Don't go to Mercy--I personally know far to many friends and co-workers who have had close relatives mysteriously perish during "routine" procedures fro minor issues!

This incident should not have happened, PERIOD!

"If you don't like the medical options of Janesville, or the taxes of Janesville, or the educational system of Janesville, or how they remove snow, or the government of the city, you have 2 options...Bury yourself in a pinewood box or MOVE. Please don't let the door hit you on the way out."

Really, Bigmike? Really? Die or move are the ONLY options? Sorry, but I think NOT. If anyone is unhappy with the taxes, snow removal policies, or anything that has to do with government, they CAN do something to change it through activism and grassroots participation via their, use-em-while-you-still-got-em, constitutional rights (for starters, stop re-electing the same old hacks/party over and over again). Also, nothing will get the attention of a healthcare facillity faster than a boycott of their services... go to other providers. Speak with your feet by walking away from organizations you dislike/mistrust.

Sadly, it seems that Janesville has lost someone who did make a difference by not accepting the status quo. Someone who enriched the lives of those he served with dedication and devotion. My condolences to Mr. Cain's family.

OMG somebody died... and people are bashing a hospital who is less caring where???? Get a grip... It has already been posted that the family is reading these postings... Again who is less caring and where????? Seems to me that Cain was a great guy all around and a true assett to the children he taught. My thoughts and prayers are with his family..

IF frusion KNOWS the facts, he/she should keep them to his/her self as that would be a violation of HIPPA and patients' rights. That goes for anyone. BIG NO~NO.

frusion, how do you even know he coded? or are you speculating? do YOU even know the facts?

Deepest sympathy to Mr. Cain's family. My son has Mr. Cain for his gym teacher and is very sad, as is all the students at Van Buren. Mr. Cain always had a positive attitude towards the kids and parents and always had a smile on his face. God has just hired the best gym teacher for heaven. God Bless his family and friends.

miltonalum, how can you assume some of these people were't on the floor when he coded? You sound like anyone with a negative comment knows nothing.

winterstinks~your comments are in the same category as oxymorons...

Larry was a dedicated person -- to the kids he taught; to kids state and nationwide on whos behalf he sought improvements in physical education; and to his family. While I only had the privilege of getting to know him recently, his character made a strong impression upon me. He talked with such sincere love and pride about his wife Karen and son Brian, and I am sure that they know how much he cared for them. All those who knew him will miss him greatly.

amen jaidjaco

But, like ive said before. Money talks, i suppose i would bash the competition of the person who paid me for a mainstream ad on the front page of my website too....

The Gazette obviously has it out for mercy, its obvious by poor, biased reporting on this and many previous stories. There was no need to even name Mercy in this article, it should have simply stated he passed away, then praised his many life achievements, this article should have been about celebrating his life, not scrutinizing his death.

There is nothing in the article that says this man died from the minor procedure only that he had had one the day before. I really wish everyone of you that bashes Mercy would come here and work for one day. See what we have to deal with on a daily basis and then come and bash us. Most of the staff are very caring and affectionate but if the community or the Gazette would every say something nice about Mercy it would be a miracle.

I find people, here less caring in general. They don't seem to give of themselves here. If they would love their fellow man and be less harsh, it would certainly change things for the better.

WHAT PROCEDURE WAS THIS?!? If it was minor, he did NOT get quality care. End of story. I'm not happy with the medical profession here, especially after living elsewhere, Texas, where it was EXCELLENT. I say that for both the medical field there and dental.

It sounds like Mr. Cain was a great teacher and wonderful person. He will be missed by the community. Thoughts and prayers go out to his family at this time.

You people who are bashing Mercy on this story are absolutely pathetic. You have no details, you have no facts and you dont even know what procedure he was undergoing.
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The fact that you can sit here and bash a place without being educated in the least completely discredits any of your arguments. Its just plain ignorance.

Both my children went to Van Buren and had the honor of having Mr. Cain as a teacher. He was an amazing teacher and very dedicated to his job and students. His passion will live on in his students, who remember him fondly. My families thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends. He touched the lives of so many and is greatly missed.

I am Brian Cain, and Larry was my father.

First off, I want to thank everybody for their love and support that they have shown. It has meant a great deal to my family during this extraordinary difficult time to see how many people truly loved and cared for my father.

To the people who are only here bashing Mercy, stop. This is NOT the time or place for your complaints. A good man lost his life and for you to turn this into your personal agenda, absolutely disgusts me. If you feel the need to contiunely use this space for your own personal bash, after being asked to stop then I really feel sorry for the selfish person you are showing yourself to be.

To the people discussing underlying medical conditions, please stop. You do not know, so do not speculate.

Delavan, my mom and I are unaware of any relatives that haved lived near us for the last 22 years, who are you?

Brian Cain

Depending on who conducted the study, somewhere between (approximately) 100,000 and 200,000 people die each year from preventable, in-hospital medical errors. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles... (Very old article; current statistics might be very different.)

