My friend's brother is an ER dr. in D.C. who just tweeted:

[redwitch]

RJ Terry Fairbanks on Twitter
“When I'm assessing patients' level of orientation, it seems that I can no longer ask them who the president is... It appears to upset them.”
TWITTER.COM|BY RJ TERRY FAIRBANKS

[Solly Mack]

1. I got asked that in the recovery room yesterday. My response? I need more pain medicine now.

[gademocrat7]

4. How are you Solly?

Wishing you a speedy recovery.

[Solly Mack]

7. I'm doing OK. Been sleeping a lot.

The doc said the pain would get worse on day 2 and worse still on day 3, and today is day 2. I'd laugh about it all but it hurts to move my mouth.

Thanks for asking!

[redwitch]

8. Here's to Day 4!

( and a better political reality)

[Solly Mack]

9. I'm looking forward to day 4. :)

A better political reality sounds wonderful!

[bdamomma]

14. Have a speedy recovery Solly

take care

[Solly Mack]

43. Thank you, bdamomma

[Cha]

19. Healing thoughts for you, Solly

[Solly Mack]

44. Thank you, Cha!

Love wild flowers.

[2naSalit]

21. When it stops hurting...

keep smiling!

[Solly Mack]

45. lol! I'll try

[irisblue]

18. better days soon Solly

[Solly Mack]

46. For us all!

Thanks, irisblue.

[calimary]

25. Aw, hope you start feeling better soon!

[Solly Mack]

47. Thanks, calimary.

I hope.

[secondwind]

50. Sunday can't come soon enough.. I have a feeling you are going to be a-ok :-)

[Solly Mack]

55. Thanks!

I love you guys and that's not just the pain medicine talking.

[Lucky Luciano]

15. Best wishes and speedy recovery!

Curious - did the doctor understand your joke?

[Solly Mack]

48. Yes, and she didn't like it. She actually frowned disapprovingly at me.

It was a nurse trying to get me to wake up. I was awake, just in pain and keeping my mind focused on other things. She asked a few questions - my name, my DOB, where I was, and who is the president.

Thanks, Lucky Luciano!

[suffragette]

56. Solly, Much love and healing thoughts to you.

[Cattledog]

2. Here's the tweet

Link to tweet

[marybourg]

3. Several times when DH was assessed for possible stroke

the ONE thing he did remember was that his President was named Obama.

[mopinko]

5. this occurred to me the other day, too.

these days i bet most people can finally tell you who their senators are, tho.

[Stonepounder]

10. I live in Ky. I keep trying to FORGET who the Senators from Ky are.

I refuse to call them MY Senators, any more than Mr. Trump is MY President!

[BBG]

16. Just don't forget to call them

All those republican congress critters need to hear from their constituents. A lot.

[calimary]

32. YES from me, too, Stonepounder!

Even if you can't stand them, they still need to hear from you! They need to start feeling a "build the wall" sense developing around them, as in walls closing in around them.

They still need to hear from you.

Just imagine - you add your voice in with both of 'em (PLUS your Congress-critter), and contribute to what I enjoy imagining, myself: Just imagine: every morning when they wake up, even before they completely DO wake up, the VERY first thing they do is reach over to the Maalox bottle on their bedside table. EVERY morning.

I had that experience, myself, at one station where a very good situation abruptly changed in upper management, and very soon became very bad. And when THAT started happening, I knew my body was telling me loudly and clearly that it was time to find another gig get the hell outta there.

[cannabis_flower]

52. I do but

I get the feeling that my call doesn't make any difference (Ted Cruz and John Cornin).

[coco22]

57. Keep calling anyway..

[Equinox Moon]

6. I believe that to be true.

[Hoyt]

11. When my father-in-law was developing dementia, neurologist asked him who the Prez is, he said Gore.

The doctor looked at us and I laughed. Told the doctor that he knows who the President is, he just thinks bush is going to get us in a war and stole the election. The doctor grunted, no humor. This was probably a few months before 9/11.

[murielm99]

12. My brother said the same thing when he had a stroke.

They asked him who was President. He shouted, AL GORE!"

The nurse told him he was doing quite well.

[orleans]

42. lol n/t

[dflprincess]

30. My mom had had emergency surgery and for a 79 year old was making a great recovery

They did send a social worker in to assess her to make sure she could go home by herself.

So the, young, overly cheerful SW asks "Who is the president?"

Well, Mom hated George W. and, as a rule, she referred to him as "that ass". I could see her trying to decide how to answer the question without using any vulgarities (which she rarely did, but for Bush she made an exception). I could see the SW looking at her and thinking the poor dear couldn't remember.

Finally Mother says "Well, Gore won but Bush is living in the White House."

The SW replied "Your surgeon said she thought you didn't need this interview and I see she was right."

Thus ended the assessment.

[orleans]

41. great story! n/t

[kerry-is-my-prez]

66. There aren't too many social workers who are Republican. It pretty much goes against our code

of ethics.

