Hospital Days

A Memoir

by Hudson Owen

This title was previously available on NetGalley and is now archived.

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Pub Date Dec 22 2014 | Archive Date Aug 09 2015

Description

During the late Sixties, I worked in a number of hospitals as an aide or orderly. Two of them were world famous: McLean Hospital, Belmont, Massachusetts; and the Massachusetts General Hospital, in downtown Boston. Two were in Toronto. They were my first full time jobs.

I saw incredible things, people and incidents that have stayed with me all these years: the managed blood of surgery, the chaos of emergency, tense moments in a mental ward.

These are human-interest stories, with a smattering of medical terms, where appropriate. It’s about what happened in the hospital and outside the hospital during a turbulent period in history. I learned about life and death in hospitals, which has tempered my understanding of the world ever since. Approximately 17,000 words. I am a published poet and author, produced playwright in New York City, digital artist, and wilderness canoeist.

During the late Sixties, I worked in a number of hospitals as an aide or orderly. Two of them were world famous: McLean Hospital, Belmont, Massachusetts; and the Massachusetts General Hospital, in...

Advance Praise

Since this is my era and hospitals were my place of employment, I signed up to review this book. An interesting look back at the generation of men who were attempting to find themselves and their way in life with the Vietnam War constantly intruding. Well-written and readable. Reminded me of many things I have forgotten from that era.

Nancy K.

By that heading I mean this author tells it like it was and reveals more of himself than most which was thoroughly refreshing. You would swear you were listen to him tell his story across from you at your kitchen table.

readinglarge

The book contains raw, emotion filled memories that pull the reader back in time,into the years of the Moon Landing and the Vietnam War. Hudson does not hold back on the details when he talks about his daily life in various hospitals, or about the liberal drug use that was commonplace at the time.

James H. Mayfield

Owen was a compassionate humane caregiver in this mentally and physically demanding line of work, his story covers a time when non-licensed hospital workers provided more care, treatments, passing medication etc. This was a well written narrative of hospital care in the 1960's and 1970's.

Michele Short