Sorry to have gone silent for a few days; I have been very busy. Mary Ann has had a couple of physical therapy sessions and is responding well. Jean and her children, Jacob and Norah, arrived from San Diego late Saturday night. Children and grandchildren continue to visit. I awoke on Sunday with a painful eye inflamation called iritis, but after a few doctor visits, I have drops to alleviate it. The major issue now is when can Mary Ann come home. Many people at the rehab facility are very nice; however, there is a level of mystery about how things work and who is in charge of what. We have not been able to find one person who feels overall responsibility for Mary Ann's recovery and progress. We don't get the good feeling that everyone who comes into the room to assist Mary Ann knows that she had a hip replacement and understands the restrictions of movement that she is under. Nothing bad has happened as a result of this, but it was eye-opening to realize this.
Mary Ann wants to come home after a week. This morning we will have a home visit with an occupational therapist. Mary Ann and I will drive home. The OT will also drive to our house. Then the three of us will go through the house and learn how risky a return home would be at this stage of her rehab.
We will see what happens. Thanks to all who are keeping her and us in their thoughts and prayers. It's very disconcerting to realize you don't know who is the chief, so to speak. In our minds now, we have grabbed the reins, and we hope we don't make any missteps.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Transfer, transition, and adjustment
Yesterday was such a day for Team Mary Ann. The surgeon gave his okay for her to be discharged shortly after 7:30 A.M. It was 1:30 PM when we began the ride to the rehab place. This is not to criticize; the hospital staff was great. But there is much paperwork and data entry involved that seems to have to be handled by the nursing staff. At Life Care, the room was ready for us, as promised. It's a private room, nice sized. We met many people. They all seem very nice. There was lots of paperwork to be dealt with, and much information to be digested. Barbara visited again, alongwith Lauren and Ally. Ally brought card/poster #4, a beautiful rainbow. We took advantage of the new location to get a great sandwich fromTooJays for our lunch/dinner. I'm pressed for time now, but I hope to add more information and upload some photos later.
Friday, June 24, 2011
Patient to be discharged this morning, doctor confirms
After examining the patient this morning, Dr. McCutchen told her she could leave the hospital today. This usually happens before noon, they say. The rehab facility awaits, Life Care Center of Altamonte Springs, 407 831-3446. I will post when we get settled there and as soon as I learn whether there are any restrictions on visitors.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Thursday
Mary Ann had a very restless and sleep-deprived night, so after the doctor examined her this morning, he decided she should remain in the hospital today instead of being discharged. This was a disappointment, of course, but we do expect her to be discharged tomorrow. In spite of the very difficult night, she was able to do her twice daily walks in the hallway. The afternoon walk was the longest one I've seen. So her recovery from hip surgery is progressing well, and we are looking forward to a good week in the rehab facility.
No photos today, sorry.
No photos today, sorry.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Mid afternoon
It's quiet now here in 2803, Wednesday, Mary Ann's third day in the hospital. Mary Ann is resting peacefully after her afternoon walk and exercise session. She has warmed to the task of regaining her walking ability. The improvement in her walking since the surgery on Monday and the almost complete lack of pain are nothing short of amazing. I feel the support of many people who have been praying for her, and I know she does, too. I have to stop now; we have more visitors: Jackie from the cathedral and her daughter, Monica.
It was a nice surprise to see them, and it was very kind of them to visit, because it was the end of their day and they must have gone out of their way to come to the hospital. Earlier in the day, Sr. Mary Katherine Palisan, also of the cathedral staff came and visited. This was before I arrived. Sister gave Holy Communion to Mary Ann, so her visit was a very special one indeed!
In the early afternoon, Barbara arrived again. She brought Ally and Ryan with her, and Ally had yet another personal, hand made Get Well card.
It's a Teddy Bear that she drew based on a sketch she found on the internet. She showed me the sketch; it was on her iPhone, and the resemblance is striking. The bear is holding a stick with a balloon on the end of it. The balloon says, "Get well soon!" It reminded me of the bear her cousin Lukas has, which is named "Golden Bear." If he brings it this weekend, I will compare them,
I decided to take a closer photo of two of Ally's cards, and here it is:
I feel better just looking at them!
Finally, Mary Ann's excellent nurse today, Jeff, told us he wouldn't be there tomorrow, Mary Ann's final day at the hospital. So I asked if he'd let me take a photo with the patient. He willingly went along, and this is what resulted:
Jeff was a really good guy and a darn good nurse, too. He took good care of Mary Ann.
A representative from Life Care Center of Altamonte Springs, the rehab facility that Mary Ann's moving to tomorrow, stopped in to give us some useful information. It didn't surprise me that this lady was very nice, because the facility was recommended highly to us as being clean and having an excellent staff of physical and occupational therapists. Mary Ann has responded well to the walking and exercises in the hospital, so I am hoping for continued improvement a she moves to the next step towards resuming a normal life. Stay tuned!
