overall today has finished off better than it started, possibly going home tomorrow and some lovely visitors today. i've had a shower and am now in bed.
however i'll be signing off tonight on a slightly more serious note.
as i have said before roskear ward is a cardio ward and tonight one of the male patients arrested. it was all handled very well and with very little fuss. it was just after visiting so the remaining visitors were asked to leave and the crash team arrived with very little fanfare. you heard the defib warm up, someone said 'clear' and you heard the shock. it was successful but arrangements were then made to take him to coronary care (to do this a swap of patients was made). from the discussions and telephone conversations it appears that he had come in for a pacemaker and had, up until then been doing quite well.
only once have i been on a ward where someone has died, it was a young mother who had taken an overdose and again it was all handled very discreetly.
today we are removed from death, it is no longer something that happens in the home. however we still think of hospitals as places where people go to get better and the vast majority probably do, but as tonight has shown there are near misses and failures. even today my consultant reminded me that when i arrived on friday i was in a life-threatening situation.
so although i'm making the best of a bad situation and trying to find humour in my circumstances and the people who surround me here, i also respect them for the roles that they perform and the treatment and care that they have shown me.
thank you
Wednesday 31 March 2010
rare sighting of 'lesser spotted consultant'
i am happy to report that this elusive creature has finally been seen in sideroom 2! it was around 4.15 this afternoon and in his honour both the door and curtain were used.
it was a generally positive meeting and offers the very strong possibility that i could be home tomorrow!!!! i am to reduce my current steroid dose over 6 weeks and see him in outpatients in a couple of weeks. in the meantime the 14 year old dr has taken a blood sample that will be sent to Bristol, hopefully get the results in 2-3 weeks and somehow this will determine what future medication i can go on.
i notice that no-one has volunteered a time slot for this sighting in my latest sweep-stake, obviously the prize of a hospital meal was not a big enough incentive...
the next sweepstake could be either the time i leave or when the canula will be removed (it isn't currently needed, but is being kept in 'just in case'), though there is always the possibility that both will happen more or less simultaneously.
it was a generally positive meeting and offers the very strong possibility that i could be home tomorrow!!!! i am to reduce my current steroid dose over 6 weeks and see him in outpatients in a couple of weeks. in the meantime the 14 year old dr has taken a blood sample that will be sent to Bristol, hopefully get the results in 2-3 weeks and somehow this will determine what future medication i can go on.
i notice that no-one has volunteered a time slot for this sighting in my latest sweep-stake, obviously the prize of a hospital meal was not a big enough incentive...
the next sweepstake could be either the time i leave or when the canula will be removed (it isn't currently needed, but is being kept in 'just in case'), though there is always the possibility that both will happen more or less simultaneously.
bowel movements
i have been threatening this post since i came to sideroom 2, and now here it is, with a warning that you really need to read the two previous posts about privacy + modesty first.
for some reason there is a fascination around your bodily discharges and when i arrived here i was dehydrated, but a saline drip soon sorted that. i have been spared the indignity of a 24hr fluid balance (ie measuring what goes in and what comes out), however there is also a concern about not being constipated, and even though they have different ways of asking, i get asked every day if i've 'been'.
i don't know about you but when i go somewhere new, it takes my body a day or two to feel comfortable and in addition when i arrived here i hadn't eaten much in the previous 2 days, was confined to bed and aware of the limitations of the curtain ie you could be heard and not seen.
initially it was a case of using the bedpan. for a woman this means raising oneself enough to allow a nurse to place a moulded cardboard tray, in a plastic tray underneath you. you then gently lower yourself onto the pan, convinced you will fall off or break it, and then try and relax your muscles. you then have to lift yourself up again in order for the pan to removed, all the time convinced that you will slip and the contents of the pan will spill over the bed.
next stage is the commode! this is wheeled down the ward to your bedside, the curtains swished and on you get. now you are sitting, in your backless gown, very aware of the limitations of the curtain and again you have to will your muscles to relax.
