THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, June 9, 1996 TAG: 9606080097
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: 02 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: 83 lines
On Feb. 5 at about 6:50 p.m., my wife, Barbara, called out to me in a chilling voice: ``Ken, I'm in trouble.''
I asked her what was wrong. She said there was a severe pain at the back of her head. We both knew something was seriously wrong. At approximately 7 p.m. I called 911 and explained my wife's condition and symptoms. At 7:20 p.m. I called back to find out what was taking so long for them to respond. For 20 minutes, the only thing my wife could say was, ``Please help me!'' I was preparing to take her to the emergency room myself when the the Emergency Medical Services ambulance arrived at 7:25 p.m.
The paramedics took my wife's vital signs, which were normal. The paramedics diagnosed my wife's condition as the flu. They said the pain at the base of her head was caused by ``muscle contrac-tions.''
I disagreed with the paramedics and asked them to take my wife to the emergency room. The paramedics said they would transport my wife, but it would be a long wait before she could be seen because the ``serious'' patients would be treated first.
In spite of my better judgment, I agreed to keep my wife home.
The paramedics left our home about 7:45 p.m. At 9:50 p.m., my wife wasn't feeling any better, so I took her to the emergency room at Chesapeake General Hospital. They took my wife in right away. A CAT scan was performed. The CAT scan detected a bleeding aneurysm.
On Feb. 7, Dr. N. Fatehi, neurosurgeon, performed brain surgery on my wife to repair the bleeding aneurysm. Before the operation, Dr. Fatehi informed my wife and me that there was only a 10 percent chance of full recovery. My wife is doing fine, but that is not the intent of this letter.
If my wife had died on Feb. 5, the cause would have been a cerebral aneurysm. But a root cause would have been the incompetence of the EMS paramedics who diagnosed my wife's condition as flu.
Next time, God forbid, someone may die.
Is anyone on the City Council listening? Please address the training needed by our EMS personnel of the warning signs of a bleeding or ruptured brain aneurysm.
Ken Church
Shoal Creek Trail No conservative
John Warner is not a conservative. In 1994 John Warner voted in support of the Clinton administration and against the Republican leadership 58 percent of the time - the seventh highest mark among the 44 Republican senators. Warner has cast 29 pro-abortion votes during his time in Congress. In 1992, the National Right Of life Committee gave Sen. Warner a zero percent voting record. In the 1980s, Warner consistently voted to allow federal funds to be used to pay for abortions in the District of Columbia. Warner has also supported using federal funds to pay for abortions for military personnel, supports funding of the National Endowment for the Arts and has backed a bill for condom distribution in public schools without parental consent.
Warner supported President Bush's 1990 tax increase. He voted against the $500-per-child tax credit proposed by Sen. Phil Gramm, R-Texas. Warner has refused to sign a pledge not to raise taxes and opposes a simple flat tax to replace our current insane tax code. Warner also supported the Brady bill, which mandates a five-day waiting period before handgun purchases and the banning of semi-automatic weapons.
John Warner is not a conservative. He would not hold the above views if he was. Sen. Warner would also not have to spend millions of dollars on television and radio advertising telling us that he is a conservative. You should not have to convince people that you are a conservative. They should know by your voting record in Congress. John Warner is a liberal Republican.
Jim Miller, on the other hand, is a conservative. Miller opposes abortion in all cases, except when a mother's life is at risk. Miller supports a capital gains tax rate cut, a balanced budget amendment, a line item veto and a $500-per-child tax credit. Unlike Sen. Warner, Jim Miller has signed a pledge not to raise taxes. As our next Republican senator, Jim Miller can use his experience as President Reagan's budget director to bring about real tax and spending reform. Miller supports overhauling the tax code with a simple flat tax. Jim Miller opposes the Brady bill and the banning of semiautomatic weapons. Miller is endorsed by the National Rifle Association and is a strong opponent of gun control. Jim Miller also supports a constitutional amendment on term limits for members of Congress.
Look at the facts. John Warner is not a conservative Republican, and Jim Miller is a conservative Republican. Vote for a real conservative in the June 11 primary. Vote for conservative Jim Miller.
Jason A. Walker
Jule Drive by CNB