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Today I received a message from adorned,,,her husband is still in icu,,,the ventilator has been romoved,he is on anti-biotics still for the infection and morphine,,,coughing is a major concern and congestion,,,soreness from surgery.....
Her comment is he is still alive so I will take that and hope for a better day tomorrow,,,,,his r/c was June 8th....
prayers for you both,
Ginger
H Ginger,
I can't even imagine what Adorned and her husband are going through! My sweet Ed has had so many complications also, so they are not alone. I would tell her to be researching everything when he gets home and she has the time. They need an oncologist that will tell them straight up what is going on , what his prognosis is, all about treatment, and get ready to fight after he has recouped.
Ed and I are sending all of our love, faith, and hope that he improves soon.
Love,
Candon
sending love and prayers to adorned.
thanks Ginger for the update.. it helps to hear what is happening with others...
Sending thoughts and prayers to Adorned and Husband.. Hopefully he has turned the corner and will do better with recovery..
Arlene
Praying for tremendous progress for her husband and strength for Adorned from this day forth! May he be home soon and on the road to a quick recovery! V
Also sending thoughts and prayers to the two of them; really tough time they are going through!
Eileen
I will have them in my thoughts and prayers also.
Kyle
This sounds just like what Tom and I are going through. At least we are now seeing the light.
All I can say is if adorned has access to a computer start researching. I wheeled mine in each day in a carryon bag on wheels along with everything else I needed for the day. I worked at my job from Tom's room and was able to complete 30 hours each week. I work for a great company that allows me to do this if I a need arises. I have Personal Time Off to make up the missing hours. This left me enough time to research and be Tom's private nurse.
Here are some tips for adorned.
1. Introduce yourself to each nurse as they come on.
2. Point out whichever reconstructive appliance your husband has.
3. If it is a neobladder, then educate them as to the type of flushing they need. They were constantly bringing 20 ml syringes because it had the right tip. The 60 ml syringe works so much better as it is directly into the Foley tube and a direct extraction.
4. Always smile and say you understand they do not normally have this type of care. I can honestly say that I only had one nurse that did not appreciate my "help". However, that should not deter you. Stay and watch to make sure they are doing things correctly and if not, let them know.
5. Insist that they dispose of the syringe each time after using. Make sure that the 9% saline was not kept past 36 hours from opening. Make sure that when they open a bottle, it is marked with the opening date and time on the bottle. If they do not discard it after 36 hours, do so yourself and throw out the bottle once they leave the room. Now is not the time for the hospital to be frugal. Your already infected spouse is as venerable as a newborn in their ability to fight another infection.
6. Be sure to talk directly to each doctor daily (especially the Infectious Disease doctor) to know what if any drug changes are happening. If you are not in the room when they come in, then ask the nurse to have the doctor call you.
7. Ask each nurse to give you the drug and dose of everything put into your husband's body.
8. Ask each healthcare provider the vital sign readings of your mate. Be concerned of any vital sign that either spikes up or spikes down.
9. Research each of the drugs using your laptop.
10. If they are doing some test or especially a procedure, research it to see if anything preliminary should be happening (blood thinner stopped, etc.) Do not trust the hospital or doctor to not make mistakes. You are your husband's quality control.
11. If you do not have access of a computer in the hospital room for research, then contact a friend, a family member or a member of this group to assist (me included if needed).
12. Trust your instincts and don't be embarrassed to ask questions. If you don't like the answer ask another doctor or another nurse.
You are your husband’s health surrogate, the keeper, and their protector. You are the real co-coordinator of your spouse’s care.
These infections can be really bad. When you are in a quiet time, write down any question you have so when a nurse or doctor comes in you can ask them. Find out what type of infection it is if they know. Have them spell everything out so you can research and find out everything you can about it. http://google.com is my best friend.
I assume adorned is reading these posts or someone is reading them to her. Please have her contact me directly using the Friend invitation link if she feels the need and I would be happy to give her any support I can.
Sandra
Baudine's reply is a forever keeper. We have stressed the importance of keeping a journal for the surgical patient, but her list gives the reasons why this is so important. Those who go before have so much help to offer for the next patient.
For all to see this info, it would be good for a Post be made on the subject.
Baudine, copy your reply and post it under your own heading. Many readers might miss it in this post.
Karego
Sandra, this post is soo helpful! I printed it and will keep it with me at my own surgery... thank you!
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