now i am happily installed in sideroom 2, with it's ensuite wc, all i will say is that things are a lot more relaxed!
for some reason there is a fascination around your bodily discharges and when i arrived here i was dehydrated, but a saline drip soon sorted that. i have been spared the indignity of a 24hr fluid balance (ie measuring what goes in and what comes out), however there is also a concern about not being constipated, and even though they have different ways of asking, i get asked every day if i've 'been'.
i don't know about you but when i go somewhere new, it takes my body a day or two to feel comfortable and in addition when i arrived here i hadn't eaten much in the previous 2 days, was confined to bed and aware of the limitations of the curtain ie you could be heard and not seen.
initially it was a case of using the bedpan. for a woman this means raising oneself enough to allow a nurse to place a moulded cardboard tray, in a plastic tray underneath you. you then gently lower yourself onto the pan, convinced you will fall off or break it, and then try and relax your muscles. you then have to lift yourself up again in order for the pan to removed, all the time convinced that you will slip and the contents of the pan will spill over the bed.
next stage is the commode! this is wheeled down the ward to your bedside, the curtains swished and on you get. now you are sitting, in your backless gown, very aware of the limitations of the curtain and again you have to will your muscles to relax.
now i am happily installed in sideroom 2, with it's ensuite wc, all i will say is that things are a lot more relaxed!
amazing who you meet
was sitting in my chair, thinking about matthew, when one of the cleaning staff came in to change my bin bag. he was singing 'all glory laud and honour', so i made a comment about that being last week. i must have shocked him as he took a minute or two to think about what i had said, before asking me if i went to church. he then told me that he goes to the cathedral, even though he was baptised a methodist, and then i more or less got his life story. i've always admired those who can sit and listen to anyone, having time on your hands helps, maybe i'm just too busy. anyway, thank you howard for talking to me and i hope you continue to enjoy your bell ringing, and that you have a great holiday in vienna.
sudoku - update
having taken so long on the sudoku, i am pleased to report that the codewords was a much quicker affair. once i'd cracked 'coleslaw' i was away. i was going to time it, but it would have looked woeful as it was interrupted by an x-ray and lunch.
it will be a few days yet until i attempt the crossword.
so far i've had visits from the in-laws and karen, thank you for taking the time to make this afternoon interesting.
it will be a few days yet until i attempt the crossword.
so far i've had visits from the in-laws and karen, thank you for taking the time to make this afternoon interesting.
tomorrow's menu
just had my lunch of chicken and bacon lasagne - interesting idea, not sure i'll replicate it at home.
tomorrow's choices
lunch
lamb in cider with dumplings, carrots mash
bakewell tart + custard
evening
orange juice
egg mayonnaise salad
ice-cream
whilst it is easy to mock hospital food, things have moved on. gone are the days when your food was plated up in the kitchens that were strategically placed about as far away from the ward as you can get. the trays would then be put in trolleys that managed to both cool the hot food and warm the cold food, at the same time. meaning that by the time your food reached your bedside, it might of been edible but you just didn't want it.
here we make our order from a selection of dishes, some of which have been created by celebrity chefs (though we are not told which ones). the orders are then collated and the whole wards order is sent down (not too sure how that bit works, but i did hear the healthcare workers total the number of portions for each item)
then around midday or 5pm a mini serving counter is brought onto the ward. on roskear all available members of staff queue up with trays and a couple of people then plate/ tray up your food and bring it to your bedside! therefore the hot food is hotter than i used to remember and the cool food is cold, though if it's ice-cream i would still recommend that you have that as a starter.
i had my chest x-ray this morning and saw the trolley of food for this ward come off the lift as i got on! also getting out of the lift were andrew, helen, isaac and joseph - which will only mean anything if you know them - but they had just been for an appointment. we managed a quick chat before i was wheeled off to x-ray.
it is now nearly visiting hour, so let's see who comes today...
