Hospitals vs. Noel
Jun 25, 2004 Print This Post
{ MOOD: OK | NOISE: Kid’s slurping on sticks full of sugar }
I occasionally have to go to the hospital to visit people from our church. Often, they are in the ICU where they have extra rules. One of these rules is no visitors except family and clergy. Good for me. Except I don’t look like clergy. So for a long time, I would get stopped and asked for ID. I watch these other guys walk right past me and head in. I always wondered if I stuck a stick up my butt and wore a suit if they would let me in faster.
Anyhoo, a year or so ago they started this clergy badge program. You could get a hospital badge for the area hospitals with your picture and all. I thought, “Yes, this is my solution.” So I went in to get it. Of course they checked my ID first. The lady behind the counter said, “you better check him, he don’t look the part.” Now, with my ID, everything is cool, right?
Today I went to visit a couple from our church who got into an accident yesterday (big time…pray for them). When I got to the ICU, the lady behind the counter ignored my shiny hospital badge and said “family only.” I said, “I’m clergy.” With this, she let me in. When I got in, I shared my story with Bill (the guy from the church) and he said “I wonder why they stopped you…I have had 5 or 6 visitors today.”
Apparently, I let off a hospital warning vibe. Oh well.
June 25th, 2004 at 10:02 pm
I gotta say, Noel, nobody stopped me. And I’m black.
June 26th, 2004 at 11:50 am
Chey, they assuned you were family!