Wednesday, July 31, 2013

This hospital...

This hospital is pretty awful... Every nurse and tech he has had with an exception of one ICU nurse has been incompetent if you ask me. Expecting way to much out of him while following it with, "is that ok hun?" Thinking that'll make it all better. Meanwhile, whatever theyve asked him to do requires him to go through more pain than he needs to. He's stubborn, he will do it unless the hospital staff tells him he doesnt need to .... Daddys kidney is trying as hard as it can to process all the medicine he has been put through, but his kreatinine levels aren't where they should be, so he has been taken off the medicine that helps his body get rid of fluid, so his legs and sides are retaining fluid, making it even more uncomfortable for him to move around. It is so painful for him to even be on his legs anymore.

Today he started radiation to the lesion they found of his cerebellum. And when the ambulance transport came to get him, the incompetent staff he has (the tech in this instance) had him stand and pivot onto the stretcher, not only was he yelling out in pain from this, but technically if he gets onto a stretcher like that, the insurance shouldn't cover a stretcher transport it should cover a wheelchair one. With a stretcher transport it is technically illegal for her to request him to stand and pivot at all. He should be pulled over from bed to stretcher. Plus, that is the most painless way to transfer him. Luckily, the medical transport team was nice enough to tell me all of this so I could bring it to my mothers attention. But at least the first treatment is finished , two more to go. Then on Monday they will do another cat scan to make sure the radiation didn't cause any bleeding. Ugh... Daddy is not happy with any of the answers we are getting from any doctors.

Monday, July 22, 2013

The hospital...

This hospital has yet to give us any real answers... They've ran multiple tests now, and nothing. This poor man is being put through so much, all for these doctors to say "I don't know" ... He's currently getting an mri and I doubt they'll find anything... He had a CT scan yesterday, and no one, NO ONE even cared enough to come tell us the results of it... Even if the results are negative, a doctor, a tech, a nurse, hell I don't care if it's the dietary aide! Someone needs to come and tell us that it was negative! You DO NOT leave a cancer fighting family wondering! They go through enough stress with every check up scan, it's called scanxiety. It's natural. But these idiots need to realize the patients they're dealing with, not telling our family about the results (even if negative) is torturous! I have pretty much lost faith in the healthcare system in this county... This hospital is useless if you ask me. Unfortunately Daddy needed immediate medical attention when he fell and threw up blood, so we got stuck coming here... The hospital that diagnosed his cancer to begin with... The hospital whose doctors told us that his spinal tumors were inoperable... That he would only have months to live. They wanted to give up and let him die then, what's to say that's not what theyre doing now?

Monday, July 15, 2013

Crazy Week


Last Saturday, my Daddy turned 56. We were so excited to celebrate another birthday, when doctors did not expect him to reach his next birthday after diagnosis in December 2011. Not only did he reach his birthday in 2012, but then he reached his birthday this year in 2013. The fact that he still breathes is a miracle to me.

However, this Thursday night I picked up my fiance from the airport late, he had been in North Carolina for work all week. So Friday, I wanted to sleep in and then we were going to go down to my parents/ house and make Daddy lunch, like I do every day. We walk up to the house and the front door is cracked, I look down and Daddy is on the floor with blood all around his torso. He tells me that he had gotten dizzy and fallen and had been laying there throwing up blood for four hours.. Four hours.... Why did I have to sleep in? Why did I have to take such a long shower? If I hadn't I would have been there to prevent his fall, or at least to get him to the hospital sooner. This guilt is not going to go away... Well luckily Ken was with me, I had him get on the phone and dial 911 while I called my mother and told her the horrible news.... the only thing luckily that happened was Daddy was not moaning in pain from any kind of bone break, and it turned out he did not break any bones, I truly have no idea how... Well minutes later my brother walked in returning from a week at the beach, he was not prepared for what he walked in on, but I had him focus and start to pack a bag for Daddy to go to the hospital. Literally seconds later, we heard the sirens coming for Daddy, and before I knew it the paramedics were coming in to assess the situation. Daddy is a big and tall man, and he was stuck on the floor and could not help us help him, but we had to get him up, down the porch, and onto the sidewalk where the stretcher was. We got a neighbor to help us, got a tarp of sorts to put under him and pick him up, it took four of us, and we got him slowly down the stoop and onto the stretcher. Once inside the ambulance, the paramedics tried to get his heart rate under control because it was all over the place, they needed to put an IV in and get him some saline fluids, but Daddy has always been a hard stick. They ended up giving up on trying and we rushed to the hospital sirens and lights blaring. The rest will be saved for another post because I am truly exhausted from this weekend and it's going to be a long week...it's only Monday... ugh.