Anyone who has a loved one in prison knows without a doubt that the medical and dental care that our loved ones get is less than stellar. While being unemployed for two years has given me a bit of insight into this issue since I got NO medical care during that time. But inmates put up with quite a bit more than what I had to go through.
Today Lorne finally got in to see the dentist. He jammed one of his front teeth in a basketball game about 4 months ago and it has been bothering him all this time. In one of our many phone discussions about this issue, I felt that it was just a loose tooth and there really wasn't much that could be done to it. His best course of action would be to try and not use it and just keep an eye on it in case it starts to darken. Well that didn't happen but it was still causing him some discomfort. So about a month ago, he asked for and got a dental call slip and today was his appointment. So he shows up 15 minutes early and waits. He gets called in at his scheduled time and the dentist isn't quite sure what is going on with his tooth. He takes three x-rays to get a better look but still can't see anything. So the doctor pronounces that it could be several things and Lorne's treatment options are: 1. have a root canal 2. the tooth could be extracted 3. you can leave the tooth alone to see if anything happens. So Lorne is getting all geared up mentally to have the root canal done and the dentist promptly follows all the previous information with "...and we don't do root canals here". So Lorne is left with two choices...get the tooth pulled or wait and do nothing. Given that this was one of his front teeth, he opted to do nothing in the hopes that the tooth will eventually heal itself (the dentist thinks it may have a hairline fracture but he can't be sure since there was nothing conclusive on the x-ray)
This decision cost Lorne $8. Now keep in mind while Lorne gets some financial support from his family, his job pays him a whopping $14 a month. The state is required to give them dental check ups every year but god forbid if there is anything beyond a filling or extraction that needs to be done...you ain't gonna get it. Lorne already has problems with his jaw due to the beating he took (the one that landed him in jail) and good dental care is important to his ability to chew his food properly and have good digestion.
It is no wonder that so many inmates come out of jail with most of their teeth missing. Those that can't get into a dentist quickly enough have been known to pull their own teeth. (I wouldn't recommend that) You read that right peeps...people pulling their OWN teeth!!!
Sad...so very sad. I for one am glad that Lorne decided to sit back and wait this out...he's got a cute smile and it would be a shame if he ended up looking like a toothless wonder.
No comments:
Post a Comment