Friday, April 07, 2006
Essay: What I did this March, Part 2.
So, at 6:00 a.m., once he had noted my room number and phone number and all that, spouse went home to get a few hours sleep. Right after that, more pus decided to gush out of the incision, and my nurse called over a bunch of the other nurses to see it, as none of them had ever seen anything quite like it before. They wound up using an abdominal pad rather than just gauze pads, to cover it; I got a clean hospital gown, and managed to get about half an hour of rest before other things started going on.
Here's what Sunday looked like:
8 a.m. breakfast and fresh bag of IV antibiotic.
8:40 a.m. IV finished, monitor beeps loudly till nurse comes in to re-set things.
9:00 Someone comes to take breakfast trays away.
10:00 morning medications - all my usual daily pills.
Noon - lunch brought in. (Default low-sodium tray, since I hadn't had a chance to pre-select a menu, and it included coffee, which I don't drink.) Also, another bag of IV
12:40 p.m. IV finished, nurse must attend beeping monitor
1:00 one of the miscellaneous cardiologists comes in to get my signed consent for surgery, which involves going over all the risks again. Since I am able to tell him everything that I was told on Friday, plus discuss a little about statistics and probability, and the risks of NOT getting the surgery, which they hadn't even mentioned, he agreed that yes, I probably was giving far more informed consent than most people.
2:00 Spouse returns to visit, having slept a bit, called all the necessary relatives and friends, etc.
Midafternoon sometime - the regular ward doctor drops by to see the new case and ask every single one of the same questions over again.
4:00 Another IV bag. Also, roomie's relatives and friends start showing up. She is a sweet little (4'1", she tells someone at one point) old lady, very popular. Her family and friends are nice - they all say hello to me as well, and make sure to ask if it's OK to move chairs around, etc.
4:40 IV finishes, the usual nurse needed. Also, afternoon "vital signs" - take everybody in the joint's blood pressure, pulse, and temperature.
5:00 dinner, again with coffee I don't want. But also, a menu for requesting particular food the following day!
6:00 take the dinner trays away.
8:00 visitors mostly leave, including spouse; it takes about half an hour for all of roomie's family to clear out. Also, another IV bag, and the usual follow-up 40 minutes later.
10:00 evening medications - doses of stuff that I take twice daily.
Manage to doze for over an hour!
Midnight - IV bag, of course, and
12:40 a.m. IV finished, monitor beeps, etc.
Then I manage to get almost three hours sleep!
4 a.m. another IV bag.
4:40 you guessed it
5:00 morning "vital signs" which include not only temp, BP and pulse, but also making the sleep-deprived get up and get weighed on a scale.
7:00 Dr Brinker stops by to wave hi and get me psyched up for surgery at 8:30. Spouse shows up, too, for waiting purposes.
That's not counting assorted doctors dropping in on my roomie, nor her monitor beeping for one reason or another, nor the ridiculous routine we have to go through in order to pee. So if you notice, I got maybe 4 hours sleep total in there.
At 8:30, I get wheeled off to the surgical suite!!
To be continued!
So, at 6:00 a.m., once he had noted my room number and phone number and all that, spouse went home to get a few hours sleep. Right after that, more pus decided to gush out of the incision, and my nurse called over a bunch of the other nurses to see it, as none of them had ever seen anything quite like it before. They wound up using an abdominal pad rather than just gauze pads, to cover it; I got a clean hospital gown, and managed to get about half an hour of rest before other things started going on.
Here's what Sunday looked like:
8 a.m. breakfast and fresh bag of IV antibiotic.
8:40 a.m. IV finished, monitor beeps loudly till nurse comes in to re-set things.
9:00 Someone comes to take breakfast trays away.
10:00 morning medications - all my usual daily pills.
Noon - lunch brought in. (Default low-sodium tray, since I hadn't had a chance to pre-select a menu, and it included coffee, which I don't drink.) Also, another bag of IV
12:40 p.m. IV finished, nurse must attend beeping monitor
1:00 one of the miscellaneous cardiologists comes in to get my signed consent for surgery, which involves going over all the risks again. Since I am able to tell him everything that I was told on Friday, plus discuss a little about statistics and probability, and the risks of NOT getting the surgery, which they hadn't even mentioned, he agreed that yes, I probably was giving far more informed consent than most people.
2:00 Spouse returns to visit, having slept a bit, called all the necessary relatives and friends, etc.
Midafternoon sometime - the regular ward doctor drops by to see the new case and ask every single one of the same questions over again.
4:00 Another IV bag. Also, roomie's relatives and friends start showing up. She is a sweet little (4'1", she tells someone at one point) old lady, very popular. Her family and friends are nice - they all say hello to me as well, and make sure to ask if it's OK to move chairs around, etc.
4:40 IV finishes, the usual nurse needed. Also, afternoon "vital signs" - take everybody in the joint's blood pressure, pulse, and temperature.
5:00 dinner, again with coffee I don't want. But also, a menu for requesting particular food the following day!
6:00 take the dinner trays away.
8:00 visitors mostly leave, including spouse; it takes about half an hour for all of roomie's family to clear out. Also, another IV bag, and the usual follow-up 40 minutes later.
10:00 evening medications - doses of stuff that I take twice daily.
Manage to doze for over an hour!
Midnight - IV bag, of course, and
12:40 a.m. IV finished, monitor beeps, etc.
Then I manage to get almost three hours sleep!
4 a.m. another IV bag.
4:40 you guessed it
5:00 morning "vital signs" which include not only temp, BP and pulse, but also making the sleep-deprived get up and get weighed on a scale.
7:00 Dr Brinker stops by to wave hi and get me psyched up for surgery at 8:30. Spouse shows up, too, for waiting purposes.
That's not counting assorted doctors dropping in on my roomie, nor her monitor beeping for one reason or another, nor the ridiculous routine we have to go through in order to pee. So if you notice, I got maybe 4 hours sleep total in there.
At 8:30, I get wheeled off to the surgical suite!!
To be continued!