It was a nice surprise to see them, and it was very kind of them to visit, because it was the end of their day and they must have gone out of their way to come to the hospital. Earlier in the day, Sr. Mary Katherine Palisan, also of the cathedral staff came and visited. This was before I arrived. Sister gave Holy Communion to Mary Ann, so her visit was a very special one indeed!
In the early afternoon, Barbara arrived again. She brought Ally and Ryan with her, and Ally had yet another personal, hand made Get Well card.
It's a Teddy Bear that she drew based on a sketch she found on the internet. She showed me the sketch; it was on her iPhone, and the resemblance is striking. The bear is holding a stick with a balloon on the end of it. The balloon says, "Get well soon!" It reminded me of the bear her cousin Lukas has, which is named "Golden Bear." If he brings it this weekend, I will compare them,
I decided to take a closer photo of two of Ally's cards, and here it is:
I feel better just looking at them!
Finally, Mary Ann's excellent nurse today, Jeff, told us he wouldn't be there tomorrow, Mary Ann's final day at the hospital. So I asked if he'd let me take a photo with the patient. He willingly went along, and this is what resulted:
Jeff was a really good guy and a darn good nurse, too. He took good care of Mary Ann.
A representative from Life Care Center of Altamonte Springs, the rehab facility that Mary Ann's moving to tomorrow, stopped in to give us some useful information. It didn't surprise me that this lady was very nice, because the facility was recommended highly to us as being clean and having an excellent staff of physical and occupational therapists. Mary Ann has responded well to the walking and exercises in the hospital, so I am hoping for continued improvement a she moves to the next step towards resuming a normal life. Stay tuned!
Some information of possible interest
Mary Ann can be reached by phone at Winter Park Hospital, 407 646-7000. Her room number (and phone extension) is 2803. She is scheduled for discharge tomorrow morning, sometime after breakfast and before lunch. After that, she will be in a rehab facility for what we expect to be one week. We don't know which facility yet, but we gave the hospital our first and second choices, and they said they would make arrangements. Visiting hours at the hospital seem to be almost any time, but they lock the front doors at 9:00 PM.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Day #2
Day 2 was another good day. Barbara came to visit and brought another one of the decorative Get Well cards that Ally made for her. The larger one came yesterday, and is quite well done. The smaller one in the shape of a flower blossom is today's. Each petal has a get well message artfully written on it. I can hardly wait to see tomorrow's card, which we think Ally will deliver herself!!
Then Lynda came from work to visit. She brought a sweet surprise, a coconut-chocolate gelati from the Jeremiah's in Winter Park! Yum, yum! Mary Ann could only eat a little bit of it, and it was melting fast, so I pitched in and helped her out!
Later in the afternoon, Angela, one of the physical therapists and her helper, whose name I did not get, came in for Mary Ann's second walk of the day. We'd been told she did really great in the morning, having walked out of her room and about ten feet down the hallway before feeling a touch of dizziness. This afternoon, she beat that record, going past her morning limit by maybe another six feet or so. The dizziness is expected; we were told that all patients experience it but after different distances. Here's Mary Ann in the hallway this afternoon. The helper is pushing the chair from Mary Ann's room--keeping it close behind in case she would fall. Amazing.
Finally, Danielle, her sweet nurse for both days, came in to say goodbye. She'd be off for the next several days and wouldn't return before Mary Ann is discharged on Thursday, so she wanted to tell us she enjoyed meeting us and our family, and she wished us well!! She agreed to pose for a photo, and here it is. We will miss her, she took very good care of Mary Ann.
I want to add that Tom also visited again today. He and Barbara brought some flowers that brightened up the room. Unfortunately, I didn't get a photo of Tom or the flowers.
Later, Renee Jones from the Cathedral stopped in for a visit, and Peggy Smith, also from St. James, called to ask how Mary Ann was doing.
We are very fortunate to have such good children and grandchildren, and good friends, too.
[I changed the time display to the Eastern Time Zone]
Then Lynda came from work to visit. She brought a sweet surprise, a coconut-chocolate gelati from the Jeremiah's in Winter Park! Yum, yum! Mary Ann could only eat a little bit of it, and it was melting fast, so I pitched in and helped her out!
Later in the afternoon, Angela, one of the physical therapists and her helper, whose name I did not get, came in for Mary Ann's second walk of the day. We'd been told she did really great in the morning, having walked out of her room and about ten feet down the hallway before feeling a touch of dizziness. This afternoon, she beat that record, going past her morning limit by maybe another six feet or so. The dizziness is expected; we were told that all patients experience it but after different distances. Here's Mary Ann in the hallway this afternoon. The helper is pushing the chair from Mary Ann's room--keeping it close behind in case she would fall. Amazing.