tomorrow's choices
lunch
lamb in cider with dumplings, carrots mash
bakewell tart + custard
evening
orange juice
egg mayonnaise salad
ice-cream
whilst it is easy to mock hospital food, things have moved on. gone are the days when your food was plated up in the kitchens that were strategically placed about as far away from the ward as you can get. the trays would then be put in trolleys that managed to both cool the hot food and warm the cold food, at the same time. meaning that by the time your food reached your bedside, it might of been edible but you just didn't want it.
here we make our order from a selection of dishes, some of which have been created by celebrity chefs (though we are not told which ones). the orders are then collated and the whole wards order is sent down (not too sure how that bit works, but i did hear the healthcare workers total the number of portions for each item)
then around midday or 5pm a mini serving counter is brought onto the ward. on roskear all available members of staff queue up with trays and a couple of people then plate/ tray up your food and bring it to your bedside! therefore the hot food is hotter than i used to remember and the cool food is cold, though if it's ice-cream i would still recommend that you have that as a starter.
i had my chest x-ray this morning and saw the trolley of food for this ward come off the lift as i got on! also getting out of the lift were andrew, helen, isaac and joseph - which will only mean anything if you know them - but they had just been for an appointment. we managed a quick chat before i was wheeled off to x-ray.
it is now nearly visiting hour, so let's see who comes today...
important update
i've seen a consultant!!!!
unfortunately it is the cardio one on whose ward i'm technically squatting (rheumatology never seem to have their own ward, their own outpatients dept but no ward). he apologised for the non appearance of dr davies, and has decreed that i no longer need a drip - i can go onto oral antibiotics. he also is prescribing me a mouthwash to sort out the ulcers and thrush that have taken up residence in my mouth over the last few days (a side affect of the levels of medicine that i've been on).
he then popped his head back in to tell me that i will go for a chest x-ray and see how my lungs are looking now, a sensible decision that agree with not only because it makes sense, but also it will also give me something else to look forward to today. he's nice man, if i ever need a heart doctor - he's my man.
i went to the shop to get a paper, no one seemed to mind or to notice. unfortunately the largest easter eggs stocked by the shop are creme eggs, matthew may not be getting an egg this year...
and hot off the press, as i type a man has come to look at my bedside light that hasn't work since i arrived in sideroom 2. he changed the bulb and it now works on dim, but i'll need a new switch in order to work it from the bed. he'll report it!!!!
unfortunately it is the cardio one on whose ward i'm technically squatting (rheumatology never seem to have their own ward, their own outpatients dept but no ward). he apologised for the non appearance of dr davies, and has decreed that i no longer need a drip - i can go onto oral antibiotics. he also is prescribing me a mouthwash to sort out the ulcers and thrush that have taken up residence in my mouth over the last few days (a side affect of the levels of medicine that i've been on).
he then popped his head back in to tell me that i will go for a chest x-ray and see how my lungs are looking now, a sensible decision that agree with not only because it makes sense, but also it will also give me something else to look forward to today. he's nice man, if i ever need a heart doctor - he's my man.
i went to the shop to get a paper, no one seemed to mind or to notice. unfortunately the largest easter eggs stocked by the shop are creme eggs, matthew may not be getting an egg this year...
and hot off the press, as i type a man has come to look at my bedside light that hasn't work since i arrived in sideroom 2. he changed the bulb and it now works on dim, but i'll need a new switch in order to work it from the bed. he'll report it!!!!
good morning - day 6
morning from sideroom 2. it is wednesday 31st march, and the start of my 6th day in here...
am in a bit of pain this morning, maybe my painkiller free day yesterday was a bad idea, though i expect it will be like this for a while until i get onto a stable dose of medicine.
apparently the weather has turned and the day staff have all come in saying how cold it is outside, according to the bbc website there are blizzards 'upcountry' and for the first time ever during a hospital stay i was cold in the night.