Whatever benchmarks you choose to compare those numbers to --lightning strikes; auto accidents; gun accidents; H1N1; war; etc.-- medical errors are responsible for a outrageous number of unnecessary, tragic deaths.

As I have said in my past post,and it seems it is not reaching the ones that like to bash Mercy.THIS IS NOT THE TIME OR PLACE TO DO SO.There are alot of unhappy employees here if that is the case go elsewere for a job.I am a relative of Mr.Cain and I speak for the family please keep your posts to condolences,as we are saving comments.Thanks and GodBless.

my condolences to the family,and i agree,this is not the time or the place to be bashing mercy,take it up with the hospital,the family members do not need to read or hear anymore about the hospital,they are sad enough.

BTW~Can you show me one hospital ANYWHERE that has not had a death at some point??

All surgical procedures carry a risk of complications, and yes, death. That is why you are required to sign a consent stating that you understand that prior to any surgery. Sometimes, no matter what hospital personnel do, death can NOT be prevented. We are NOT God.

My deepest condolences to his family and friends. He sounds like a very extraordinary man.

It sounds like Mr. Cain was an extraordinary teacher. We put our children into the hands of teachers, and it is reassuring to hear the good things written about him. I wish the family and friends of Mr. Cain strength and courage to get through this difficult time. (Especially if they come back to this article.) All the wonderful things written will help family and friends during this time of grief.

I think it is really sad that instead of showing compassion for this man and his family, that all these people who know nothing about the medical field and the particulars about what happened are bashing Mercy. Stand behind your city's hospital and medical staff people-what is wrong with you!!!!

Both our kids loved having Mr Cain as a gym teacher.
Someone up stairs just hired a great physical fitness instructor.
Our prayers go out to his family.

That would be prayers of comfort and peace for this family....

My prayers of peace and comfort the this family.

Thank you, Mr. Cain, for your many years of service and the many lives you touched.

Mine is not just a feeling, thank you for asking frusion.

Yes, there are risks to many procedures, but whether at Mercy or anywhere else, ASK questions so you can be informed as to the risks. AND, ask who is going to be watching over you in the hospital--an intern or your doctor

As has been said by others, even routine medical procedures carry risks. Judging from his age, I can think of three procedures that are part of routine wellness exams. I, personally, know of people who have died during two of those "routine" procedures at one of the top 10 hospitals in the country (in another state). The only way to eliminate the risk is to not have the procedures anywhere, and run the risk of dying or suffering from the disease that they are meant to identify.

Peace and condolences to the family, friends, coworkers, and current and former students. Find strength in the great work and legacy of this outstanding man.

Larry was a great teacher who was truly passionate about education and physical fitness. He cared deeply about his students, his school and his fellow teachers. As a teacher and a friend, I hope I can live up to his great role model. He not only cared about his own teaching, but he reformed all physical education in this district and fought to get all kids physically fit. He was a leader in getting teachers the respect and working conditions they deserve. He strove to make not only himself better, but to help every person he met be a better person.
*****
I'll miss my friend and Janesville is a lesser place without this truly gifted man. Any comment about anything else in this article is rude, and the posters need to take a long hard look in the mirror.

heartfelt, jvilletech, is this just a "feeling" you have that everything was done for this man that could have or SHOULD have been done? Or do you know the facts?

This is very sad and tragic and my heart goes out to the family. As for the mercy bashing, you people need to find something else to do with your sad lives. I believe that mercy did everything that they could have done for this wonderful man and mercy bashing on a deceased mans article posting is wrong and just shows these people have nothing better to do then try to find articles about mercy and post nasty things. My heart and prayers go out to the family.

My prayers to the Cain family.

Bigmike: Thank you for your comments.

To the rest of you, this is not the place to make comments regarding a hospital, lets keep our focus on the Cain family.

Mr. Cain will truly be missed by this community.

For all you Mercy bashers, you really should hold your comments until the facts are known. Underlying medical conditions do exist in people.
And when this new hospital is done, you need to realize that people will die there too. And then when we bash that hospital, maybe we can get a third or even a fourth hospital to please all these whiners who see nothing but the negative.
For every 1 person who has a bad Mercy experience, there are 99 out there who have had a great experience. You don't get the Baldridge award for being a bunch of screw ups.
I, and members of my immediate family, have had nothing but positive experiences with the surgeons and the care received at Mercy.
If you don't like the medical options of Janesville, or the taxes of Janesville, or the educational system of Janesville, or how they remove snow, or the government of the city, you have 2 options...Bury yourself in a pinewood box or MOVE. Please don't let the door hit you on the way out.

wHaTeVer&Sandman:This is not the time and place to knock the hospital,in your opinion you can travel elsewere.The relatives do read these post and I fill offended by your remarks as I am one of his many relatives.NO hospital is 100% safe.You are just using this as a excuss to knock the Mercy system.You have a few disgrunteld(sp)employees that just jump on a story like this one.Lets learn by this and move on.