Finally, Danielle, her sweet nurse for both days, came in to say goodbye. She'd be off for the next several days and wouldn't return before Mary Ann is discharged on Thursday, so she wanted to tell us she enjoyed meeting us and our family, and she wished us well!! She agreed to pose for a photo, and here it is. We will miss her, she took very good care of Mary Ann.
I want to add that Tom also visited again today. He and Barbara brought some flowers that brightened up the room. Unfortunately, I didn't get a photo of Tom or the flowers.
Later, Renee Jones from the Cathedral stopped in for a visit, and Peggy Smith, also from St. James, called to ask how Mary Ann was doing.
We are very fortunate to have such good children and grandchildren, and good friends, too.
[I changed the time display to the Eastern Time Zone]
A Good Day
I got to her room about the same time the patient did, I'd say about 1:15 PM or so. Her very nice nurse, Danielle, explained how everything in the room works and made sure all instrumentation and the IV were properly applied and working. Visiting hours, she explained, were any time during the day, but at 9:00 PM, the front doors were locked. When the patient is hungry, she should call the food service and order what she wants (they’ll give her a menu each day), and they’ll bring it within 30 minutes. Danielle explained how the pain medication equipment works and that a physical therapist would stop by later in the day to try to get her out of bed to take a few steps.
The patient dozed on and off, ordered from the liquid diet on her menu and ate some of it, and watched some TV. We had visitors and phone calls from children, Barbara, Lauren, Ally, and Ryan stopped in for a nice visit. Ally made a very nice get–well card, like a mini-poster, which she gave to the patient! Tom stopped in and we had a nice visit with him. We also had visitors from the Cathedral, Fr. John and Kimberly Jennings, who stopped in for a nice visit and chat.
The physical therapist arrived late in the afternoon, and did a wonderful job of helping the patient prepare to get out of bed by disengaging monitoring and other equipment, then helping her to get out and stand while holding on to a walker. She took several steps forward and then several steps backward. Back in bed after that, the PT helped her perform some very light exercises with both legs. The patient did very well.
There are restrictions: no sitting up at a ninety degree angle, no rotating your feet towards each other, and one more that I can’t think of at the moment. I think in time, these restrictions will be almost second nature. After the PT left and we watched a little TV, I left. When I did, around 7:45 PM, the patient still had not felt any post-op pain.
I am amazed at how much of a difference I’ve seen so far, and I only hope that it continues in the same manner. Many people were praying for successful surgery and recovery. These prayers have been answered.
Today was a good day indeed!!
(Incidentally, the times of each post are Pacific Time Zone times; "the Google Time Zone," I guess)
The patient dozed on and off, ordered from the liquid diet on her menu and ate some of it, and watched some TV. We had visitors and phone calls from children, Barbara, Lauren, Ally, and Ryan stopped in for a nice visit. Ally made a very nice get–well card, like a mini-poster, which she gave to the patient! Tom stopped in and we had a nice visit with him. We also had visitors from the Cathedral, Fr. John and Kimberly Jennings, who stopped in for a nice visit and chat.
The physical therapist arrived late in the afternoon, and did a wonderful job of helping the patient prepare to get out of bed by disengaging monitoring and other equipment, then helping her to get out and stand while holding on to a walker. She took several steps forward and then several steps backward. Back in bed after that, the PT helped her perform some very light exercises with both legs. The patient did very well.
There are restrictions: no sitting up at a ninety degree angle, no rotating your feet towards each other, and one more that I can’t think of at the moment. I think in time, these restrictions will be almost second nature. After the PT left and we watched a little TV, I left. When I did, around 7:45 PM, the patient still had not felt any post-op pain.
I am amazed at how much of a difference I’ve seen so far, and I only hope that it continues in the same manner. Many people were praying for successful surgery and recovery. These prayers have been answered.
Today was a good day indeed!!
(Incidentally, the times of each post are Pacific Time Zone times; "the Google Time Zone," I guess)
Monday, June 20, 2011
SUCCESS!
Dr. McCutchen just came out and said all went very well,no surprises at all! She'll need about an hour or 1.5 hours in recovery. No room number yet, but he said she'll be on the 2nd floor, south end. God is good!
Off to the O. R.
Finally at 10:20 they rolled her bed away to the O. R. Her knee was really acting up, so she was happy to move on to the next phase, additional sedation and the procedure they said she needs. Surgery is to take one to one and a half hours, then she'll need about an hour in the recovery room before I'll be able to see her. I hope and expect that Dr. McCutchen will come out to me right after the surgery to update me on how it went. Thanks again to all who are praying, there is much power in prayer, as we all know.
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Tomorrow's the day
The patient received medical clearance on Friday. Tomorrow, we are to arrive at the hospital by 8:00 AM. Surgery is scheduled for 10:00 and should take one to one and a half hours. Many people are praying for success. I will post updates as often as I can. Stay tuned!
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