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...
Wednesday, 31 March 2010
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!
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