I’m working the ER and get a call from an outside hospital. They have a middle-aged gentleman who was out for a joy ride on his 4-wheeler and crashed. He was not wearing a helmet. They did a bunch of CAT scans and found an intracranial hemorrhage (bleeding in the brain), a hemothorax (bleeding in the chest), and multiple other injuries. The would like to send the patient to me for a higher level of care.
When he arrives, I find that the outside hospital has done everything he needs, except that they didn’t have the necessary specialists to take care of him. He gets admitted to the surgical service with plans for a craniotomy, where they open the skull and drain the blood.
What strikes me is that the surgery was preventable. I’m not opposed to riding 4-wheelers but I do advise wearing a helmet – though this post is not about the benefits of helmets. You see, they only will risk doing surgery if there is already brain damage. And the surgery usually only stops it from worsening; rarely does it restore function. This unfortunate patient, if he survives, will have a lifetime of some disability. The only question is, how much?
You Have to be Prepared
I’m left wondering what kind of preparations has he made for this possibility. Hopefully he has good health insurance. In the ER, insurance doesn’t matter. We will treat you regardless, but once you get out of the hospital, it gets a lot more difficult to get proper care without insurance.
Maybe he has a 401(k) and with a disability he can withdraw from it without penalty even though he is young. A severe chronic disability can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars in care annually. That 401(k) won’t last long. And don’t get me wrong – people can live a fulfilling life with a disability – but it can be expensive and difficult.
Maybe he has a bunch of real estate investments and can draw from them. It’ll have to be a huge amount. More likely his family will have to begin selling properties to get the funds. Is he prepared for that? Has he told his family how all the investments are held and work?
Maybe he prepared well – I don’t know. But I feel for him and that’s inspired me to get my investments in order. Of course, I’ll wear a helmet and I don’t own a 4-wheeler. But, bad things can happen and I need to be prepared. At the very least I’ll keep a document which outlines all my investments and what to do if I am disabled or die. I already have an encrypted drive with my passwords and a few important things, but I need more. I have a will, but this needs to be updated.
Sorry, there’s not much real estate advice in this one, but it’s still important. This unfortunate guy hopefully will help others through this story. Take a minute to consider if you have your affairs in order. It doesn’t matter your age. Be ready – do it for your family if not for yourself.