[dflprincess]

67. My degree is in social work

though I worked in the field for a very short time before I went down in a different direction (it just sort of happened).

Not surprised that at all there are very few Republicans among you!

[skylucy]

13. My parents are both almost 90 and let me tell you, if the doctor asked either one of them

who the President is, they would become very upset and have a few things to say about our current Orange Asshole. And their blood pressure would probably go through the roof. Much better to ask them who their two favorite presidents ever are... They would say Franklin Roosevelt and Barack Obama.

[WePurrsevere]

51. My dad's 95, been a lifelong registered Republican, is furious with his party and

you should hear him go on about Trump... he sounds like me (and pretty much every DUer)...lol.

After listening to him for years I don't think he's voted for a Republican presidential candidate for many years (I know he overall has liked and voted for Obama and Hillary) except for in the primaries. He's thoroughly disgusted and thinks the vast majority of Republicans have basically lost their minds.

[skylucy]

62. He sounds like a gem! I had hoped there were lots of Republicans who saw Trump for the

dangerous idiot that he is, but sadly most didn't "get it" like your dad does. Thanks for sharing this.

[TheBlackAdder]

17. I bet it does! They're either a lunatic supporter or saddened that the US is taking Russia's lead!

[unblock]

20. Funny, though I was trained to avoid that question anyway

Mainly because not everyone actually knows the name of the president, but also because it gives done people "test stress". Asking their name, where they are, and what day it is doesn't make people feel like they're back in school taking a test.

[dalton99a]

22. Donald Trump is hazardous to your health.

[Doreen]

26. In multilple ways.

[47of74]

23. If he wanted an answer from me I wonder what he would've thought

...when I said a he's a big dumb fuck, dumb ass, cheap, lying, no-good, rotten, four-flushing, low-life, snake-licking, dirt-eating, inbred, overstuffed, ignorant, blood-sucking, dog-kissing, brainless, dickless, hopeless, heartless, fat-ass, bug-eyed, stiff-legged, spotty-lipped, worm-headed sack of monkey shit complete with orange tapeworms in it! Hallelujah! Holy shit! Where's the Tylenol?

[redwitch]

24. LOL!

I think he would have asked you to hold that thought while he brought in the rest of the staff so you could say it again.

[47of74]

38. Yeah and he'd probably be like, "He's fine."

[Doreen]

27. Gotta love Christmas Vacation.

[47of74]

39. A classic

[irisblue]

29. I will be using this.

[47of74]

37. Please feel free to do so.

Glad you liked it!

[Takket]

28. "Who's the president?"

"Hillary Clinton"

"You are fine. You can go home."

[liberal N proud]

31. My answer would be, we don't have one

[annabanana]

53. or "Vlad". .

[elleng]

33. HAHAHAHA!

[still_one]

34. LOL that question was poised to me I would answer, "President Obama, I do not recognize Donald Trump

as President"

[IronLionZion]

35. Yeah, they had this joke even when Reagan was president

because people couldn't believe that an actor had been elected president

[Fast Walker 52]

61. yeah, I suspect this is repurposed, but probably more true than ever

[Crunchy Frog]

36. I'd probably answer "Vladimir Putin".

[CC]

40. I have been calling him Trumpmirkov so oftern I would probably fail.

Or pass while they laughed.

[tavalon]

49. My answer would be Putin

so I guess I would seem disoriented. I'm not.

[Akamai]

54. Me too doing mental status examinations.

Even many (perhaps most) cognitively impaired people that I evaluate are repulsed by Trump and refuse to say his name, although they can say the name of Pres. Obama and oftentimes President Bush, etc.

I give them credit if they say "I know who he is but I don't want to say the name." I probably should also give them credit for additional good sense.

[napi21]

58. I thought about that yesterday. I was asked that question, many years ago, after I had fallen and

knocked unconscious. It was the January, just after Clinton had taken office. Of course my answer was Clinton, with a big smile. Yesterday, I wondered what my answer would be NOW? I haven't said his name since the election, and WON'T until he's out of the WH, and maybe NEVER. I have been calling him The Con, and most likely would answer with that. I wonder if the doc. wouldr then think I wasn't coherent, or if he/she would understand?

[Yavin4]

59. My response would be: "It's Trump. Just let me die. I won't be able to afford this" n/t

[Fast Walker 52]

60. I laughed, but sadly true

[keepthemhonestO]

63. LOL I just retweeted it, funny

[loribelle]

64. My dad, who's 73

and has spent a lot of time in ERs and doctor's offices the last few years, would probably say Putin.

He's been pretty pissed off for several months about their politics. He lives with me and we are in deep red Alabama. He's started to retaliate by making memes, which is its own kind of awesome lol.

[Foo Fighter]

65. I think I'd probably reply

"Of the free world? Why, Angela Merkel, of course."