Thank you jvilletech. That is exactly what I was hoping to share. Even under the best of circumstances (the best doctors, the latest technology and the most ideal of conditions), the practice of medicine still comes down to each patient being unique. This means any procedure is not completely routine, and complications can and do occur - for every type of procedure and at any hospital. Thankfully, advances in health care have decreased the chances of complications, but risks are still there.

My sympathies are with Mr. Cain's family, especially as we enter the holiday season. I've lost loved ones during the holidays and I know how difficult it is to face this time of family and cheer without someone you care for. My thoughts are with them.

First off, my condolences to the family. I never knew the man, but from reading the comments, he was an extraordinary person.
Second, congratulations Mercy. You are the new hated employer in Janesville. This town and some of its people really do suck.

It is hard to say what you want to say. I grew up in Janesville. While growing up I wanted to work there (Mercy). Then I grew up, and worked there (not anynore). I am so glad for the new hospital that is coming. Just from what I saw while working there, and what I see as a resident of Janesville. I am glad for a choice. It is so sad when someone dies from something that should be routine. Granted, we do know that every surgery has risks. But when we see simple things like this a little too often, it is disturbing. Someone I know had a knee replacement surgery there. They were there in Mercy Manor afterwards. It bothered me that the staff would put something (pillows, knee machine, boots for the heels...) on the FLOOR when working in the room. HELLO, infection! Recent surgery, healing wound, and they put something off the floor right next to the recent surgery site? Maybe I am being too OCD, but really? Their attitude sucks also. Tired of the rude attitue I get when dealing with them. Hate to think I am in medical crisis, and they bring me there. Hope I am with it enough to say someplace else please. I don't know how it got so bad, but I would like to think people's well being would matter. Glad to see some choice available soon.

Don't be so quick to jump to conclusions. Even though some procedures are labeled "minor" does not mean they are without risk. We don't know this man's medical history. Maybe this procedure is "minor" for most but for him it could have been very risky. Don't be so quick to blame Mercy. Many people are so quick to judge this system because they have had a bad experience or have heard of someone who had a bad experience. The way I look at it is that if you are at the hospital, chances are good that you are having a bad experience anyway and nothing any one does will make you forget about your "bad" experience. Treatments even when successful are not always a very pleasant experience. Im am so sorry to hear about this man's death. My condolences to his family, friends, and students. Please remember that people who treated him may have all that they could and should not be bashed like this.

MercyEmployee, people are remembering someone lost here, I doubt anyone here cares to hear your dedication to your employer who time and time again proves it's worth, or lack there of.

My sympathies to the family, and as KateM mentioned, I am hoping people use this blog as a place to honor Mr. Cain's life, rather than speculate on his death.

As a Mercy Partner (and a patient to several of the Mercy Physicians), I'm proud of the work we do and the patients we serve, and many times we employees grieve right along with the families when we lose one of our patients.

I would ask you all to remember that someone just passed away. A family just lost someone important to them. Please focus on that and if you have a problem with Mercy, please contact Mercy directly.

Well put, Sandman. Hopefully this will open eyes and something will be done with "At Their Mercy Hospital"... that place is lethal!

Rest in peace, Mr. Cain.

BRAVO to sandman! couldn't have said it any better myself... gazette should post THAT comment in the paper! maybe some kind of change could happen now that the health officer has this horrible loss she can do something to smash mercy once and for all. PLEEEEAAASSSEEE shut them down we'd probably lose LESS people without that hospital then with it. rip

My condolences to the family, as I've lost loved ones too soon, also.

He sounds like he was a wonderful teacher, and I hope people take the time to honor his life here, since I'm sure it would mean a lot to his family and friends, to see how he influenced so many lives.

Wow, A minor sugery and he died. I'm sure there is good medical help here, but having the experience of living in Texas for a few years I was astounded at the excellent medical care they have there, so much better than what I've had in Wisconsin! The doctors and even the dentists were just excellect there, never a problem. It SHOULD be this way here, but I haven't found it.

It always seems they are taken from us way too soon.... His legend lives on!!

does anyone know the minor procedure that was done, so i can stay away from it at mercy, sorry for him, and family.

My daughter is in first grade at Van Buren. She absolutely loved Mr. Cain. She took it very hard that he is no longer with us. Meeting Mr. Cain at school events I got a very good impression from him, seemed like a very dedicated, caring man. It is so sad that he is no longer with us.

I had Mr Cain for gym class many years ago. Its really sad to hear this, it feels like another part of inner child is gone now.

Larry was a top-notch, fantastic teacher. The dedication he exhibited to his career and to his students made this man a role model to all teachers and the BEST physical education teacher I ever had the pleasure to know or work with. I wish he'd been around when I went through Van Buren! He will be missed by family and friends, staff and students alike but his passion and drive to help all his students be the best they can be both physically and mentally will mean that Larry Cain will live on for a long time to come in our hearts and memories. My heartfelt, sincerest condolences to his family. He was a special person and an educator who truly cared about his students. I have a feeling that the angels are eating healthier and doing more burpees, pushups and situps in heaven from now on.