it was a bit hard to get up this morning. had another drip at 6.30 and then breakfast in bed, which left me puzzling where i am, not a hotel, i'm not working but then again i can't really go anywhere and all there is to look forward to is a similar day to yesterday...
with regard to the canula sweepstake that started last night- it was done at 8.45, so my drip was through by 10!! it was put in by the junior dr who hangs around this ward who, to give him his due, has been keeping my spirits up. matthew and i refer to him as the14 year old! he could be a major heart surgeon of the future but for now he got a good size canula in first time, so i'm happy. charlotte - his beard is halfway between bumfluff and mature.
i've decided to start another sweepstake - this one on when the 'lesser spotted consultant' will arrive. the prize will be hospital meal, we will go for half hour time slots. please leave your bids in the comments.
claire it looks as if i'm still here, so would love to see you before/ after richard lander. any other visitors will be most welcome
am in a bit of pain this morning, maybe my painkiller free day yesterday was a bad idea, though i expect it will be like this for a while until i get onto a stable dose of medicine.
apparently the weather has turned and the day staff have all come in saying how cold it is outside, according to the bbc website there are blizzards 'upcountry' and for the first time ever during a hospital stay i was cold in the night.
it was a bit hard to get up this morning. had another drip at 6.30 and then breakfast in bed, which left me puzzling where i am, not a hotel, i'm not working but then again i can't really go anywhere and all there is to look forward to is a similar day to yesterday...
with regard to the canula sweepstake that started last night- it was done at 8.45, so my drip was through by 10!! it was put in by the junior dr who hangs around this ward who, to give him his due, has been keeping my spirits up. matthew and i refer to him as the14 year old! he could be a major heart surgeon of the future but for now he got a good size canula in first time, so i'm happy. charlotte - his beard is halfway between bumfluff and mature.
i've decided to start another sweepstake - this one on when the 'lesser spotted consultant' will arrive. the prize will be hospital meal, we will go for half hour time slots. please leave your bids in the comments.
claire it looks as if i'm still here, so would love to see you before/ after richard lander. any other visitors will be most welcome
Tuesday 30 March 2010
goodnight
feeling a bit low tonight, might have something to do with just saying goodbye to matthew.
the night shift is starting, i was due another drip this eve but the canula is b******d, so the call has gone out for tonight's on-call 12 year old (sorry dr) to come + put in another one. maybe i'll start a sweepstake on his arrival time (it is a bloke, he was described as the one with beard).
unfortunately the rare 'lesser spotted consultant' did not put in an appearance today, nor did any of his team, so still no news about release dates.
otherwise i'll keep taking the medicine and hope for a good night's sleep tonight.
the night shift is starting, i was due another drip this eve but the canula is b******d, so the call has gone out for tonight's on-call 12 year old (sorry dr) to come + put in another one. maybe i'll start a sweepstake on his arrival time (it is a bloke, he was described as the one with beard).
unfortunately the rare 'lesser spotted consultant' did not put in an appearance today, nor did any of his team, so still no news about release dates.
otherwise i'll keep taking the medicine and hope for a good night's sleep tonight.
tomorrows menu
had a little snooze and woke up to see the menu on the bed...
so lunch
chicken + bacon lasagne, green beans and baby pots
cheese + biscuits
evening
orange juice
turkey + tom sandwich
ice-cream (it is cornish - callestick farm)
lunch today, lamb and veg pie not too bad and i made banana custard with my bowl of custard and banana.
othderwise i can report that the sun does make it into sideroom 2 and i saw the air ambulance fly off having dropped someone off at a+e
no visitors this pm so far -though robin one of the chaplains popped in this am (also a friend of my father-in-law).
alas no visit from consultant either
so lunch
chicken + bacon lasagne, green beans and baby pots
cheese + biscuits
evening
orange juice
turkey + tom sandwich
ice-cream (it is cornish - callestick farm)
lunch today, lamb and veg pie not too bad and i made banana custard with my bowl of custard and banana.
