Healing The Wrong Rotator Cuff

One of the hazards of surgery is accidentally removing the wrong body part. There are thousands of cases of “medical misadventures” every year; patients who have the wrong kidney removed, the wrong leg amputated, or just about any other mistake you can think of. Patients are never happy about it.

Is it possible to accidentally heal the wrong body part?

And if you did, how would the patient react?

Today I prayed with a sweet elderly woman who was admitted for nausea and back pain. During her stay, she developed short pauses in her heart rhythm.

It was decided that she was at risk for complete heart block, so her doctor arranged to have her transferred to a larger hospital where she would have a pacemaker implanted.

She was the sweetest little old lady. I told her I’d adopt her as my grandmother if she wanted another grandson. She didn’t want anyone to make a fuss over her and smiled about everything. During the transport, I put the blood pressure cuff on her left arm. She asked me to be careful with her arm because she had a torn rotator cuff in her left shoulder.

Because her arm was too small for a regular cuff, I gently wrapped the pediatric cuff around her upper arm and ask if she wanted to be healed. I told her I see a lot of people healed in the ambulance and shared a few stories. She was delighted to have me pray for her.

I don’t like methods very much, but this is one that I routinely use for healing orthopedic injuries. I rarely deviate from it, unless the Holy Spirit shows me something different. Most of the people I pray for with sprains, strains, tears, and fractures are healed this way.

I asked the Holy Spirit to come with his power and presence and prayed over her shoulder three times. I also commanded her heart to be healed. After each time, I asked if she felt anything or if she could raise her arm. She didn’t feel anything and couldn’t lift her arm when I was done. I’ll admit, I was a bit puzzled. I really expected her to be healed.

We continued the transport and I did my charting. Ten minutes later, just before we arrived at the destination hospital, she raised her right arm in surprise and said, “I can’t believe it. My shoulder is healed.”I was confused, so I asked what she meant.

What she didn’t tell me was that her right shoulder also had a torn rotator cuff. She had the same limited range of motion on the right as she did on the left. Her right hand is her dominant hand; it’s the one she really needed to have healed. She was overjoyed that her right shoulder was healed and didn’t care that the left one wasn’t. She was praising Jesus as we wheeled her into the hospital.

We took her to the cath lab and transferred her to the bed. I gave report. Yes, I told them she was healed on the way. The gals in the cath lab have been hearing the stories about healing. Maybe one day soon they’ll have stories to share with me.

I suppose it’s possible that her other shoulder may have been healed as well. She might have noticed that ten minutes after we left. We’ll never know for sure. If you pray for one of your patients and accidentally heal the ‘wrong’ part, you’re not likely to hear a complaint. Patients are generally grateful for anything miraculous.