Mark Stoller and his wife, Andra, moved to Falcon with their family in 2007. Both are U.S. Air Force veterans and enjoy life with their daughters, extended family and adopted rescue dogs in Latigo. Mark is fortunate to have his wife and daughters as his muse for topics, people to meet and places to investigate.
The magic of lollipops
By Mark Stoller
Great news! The UC Health Urgent Care is open again in Falcon.
It just so happens that I work for UC Health as an urgent care technician (aka EMT) and can be found there on Mondays if you want to drop in, say hello, or discuss any of my columns.
As an urgent care technician, I am the one who calls you from the waiting area, plays the 20 questions game about your medical and social history, and then takes your vitals before you are seen by the provider.
When I tend to patients, I try to make them feel cared for and not just treated as part of an assembly line. I always like to find something in common or a way to share a good laugh.
Some of my other duties include giving breathing treatments, swabbing your nose or throat for cultures to be tested, drawing blood and giving shots.
Through this whole process, I have come to discover the magic of lollipops. They’re good for both children and adults.
For kids, I use them as rewards (or bribes). Sometimes misbehavior needs an incentive to change. I offer one lollipop for immediately sitting still or two lollipops if they can make it all the way to the end of my questions and vital signs.
That said, anyone who receives a shot from me gets a lollipop — children and adults.
Recently, I had an adult patient who required both a steroid and a pain relief shot. The person was in the early 50s and quite the drama queen about having to receive medicine this way. To that person’s credit, I was allowed to deliver both shots to the left hip … before a grandiose show was made of vomiting in the trash can.
The person’s new significant other was in the room for moral support during the visit. Nothing beats being early in the dating phase and seeing the true colors of someone you think you could be interested in. I gave the friend a lollipop because the friend couldn’t unsee what just happened.
I have also come to find that everyone asks the patient how they are doing, but they never ask the same question of the person they brought along for the visit like a husband, wife, girl/boyfriend or parent. With the offer of a lollipop, I compliment them on the great job they are doing in the support role to the patient. It seems to really perk them up and bring a smile to their face.
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the history of these delightful mood changers.
Candyfavorites.com tells us archaeologists believe that ancient Chinese, Arabs and Egyptians all produced fruit and nut confections that they “candied” in honey, which serves as a preservative, and inserted sticks into the confections to make it easier to eat.
In the 17th century, as sugar became more plentiful, the English enjoyed boiled sugar candy treats and inserted sticks into them to make them easier to eat, too.
Linguists say the term “lolly pop” literally means “tongue slap” since the word for “tongue” is “lolly” in Northern England and “pop” means “slap.” London street vendors might have coined this term as they peddled the treat, which was soft rather than hard, but still considered a possible forerunner to the modern lollipop.
Modern companies such as the Spangler Candy Co. (creator of Dum Dums) can produce up to 3,000,000 per day, which still hardly satisfies the nation’s sweet tooth.
So my friends, whether you need to reward/bribe a young one or perhaps take 15 minutes to remember more simple times as a youth, grab yourself a lollipop and enjoy the magic.