othderwise i can report that the sun does make it into sideroom 2 and i saw the air ambulance fly off having dropped someone off at a+e
no visitors this pm so far -though robin one of the chaplains popped in this am (also a friend of my father-in-law).
alas no visit from consultant either
privacy and modesty - the curtain
one way of maintaining a degree of p+m (see previous) in hospital is 'the curtain'. these surround every bed and with a flick of the wrist the curtain is swished around and tada it's your own private room!
but it isn't.
although all consultations, dressing changes or treatments can be carried on behind the curtain, the reality is that although not seen it can be heard. one eg from hdu was the removal of a male patients dressing from his backside, we heard it all even the nurse saying that he had had a waxing, all this whilst i was trying to eat a sandwich.
the allusion of privacy, when really there isn't any reminds me of camping with teenagers, who just don't get how thin canvass is but seem to think of a tent as a soundproof room. but here is a tip if you find yourself on night duty and have to get them to be quiet. pleading that you would like to go to sleep just won't work. neither will telling them they are keeping the site/ nearby village/ the whole of dartmouth awake.
instead stand outside the tent, listen to the conversation and at an appropriate point join in by offering your opinion/ thought on the discussion in hand. there will be immediate quiet, followed by a 'how much to you think she heard?'. a short conversation may ensue, but they will then go to sleep, well perhaps not - but they will be quiet, especially if they realise you've been listening for a while.
unfortunately it will only work a couple of times before they start to try to deliberately draw you into the conversation. then you will have to resort to telling them that they can be heard in dartmouth!
but it isn't.
although all consultations, dressing changes or treatments can be carried on behind the curtain, the reality is that although not seen it can be heard. one eg from hdu was the removal of a male patients dressing from his backside, we heard it all even the nurse saying that he had had a waxing, all this whilst i was trying to eat a sandwich.
the allusion of privacy, when really there isn't any reminds me of camping with teenagers, who just don't get how thin canvass is but seem to think of a tent as a soundproof room. but here is a tip if you find yourself on night duty and have to get them to be quiet. pleading that you would like to go to sleep just won't work. neither will telling them they are keeping the site/ nearby village/ the whole of dartmouth awake.
instead stand outside the tent, listen to the conversation and at an appropriate point join in by offering your opinion/ thought on the discussion in hand. there will be immediate quiet, followed by a 'how much to you think she heard?'. a short conversation may ensue, but they will then go to sleep, well perhaps not - but they will be quiet, especially if they realise you've been listening for a while.
unfortunately it will only work a couple of times before they start to try to deliberately draw you into the conversation. then you will have to resort to telling them that they can be heard in dartmouth!
cleaning
sideroom 2 has been on the receiving end of some high level cleaning this morning.
the cleaner arrived and the room was swept and wiped to an inch of it's life, even the bed was raised and all the bars and levers given a wipe.
soon after she left another lady, a supervisor i think, came and inspected the room, even getting onto her hands + knees to see under the bed. all was going well until she went into my ensuite. she came out tutting and told me that she was getting the cleaner back, and whilst she was waiting, she took the bin out of the frame and inspected the underside of the frame!! eventually she got impatient and went to fetch the cleaner, and the 2 of them disappeared into the toilet, something was pointed out and after a short discussion they both left.
a few mins later the supervisor reappeared with another bloke and they both went into the ensuite, before leaving.
a few mins later a chap turns up with a hoover and apologises but he needs to get into the ensuite to hoover the air-vent!
as he leaves thank him and tell him that i'm sure the rest of my stay has been improved by his hoovering. he laughed and told e that they had finished early and were now being found 'silly little jobs to do'.
suffice to say the supervisor has been back and sideroom2 is now fit for habitation again!!
when matthew reads this he will probably comment that our house should be so lucky to get this degree of treatment!
the cleaner arrived and the room was swept and wiped to an inch of it's life, even the bed was raised and all the bars and levers given a wipe.
