or see on their faces the impending changes about to affect each and every one of their lives. They truly lived up to the mission statement of their employer, “Your health care needs always come first.” I also thought how great everyone in the department worked. I also observed all the equipment they utilized in the SCU. I was hooked up to monitors, the information could be monitored from my bedside, from their desk outside and remotely from Rochester.

I sat there and could see (in my head of course) them tearing down all of the great resources they have built over the years to accommodate the new plan.

I decided it was time to write a public letter. One to ask the leaders of the Mayo Clinic to step back for a time and look at what they have built over the years in Albert Lea.  It is an amazing hospital, full of great health care providers and state-of-the-art equipment. Maybe they could revise their paradigm and push to build up their facility. Look at ways to add more professionals that have even greater capabilities of keeping even sicker patients here for care. One that would rely less on shipping patients out to Austin or Rochester and keeping them here.

In closing, I would like to extend a huge thank you to all the employees that dedicate their lives (as the husband of a nurse, I know first hand of the rotating schedules they work — and I know when they leave work for the day their patients are still on their mind) to provide our community with the quality inpatient health care it requires and needs.

Chris Skogheim

Clarks Grove