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Pinto’s Account
Pinto naively accepted hospital discharge despite that he believed he needed a motorized bed by which it would assist him to get out of bed when needed. Hospital staff could not find any service locally by which he could rent a motorized bed and place it in his hotel room. Even though hospital staff later said his request for crutches for walking was the first time received, they did not have the wherewithal to consider if early hospital discharge was really appropriate. In fact some hernia hospitals, though uncommon, will have their patients stay 3-5 days before discharge. Nearly any surgeon will advice patients after surgery to protect the surgery area by bracing it with their hands or pillow when coughing etc.Pinto believes that although his surgery was made with the best intentions, there must have been some sort of mishap considering he was the first to request crutches and he had so, so agonizing taxi rides immediately after his discharge. Apparently thousands of patients from the same hospital have relatively little trouble leaving the hospital within 48 hours and can amble away painlessly. Given that Pinto followed the surgeons guide for a safe post-op, he believes if he was able to stay in the hospital in a motorized bed for at least three days, recurrence might not have occurred. It might have even proved the surgery was done flawlessly. He subsequently had a successful operation by the same surgeon two years later without any trouble—- without need for crutches or motorized bed.
In conclusion, when making medical critiques we must do so with considered thought so as to avoid hasty claims as well as being mindful of unanalyzed assumptions by which to control bias or prejudice. Sliding hernias are neither rare nor troublesome for the experienced surgeon.