soon after she left another lady, a supervisor i think, came and inspected the room, even getting onto her hands + knees to see under the bed. all was going well until she went into my ensuite. she came out tutting and told me that she was getting the cleaner back, and whilst she was waiting, she took the bin out of the frame and inspected the underside of the frame!! eventually she got impatient and went to fetch the cleaner, and the 2 of them disappeared into the toilet, something was pointed out and after a short discussion they both left.
a few mins later the supervisor reappeared with another bloke and they both went into the ensuite, before leaving.
a few mins later a chap turns up with a hoover and apologises but he needs to get into the ensuite to hoover the air-vent!
as he leaves thank him and tell him that i'm sure the rest of my stay has been improved by his hoovering. he laughed and told e that they had finished early and were now being found 'silly little jobs to do'.
suffice to say the supervisor has been back and sideroom2 is now fit for habitation again!!
when matthew reads this he will probably comment that our house should be so lucky to get this degree of treatment!
privacy and modesty
one of the things you have to surrender when entering hospital is some of your privacy + modesty (p+m). you are constantly being examined and scanned and a lot of that happens when you are in a flimsy gown, that only has two ties on the back, gapes and is generally incredibly unflattering!
i always remember a friend of mine telling me about her experience after a c-section (though i believe in childbirth you have to really give up your p+m), she had got so used to the drs and nurses wanting to see the scar, that when a friend was asking about it, she didn't hesitate to whip back the sheet and her gown to show her. it was only the look on her friends face that made my friend realise that a friend didn't need or indeed want to see that!!
having said that, i have to admit that the staff here have been lovely and most helpful in helping me maintain a degree of p+m, even when i was in the backless gown, struggling to breath and being transferred from trolley to machine and back again.
there is a moment in your treatment when you realise that this is it, your p+m are gone. for me this was at 5.30am, when there were 3 (male) paramedics in our living room, i was in my dressing gown, struggling to breath and they wanted to do an ecg. one of them attached the pads on ankles and wrists and then looked at me with the remaining pads, asked me if i had had one before. i nodded. so you know where these go. i nodded. he looked at me as if to say 'you ok with that?' i nodded. he very gently undid my dressing gown, fortunately i had kept my bra on overnight as it helped with my breathing, i think he was quite relieved. but for this particular bout of ill-health, that was the moment when i realised my p+m were being left behind.
perhaps the most fortunate thing about losing your p+m in these circumstances is that you are usually desperate for someone to help you and too ill to care!
i always remember a friend of mine telling me about her experience after a c-section (though i believe in childbirth you have to really give up your p+m), she had got so used to the drs and nurses wanting to see the scar, that when a friend was asking about it, she didn't hesitate to whip back the sheet and her gown to show her. it was only the look on her friends face that made my friend realise that a friend didn't need or indeed want to see that!!
having said that, i have to admit that the staff here have been lovely and most helpful in helping me maintain a degree of p+m, even when i was in the backless gown, struggling to breath and being transferred from trolley to machine and back again.
there is a moment in your treatment when you realise that this is it, your p+m are gone. for me this was at 5.30am, when there were 3 (male) paramedics in our living room, i was in my dressing gown, struggling to breath and they wanted to do an ecg. one of them attached the pads on ankles and wrists and then looked at me with the remaining pads, asked me if i had had one before. i nodded. so you know where these go. i nodded. he looked at me as if to say 'you ok with that?' i nodded. he very gently undid my dressing gown, fortunately i had kept my bra on overnight as it helped with my breathing, i think he was quite relieved. but for this particular bout of ill-health, that was the moment when i realised my p+m were being left behind.
perhaps the most fortunate thing about losing your p+m in these circumstances is that you are usually desperate for someone to help you and too ill to care!
good morning
it's tuesday 30th and i'm still here...
a relatively quiet night, a drip @ 10.30 and another @ 6.30am. i am now up, showered and dressed. though have to admit to feeling a bit weaker this morning. probably as i am now no longer having intravenous steroid and have been given tablets today - 6 uncoated ones (they taste foul) and the tablets take a bit longer to kick in than a drip.
