The APF Video Project

Jim (and Anita)

The next interview finds me in my own home in Woburn, where I’ve set up a makeshift studio in my (feels like December) basement. There, it’s easier to set up the appropriate lighting, camera and TV as a monitor for a perfect high-definition interview.

I am grateful that our next interviewees were amenable to driving two hours from their home in Connecticut. I’ve talked to Jim’s wife (Anita) several times, but I’ve never met Jim; so it was particularly interesting to welcome them both into our home. This interview on camera would include both of them — Jim would receive the “scripted” thematic questions, while Anita’s questions would be more aligned with her experience as a spouse and patient advocate for her husband. Here’s Jim laughing at one of my goofy jokes.

The forecast for later that Saturday night was for several hundred feet of snow, so upon their arrival, we didn’t waste any time readying ourselves for the interview. We got right into the interview and scripted questions with Jim. I was impressed with his candor and emotions, as he shared his humbling stories that recounted fifteen years of debilitating lumbar spine pain. He was quite eloquent in describing the severity of the pain, the meds he tried which were not terribly effective and the crushing burden of emotional and psychological pressures that come along with these nasty conditions. Towards the end of the interview, we talked about his three-level artificial disc replacement and the surprisingly long time it took to fully recover from that procedure. Seeing how healthy Jim is now, it is hard to believe that he spent 1/3 of his life in this hell. Jim confessed his inexperience in communicating his thoughts about these complex matters, but his honesty and humility was - and is - very clear. After the interview, I felt like I interviewed someone that went through a long and uncertain war. Upon reflection, I suspect I did.

Ten minutes after finishing the interview with Jim, Anita was trying to get comfy for the less-than-scripted interview. After my amateurish camera focusing, wireless mike challenges and awkward false-starts, we discussed the possible interview subjects: helping and supporting a spouse with serious spine issues, patient advocacy…and even some of the “bigger” issues that compare U.S. spinal care with our European counterparts. But we spent most of the time covering the details of how Jim’s bad back affected the entire family, especially the relationships with their sons. It was really difficult to hear Anita recall those tough days: Jim coming home and having to lie on the floor every night (with the dog), the many meds he carried with him at all times in a cooler, the strains on the marriage…

Our conversation then moved from the role of Anita “the spouse” to Anita the “patient coordinator.” Anita’s former experience in a busy German Spine Clinic allowed her to see “the good, the bad and the ugly” of spine surgery, where she met people from all over the world and tended to their many needs. This interview in of itself could constitute a separate documentary for spine patients, doctors and policy-makers!

It will be tough to whittle down this footage of both Jim and Anita (100 minutes) into segments that appear in the final video. Coincidentally, the final video is planned to be 100 minutes. What a challenge ahead for me and Moki!