I was looking at the internet recently and noticed a story on MSN titled, "Maryland Boy, 12, dies after bacteria from tooth infection spread to his brain." Now we ask, "Who is there to blame?" The family was supported by a single mother with intermittent employment & housing issues and plagued by homelessness. It appears she depended on welfare and social service systems for support.

Not playing the blame game, but this child had not been seen by a dentist in years. By the time he complained of his dental problem in the fall of 2006, the healthcare system failed to actively treat this child. They initially cleaned his teeth and consulted the mother about this child's dental problems. The dentist saw the patient several times until postponing his appointment to January 2007. I cannot image living with tooth pain for five months. There were several obstacles for the mother, including locating a dentist in her rural geographic region that treated Medicaid clients.

By January 2007, the child was admitted to the hospital for seizures due to bacteria entering his brain. They had to do emergency brain surgery, costing Medicaid $250,000.00, plus the child still suffered for almost two months post surgery and eventually died. The full story can be read at here.

I, too, have confronted the bureaucracy of the health care system. I do have benefits from a large corporation where I am employed full time. I had a toothache. I called several dentists on the health plan provided by my HMO. I was insistent and very professional, learning this skill from working in corporate America. My appointment was scheduled. The dentist initially wanted to administer pain pills and antibiotics, which I call the "wait and see" method. Prior to my appointment, I did my research. I quickly advised my dental surgeon that we were not going to play games. I informed him of my plan for my health. He complied, and I walked out with the results I had planned on at the onset. While doing my research of my past history and knowledge of infections, I knew all too well the complications of infections.

We can all analyze and be a Monday morning quarterback. Why did this child have to suffer for an $80.00 tooth extraction? What would you do to ensure your child's health is a priority? Are we handling our business and making health a priority versus having the latest and the greatest designer clothing or electronic gadget? Why didn't the social worker or teacher intervene to ensure this child's health needs were addressed? Do our schools need to better monitor our children's health? Do politicians need to ensure we have better legislation in place to ensure that we have adequate health to service the poor? Can we find humane health care providers to provide pro-bono services or reduced services to ensure indigent people will be treated humanely?

I think we can all accept some of the blame. Things like this should never happen. It is not acceptable.