unfortunately i didn't get to see the consultant yesterday, so i'm crossing fingers and touching wood in the hope he comes today... and then i may have more news about a release date!
i ad some lovely visitors yesterday - so thank you for finding time and money for the carpark - is is appreciated.
today i will keep you updated and do a spot of reading and maybe a spot of snoozing.
a relatively quiet night, a drip @ 10.30 and another @ 6.30am. i am now up, showered and dressed. though have to admit to feeling a bit weaker this morning. probably as i am now no longer having intravenous steroid and have been given tablets today - 6 uncoated ones (they taste foul) and the tablets take a bit longer to kick in than a drip.
unfortunately i didn't get to see the consultant yesterday, so i'm crossing fingers and touching wood in the hope he comes today... and then i may have more news about a release date!
i ad some lovely visitors yesterday - so thank you for finding time and money for the carpark - is is appreciated.
today i will keep you updated and do a spot of reading and maybe a spot of snoozing.
Monday 29 March 2010
12 year old doctors!
when my lupus was first properly diagnosed i was a student.a stay in hospital meant that you might know some of the med students, and boy did medsoc have a reputation in Cardiff (always a slight worry if you thought of them as consultants of the future!). flirt with the junior doctors and the consultants were reassuringly grown up (a bit like your parents).
as an outpatient i was aware that consultants are nearer in age to me, but this stay (first in 13 years) has alarmed me by how young the junior doctors are.
last night i was waiting for a new canula, a dr was requested at about 7pm and i was woken at 1.30am by a 12 year old boy who was trying to convince me he was a dr and he was here to put in a canula. he looked the part, stethescope and all, but surely he was no older than the teenagers i work with?!
well i gave in but i think i've blown his cover - his first attempt was awful, i have 2 inches of lovely bruise on my arm to show for it. fortunately the second attempt worked.
i've told a couple of the nurses who have laughed and agreed with me that they do look too young! unfortunately the reality is more that we are getting older - aaaarrrrgggghhh
update - the photo is the handiwork of said 12 year old doctor, taken 4 days later! the 14 year old doctor told me that the vein is now dead...
meals tomorrow
in case i forget...
lunch, lamb + veg pie, with veg + mash followed by a banana + a bowl of custard (can you guess what i'm going to do?)
evening, tuna salad and a Cornish fruit yoghurt.
breakfast is served in the ward and to date it's been a bowl of branflakes + a mug of tea
matthew did bring me some saffron bun hot cross buns this lunchtime :)
lunch, lamb + veg pie, with veg + mash followed by a banana + a bowl of custard (can you guess what i'm going to do?)
evening, tuna salad and a Cornish fruit yoghurt.
breakfast is served in the ward and to date it's been a bowl of branflakes + a mug of tea
matthew did bring me some saffron bun hot cross buns this lunchtime :)
view from my room
thought i would set the scene and describe my room/views.
in my luxurious sideroom there is a locker (standard issue), an electric bed (luxury, actually acquired from the high dependency ward as when the nurse who transferred me saw that i was abut to get a bed with an air mattress, she decided to swap the beds as she had been looking for an air mattress for another patient in hdu!), a rather uncomfortable chair (fake black leather - seat splitting and showing the foam underneath), a bedside trolley and joy of joys an ensuite toilet!!!
this is especially cool as the majority of patients are male and one of the things i see a lot is the men in the neighbouring bay shuffling across the corridor to the unisex bathroom opposite. i'm happy to shower in there - not so happy to share the toilet...
other views down the corridor include the nurses station and the staff going about their business answering calls etc. they also store the trolley with the patients notes near my door, so i get to hear hushed conversations about patients. all very exciting but i don't know who they are!
i do have a window with a view to a wall with more windows, but if i get up and have a look i can see grass and a road (can't quite see the helipad). i am also above a+e and if there are several ambulances in place, i get to hear them arrive and unload their patients.
