An Out of Body Experience

Not really. It was just so other worldly at the new Cleveland Clinic Heart Center! We took the tour yesterday at the invitation of our son who is the computer support for the entire building!! It is a technological wonder and so clean and white it seemed unreal.
There are robotic units for surgeries, 6 television screens(or monitors) in the OR so the doctor and his team can see what they are doing even better than ever and all the rooms are private with flat screen televisions. The daily necessities of the hospital are in cupboards so the patient doesn't have to stare at them all day. Everything has been planned and designed to make the whole hospital experience the least traumatic possible.
We saw the guts of the building where the air is recirculated for maximum health benefits and the water is cooled and the cafeteria's water supply is recycled and I don't know what else was hooked up. We went up to the roof where there is a panorama of the city for patients and their families to enjoy and plenty of space to relax.
There is a massage room where a patient can schedule a massage just for comfort's sake. The television monitors will have soothing pictures and music. If you have to be sick, this is the way to go!
The patients move over in two weeks and the first surgery is scheduled for Wednesday of that week. My son is moving over there on Wednesday of this week. As we traveled the building he was on the lookout for any computers that weren't working properly so he could get right to work. His office is in another building but hopefully that will be remedied soon. He is really excited to be working there as the building is a modern marvel. It will be a lot of work but he is ready.
I have to admit it was all a little surreal. Once you left the building it was like remembering a dream. We sat at the deli across the street and wondered at the experience. I always said that patients at the hospital and their loved ones had a surreal experience(hence keeping McDonald's at the Clinic --for a touch of familiarity) and now it will be even more so!
If you get a chance to visit(and I hope not as a patient or visiting a loved one) you should. It is an amazing place!