Dean Heber has spent his life going in and out of hospitals. He's 23 and was born with developmental delays that have severely impacted his health. He also suffers from epilepsy and cerebral palsy. These conditions mean that he's a regular visitor the hospitals in and around Winnipeg, Canada.
Being a "regular" at a hospital is not something anyone should want. It means you've been a frequent enough face for staff, who see thousands of new people every week, to recognize you, and get to know you. Heber and his mother Michelle, make the most of it, and staff at Concordia hospital did something so special for Dean, that for once she and her son were happy to be there.
Over the past few years Heber has been fighting recurring pneumonia resulting in sometimes month-long hospital stays. Normally they go to the Health Services Centre closer to their home, but when he took ill earlier this year, they were sent to Concordia hospital.
The change of scenery initially upset Dean, but it didn't take long for him to charm the nurses and doctors.
"The staff there have fallen in love with my son," Michelle gushed.
Bedside manner is important to any doctor, but the ones at Concordia weren't going to stop at a few bad jokes and compliments. They noticed something about Dean's stuffed animal and hatched a plan.
See what they did for him on the next page!
With so many hospital trips Dean's parents like to try to do something nice for him. There's not a lot which will completely eliminate the stress of a visit, but each time they go they buy him a new stuffed animal. It's a small thing that makes Dean a lot happier.
The people who treat Dean quickly caught on to the tradition, and learned to treat his stuffed animals like his pets, so when one came in with holes and stuffing coming out, they knew what to do.
Calling in a team of nurses, the doctor treating Dean started suiting up for surgery, right in Dean's room. They wheeled in a table and started "operating" on the large stuffed husky that Dean had brought with him.
While the staff went about their procedure, speaking in medical jargon and swiftly "saving" the animal the Hebers looked on in awe. Michelle and her husband were shocked, but Dean laid there with a huge smile on his face.
"It brought a tear to our eye. They sewed him up right on the bed. It looks like they actually used sterile gloves and equipment too," she said. "It brought so much joy to everybody."
She said that after 2 months you really get to know and love the people around you. Dean doesn't speak, but his mother says it's obvious he's happy.
"I can't really ask him but I think he's very happy someone was looking after his stuffed animals for him."
Dean and his family have a hard road ahead, but with people like those at Concordia it will hopefully be a little easier.