so there you have it. although siderooms are a luxury they can be a bit lonely as there is less interaction. hence my enjoyment of a slightly wider view of the world through the internet than the physical view from my room.
in my luxurious sideroom there is a locker (standard issue), an electric bed (luxury, actually acquired from the high dependency ward as when the nurse who transferred me saw that i was abut to get a bed with an air mattress, she decided to swap the beds as she had been looking for an air mattress for another patient in hdu!), a rather uncomfortable chair (fake black leather - seat splitting and showing the foam underneath), a bedside trolley and joy of joys an ensuite toilet!!!
this is especially cool as the majority of patients are male and one of the things i see a lot is the men in the neighbouring bay shuffling across the corridor to the unisex bathroom opposite. i'm happy to shower in there - not so happy to share the toilet...
other views down the corridor include the nurses station and the staff going about their business answering calls etc. they also store the trolley with the patients notes near my door, so i get to hear hushed conversations about patients. all very exciting but i don't know who they are!
i do have a window with a view to a wall with more windows, but if i get up and have a look i can see grass and a road (can't quite see the helipad). i am also above a+e and if there are several ambulances in place, i get to hear them arrive and unload their patients.
so there you have it. although siderooms are a luxury they can be a bit lonely as there is less interaction. hence my enjoyment of a slightly wider view of the world through the internet than the physical view from my room.
lunch
in hdu we chose lunch about an hour before it arrived. moments after arriving here yesterday a menu was placed in my hand for todays meal choices.
my chicken frickase, rice and peas was ok. for some reason i chose an orange for pud. juicy and difficult to peel. can't remember what i ordered for this eve...
lunch had an added bonus as Matthew (my beloved) arrived with some goodies from home.we have often moaned about him working at threemilestone (the wrong side of truro) but right now it is good news as he can pop in in his lunch break and on his way home :-)
my chicken frickase, rice and peas was ok. for some reason i chose an orange for pud. juicy and difficult to peel. can't remember what i ordered for this eve...
lunch had an added bonus as Matthew (my beloved) arrived with some goodies from home.we have often moaned about him working at threemilestone (the wrong side of truro) but right now it is good news as he can pop in in his lunch break and on his way home :-)
weird
i'm still working through how to get this updated onto facebook - may have to get external help for this. however having accessed facebook yesterday, i am now being told it's a violation of my usage... as i am also being told when i try and view this through the webpage!!! however i can still log in and create posts...
if anyone i know would like to help me please let me know, will prob ave to do the forbidden and pass on id's and passwords!d
if anyone i know would like to help me please let me know, will prob ave to do the forbidden and pass on id's and passwords!d
hello from sideroom 2
goodmorning. it is monday 29th march and you find me in treliske hospial (officially royal cornwall hospital) where i was admitted last friday, showing signs of a severe chest infection and possibly a clot on the lung. fortunately no clot. but a nasty flare up of my lupus attacking the lining of my lungs (pleurisey) combined with a chest infection.
i have received large doses of intraveneous steriod + antibiotic. yesterday i was moved from the high dependency ward to a cardiac ward (lots of old men) and deep joy the outside world via the internet (limited).
i got onto facebook yesterday but was unable to status update so i thought i would create a blog and see if i can update facebook this way.
i would also like to point out that the keyboard is at the same height as my head (hard on the arms) and doesn't like it when i type too fast. so please forive lack of capitals and abbreviated sentences. thank you!
i have received large doses of intraveneous steriod + antibiotic. yesterday i was moved from the high dependency ward to a cardiac ward (lots of old men) and deep joy the outside world via the internet (limited).
i got onto facebook yesterday but was unable to status update so i thought i would create a blog and see if i can update facebook this way.
i would also like to point out that the keyboard is at the same height as my head (hard on the arms) and doesn't like it when i type too fast. so please forive lack of capitals and abbreviated sentences. thank you!
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