Another Pleasant Beaumont Monday

When I arrived this afternoon, mom was sitting up in the chair, finishing lunch. She was pleased with her mail and enjoyed a nice card and letter. She mentioned that her derriere was sore and that she had been sitting up all day. I suggested she should consider getting back in bed on the soft mattress and after making her way to the bathroom, getting cleaned up and back that's what she did. Her nurse and NA were very attentive and kept a frequent watch on her. Byron received a call from the Dr earlier today requesting approval for a blood transfusion, apparently her hemoglobin level had dropped significantly and there was some concern. After getting the okay, they were finally able to get a new IV started for the transfusion and got it up and running about the time dinner arrived.

Reverend Miller visited for a while, we enjoyed talking about a variety of topics and I shared Byron's knowledge on the Olmacher questions posed earlier. Mother shared her familiarity with the Olmacher name and rattled off several other names associated with the early days of downtown Royal Oak business. It was quite pleasant.

She has been fed, had easy access to her phone and church directory as well as her call button. I think I'll take off soon to be back early and meet with the doctor.

Sunday In Beaumont With Ruth

It has been a pretty good day for Mom. She had several visitors, including all her children. She also enjoyed sitting up in a chair and reading the paper, and visiting with a friend from church (thanks for the flowers, Kathy). After she got back in bed she commented that she had been awake all day and she's in fine spirits even though she hasn't had a nap. When I arrived around 10:30 a.m., she and Val were in xray, checking out her ribs. She forgets she napped for an hour when she got back to the room.

I cornered Dr Ordano earlier this afternoon. He still feels Mom will be able to return to rehab, hopefully by the end of the week. The results of the biopsy will not be available until the middle of the week and I'm going to check with Continuing Care about getting her back into Heartland by the weekend. He also said he will follow up with her in the Wound Center and in a couple of weeks have her evaluated for the hyperbaric oxygen treatment.

I watched as her evening nurse changed the dressing and have to say as gross as it is, it looks a whole lot better than it did on Tuesday when we were at the Wound Center. It's not pretty, but it does look better with all the dead tissue gone.

I'll be taking off in about an hour and returning tomorrow afternoon. Thanks to everyone who called and visited today; she really appreciated it.

Another Saturday night with Lawrence

As I type Mom is watching the Lawrence Welk show, her favorite, on the PBS station (it's like a time warp to the mid 1970s). She's resting okay; her right ribs are still tender, and we learned just a few minutes ago that although an x-ray was ordered, it hasn't occurred yet. Cathy, her nurse, said the mobile x-ray unit has quite a backlog so it might be a while before it happens. I didn't notice any redness or bruising, which might be present if a rib were fractured. She winces whenever she has to move, but so far hasn't asked for any pain meds.

I haven't seen the wound, but Cathy, who changed the dressing twice today, said it was fairly deep and she was surprised that it got to that state. It made me wonder if we should have been more attentive to it when she was at Heartland. They were treating it, but obviously whatever they were doing wasn't effective. So here we are.

I arrived around 10:30 this morning. One of the first things she said to me (other than where's Dave) was that she still couldn't figure out why she was in the hospital. I explained to her what I knew, and she asked why her procedure couldn't have been done as an outpatient. Poor thing. At least she has a decent room this time. The south tower is like a Hilton. There are actually shelves for flowers (which reminds me, I should pick up something for her tomorrow), the rooms are bigger and the curtains between the beds provide more privacy, halls are carpeted to cut down on noise, and of course, she has the window and a lovely view of the atrium and the faux maple trees that are in a perpetual state of early fall.

She sat in the chair about an hour before and during lunch, then we got her back in bed for a nap. I left to have lunch with Dave, Byron, and Colleen, then ran some errands. By the time I returned she was finishing up dinner, and was happy when I reported that we had lunch together. But still a pretty sad gal. She's dismayed, confused, and frustrated that she's in the hospital. And since not many of her friends know she's here, she hasn't had any visitors and only one call that I know of. So if you're inclined to visit or call, please do; she definitely rises to the occasion when people other than us are around.

And where was Dave today? He had a much deserved day off. Not quite the same as being at home but I hope he enjoyed it.

Photo credit:
Beaumont Hospital South Tower atrium from HOK|ideas work,  http://tinyurl.com/y8p94bc

As The Sun Sets......January 8, 2010

Since returning to her room, mom has been sleeping on and off, mostly on. She did eat some of the chicken sandwich and salad that were brought in, but declined dinner.
She is in some pain/discomfort but not at the site where the procedure was performed. Her right side is very painful and she was concerned that she felt bone protruding. Her nurse checked her out, pointed out that during the procedure she had been on her right side, probably longer than she is used to, and her ribs protrude on both sides of her abdomen. I mentioned her pain tolerance to the nurse and wondered if a rib could have broken due in part to her osteoperosis. She didn't think so based on her physical examination of the area and administered her regular pain medication. So she's sleeping again.

I'm going to take off, head to the house and have a quiet evening, I hope. Val will be here tomorrow so I may take the day off and enjoy some of this fine Michigan weather.

Oh yeah, Reverend Miller mentioned that Royal Oak General had an earlier name, an article in Sunday's Daily Tribune mentioned Olmacher Hospital does that sound familiar to anyone? Ask mom.

As I was leaving and thanking her nurse and aide I was informed a portable xray has been ordered to check out the rib situation. Gotta love that response time.

Can you believe it? I've actually got internet access from Meadowlark. Go figure.

Well, We're Glad That's Over

Mom was wheeled into the OR about 1240 today. The usual questions were asked and answered, forms signed and explanations offered. Earlier today Reverend Miller came by to visit and stayed with us until we were informed of the delay. Mom was glad to see him, appreciated his prayers and kind words. I was able to get out of the surgical area long enough to kill a few lung cells, grab something to eat and return to the waiting area and get settled in when Dr Ordano came out to get me at about 1:15.

He reports that the wound did go to the bone and they were able to clean away all the dead tissue as well as the wound area. They took a sliver of the bone and a sample of the tissue and sent them to pathology for evaluation. It should be some time in the middle of the week before the results are in and mom will remain in Beaumont until then.

While in the hospital, mom will continue to receive antibiotics to fight infections and since he has put no restrictions on her, should be able to get up and walk about as much as she can tolerate. He also said it would be okay to return to Heartland and resume physical therapy adding the staff there should be able to continue to treat the wound side.

Dr Ordano said the healing process will be slow for mom due to the soft tissue necrosis he mentioned earlier. He also said that since the dead tissue has been removed there may be some discomfort or pain returning to the area. He has written orders for inject-able pain medication should that be necessary.

We also discussed the hyperbaric oxygen treatment he mentioned earlier. She will need to be evaluated before it can begin, if it starts it will last for 6 weeks and is a 2 hour treatment Monday - Friday. Since medicare is paying for this, there are stringent governmental criteria that must be met. (I'll spare readers my comment about the chamber Michael Jackson had.)

She should be out of recovery and back in her room by now so I'm going to post this and go see how she is doing. Thanks for your patience.