Nelson Gibson, a dialysis patient from Port St. Lucie, Florida, is upset that he has been told he can’t bring his life-sized cardboard cutout of President Trump to his treatment sessions for emotional support.
The diehard Trump fan’s home is full of Trump memorabilia and he often wears clothing and even shoes that reflect his passionate support for the president.
Gibson goes through three-and-a-half-hour treatments three times a week and has found that having a picture of the president nearby makes the experience more “comfortable.”
Initially, he started bringing a framed, 8 x 10-inch portrait of Trump to his sessions and no one complained, Gibson told WPBF.
Later, his son gave him a miniature cutout of Gibson standing next to Trump that he brought to his sessions. There were no complaints about that, and in fact, some people “even took photos of the photo,” he said.
“It just feels like bringing something from home to make you comfortable,” he told the TV station.
Then he brought a large, life-sized, “thumbs up” cutout of the president and that first session, he said, no one complained.
But the second time he brought the large POTUS comfort-cutout, he was told it was “too much.”
“They told me it was too much and it wasn’t a rally,” said Gibson. He indicated that he just left without arguing.
His son, Eric Gibson, called Fresenius Kidney Care to find out what had changed. “It was supposed to be an issue of safety [regarding] infectious disease, which made no sense,” said Eric about the clinic’s response.
Nelson Gibson said that he feels like he is being treated unfairly. He said that other patients bring in items from home for comfort and support, including one woman who brings in bubble wrap. “She brings in the bubble wrapping that you put in boxes and for three and a half hours she’s pop-pop-pop-pop. That’s very nerve-racking,” Gibson said. “I don’t do anything like that. I sit there quietly, it sits near me, and that’s it.”
In a statement provided to WPBF, Brad Puffer, a spokesman for Fresenius Kidney Care wrote: “While we cannot discuss any specific individual, we strongly support the ability of all our patients to express their views, which includes bringing reasonably sized items into our dialysis centers that do not create safety or infection control issues, or interfere with caregivers on the treatment floor.”
Gibson’s family members are not certain when or if he will return to the facility for treatment.
“What I would really like to happen is for them not to infringe upon my father’s freedom of expression and speech and allow him to bring in the life-sized cardboard cutout that takes up less service area than a garbage can,” said Eric Gibson.
TDS is becoming a public health crisis.
— WatchtowerGaze (@GazeWatchtower) February 15, 2020
Liberals on social media are of course making cruel jokes about the man, but there are also plenty of people out there who understand completely and sympathize …
I have Chronic Kidney Disease. It is not easy to deal with. All Y’all making fun should be ashamed! Dialysis means End Stage Renal Disease or a Kidney Transplant!
— ??cjTNVol???♥️?? (@cjTNVol) February 15, 2020
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