I slept through to around half seven before being woken for another blood pressure test. I was keeping the levels down by resting but got bored. I was told that I had to wear a pair of support stockings. These are to stop patients developing Deep Vein Thrombosis caused by not moving around a lot. I refused and took to wandering around the corridor chatting to the nurses and auxiliaries
Everyone has been so very professional and despite the occasional gossip, they appear to be a closely knit and highly regarded team, entirely devoted to caring for their patients BUT occasionally they need a little change of pace to deal with matters and on day three no one appeared to want to demonstrate that for the fat bald man with the infected elbow!
As on day two, I was on nil by mouth until the doctor had reviewed my condition and decided whether he was going to opt for the surgery route. I could have phoned in my report for him ... my elbow was still red and/or green depending on which part you looked at, hurt like hell and didn't want to bend. My stomach on the other hand was empty, making grumbling noises and wanted some food.
Eventually around 11:15 it was decided by someone (don't know who) that if I was going for surgery, it wasn't today and I happily munched my way through a turkey sandwich with buttered bread (it was butter on my toast as well - not flavoured low fat spread!), a packet of cheese and onion crisps, a pack of three custard creams and a carton of orange juice. I used to eat a lot of custard creams as a child but they never tasted this good. Then again I never used them to break a fast lasting 17 hours!!!
Smiling man and his radio moved out of Bed 5 early in the morning and was replaced with a man who sat bare chested for his whole stay, which wasn't long. For Hallow e'en in 2010, I drew patterns on my face similar to those marked up on patients scheduled for plastic surgery. Bare chested man had them all down his right arm, with little arrows and lines forming strange patterns. He didn't stay very long and was soon moved to a side ward where he was prepared for surgery.
Bed 5 had it's third occupant of the day when another slightly angry man arrived. He didn't want to stay, didn't want to see a doctor, just wanted to go home. English wasn't his first language and the doctor, when he arrived an hour later, was very patient with him. I was impressed by his questioning technique (sad I know) as he used probing questions for information, reflecting questions to check on understanding and summarising questions to wrap two or three thoughts together. He also did something I've not seen before. He took the patient out to a computer terminal and seemed to be running the results of a recorded ultrasound test for him.
It appears that slightly angry man had a massive kidney stone which needed to be broken down and removed. He was scheduled for surgery later that afternoon but not before his wife and three sons turned up. Each one impeccably turned out in school uniform and all obviously very excited about being inside a hospital, probably for the first time since they were born. Once the slightly angry man's visitor's had gone, He was shipped out for preparation for his surgery and was replaced with fighting man.
Fighting man was to put it bluntly not very well. He looked like he'd been in a fight with someone much bigger and suffered a beating. He was still insistent that he didn't need treatment and wanted to go for a smoke BEFORE he was put on his IV. The nurses refused and fighting man decided to take a walk, complete with IV down to the smoking area. He seemed much calmer when he returned but he needed to be. He'd already had two heart attacks this year and like Mr Angry from day one, he needed to slow down.
M in the Bed 6 wasn't allowed anything to eat in the morning and was mysteriously asked to walk to another ward with one of the nurses. That was shortly after he was examined by four extremely attractive female doctors (I think it was the Sith robe). He was like the cat that got the cream until he was asked to go on his mystery walk.
The mystery was soon solved as he returned grinning (and slightly dribbling out of the corner of his mouth) within half an hour. The nurse hadn't told him where he was going in case he refused. He had been taken to a ward, given a massive local anaesthetic before having his mouth eased open and his offending tooth (the one causing the abscess) pulled out. Within half an hour he was on his way home, looking forward to his first solid meal for a week. The local Chinese takeaway was going to have an unexpected bonus payday though the off licence might have to wait until his course of antibiotics was completed.
He was soon replaced by L, an elderly gentleman with a cheery smile who was suffering with a blocked catheter. He was undergoing long term treatment for prostate cancer as well but, as he put it, it had "begun to get active" in the last 12 months and was becoming a "problem" which I took to mean it was moving into the end stages. I felt very sorry for him as my own grandfather had suffered from the same condition and eventually succumbed after a long and hard battle. He was the reason I signed up for Movember this year.
L was accompanied by a lady who I presumed was his wife but as we chatted it appeared that both had been widowed, had met at a function and had become a couple over time. They were really sweet. L didn't stay long and after his blockage was resolved, he was given the option of an operation or going home. He took the second option, which if I was in his place, I would have done the same.
L was replaced by one of the walking wounded. The patient looked as if he had sustained a facial injury after falling over. He was just settling in as I left the ward ... yes I made my escape but not far.
Meanwhile Mr MA in Bed 8 went for his operation and his bed was filled late in the evening by a man who was accompanied by his very worried looking wife. He was kept behind the curtains for the whole time and sounded very ill when he spoke.
And on to my escape ...
Continue reading...
Everyone has been so very professional and despite the occasional gossip, they appear to be a closely knit and highly regarded team, entirely devoted to caring for their patients BUT occasionally they need a little change of pace to deal with matters and on day three no one appeared to want to demonstrate that for the fat bald man with the infected elbow!
As on day two, I was on nil by mouth until the doctor had reviewed my condition and decided whether he was going to opt for the surgery route. I could have phoned in my report for him ... my elbow was still red and/or green depending on which part you looked at, hurt like hell and didn't want to bend. My stomach on the other hand was empty, making grumbling noises and wanted some food.
Eventually around 11:15 it was decided by someone (don't know who) that if I was going for surgery, it wasn't today and I happily munched my way through a turkey sandwich with buttered bread (it was butter on my toast as well - not flavoured low fat spread!), a packet of cheese and onion crisps, a pack of three custard creams and a carton of orange juice. I used to eat a lot of custard creams as a child but they never tasted this good. Then again I never used them to break a fast lasting 17 hours!!!
Smiling man and his radio moved out of Bed 5 early in the morning and was replaced with a man who sat bare chested for his whole stay, which wasn't long. For Hallow e'en in 2010, I drew patterns on my face similar to those marked up on patients scheduled for plastic surgery. Bare chested man had them all down his right arm, with little arrows and lines forming strange patterns. He didn't stay very long and was soon moved to a side ward where he was prepared for surgery.
Bed 5 had it's third occupant of the day when another slightly angry man arrived. He didn't want to stay, didn't want to see a doctor, just wanted to go home. English wasn't his first language and the doctor, when he arrived an hour later, was very patient with him. I was impressed by his questioning technique (sad I know) as he used probing questions for information, reflecting questions to check on understanding and summarising questions to wrap two or three thoughts together. He also did something I've not seen before. He took the patient out to a computer terminal and seemed to be running the results of a recorded ultrasound test for him.
It appears that slightly angry man had a massive kidney stone which needed to be broken down and removed. He was scheduled for surgery later that afternoon but not before his wife and three sons turned up. Each one impeccably turned out in school uniform and all obviously very excited about being inside a hospital, probably for the first time since they were born. Once the slightly angry man's visitor's had gone, He was shipped out for preparation for his surgery and was replaced with fighting man.
Fighting man was to put it bluntly not very well. He looked like he'd been in a fight with someone much bigger and suffered a beating. He was still insistent that he didn't need treatment and wanted to go for a smoke BEFORE he was put on his IV. The nurses refused and fighting man decided to take a walk, complete with IV down to the smoking area. He seemed much calmer when he returned but he needed to be. He'd already had two heart attacks this year and like Mr Angry from day one, he needed to slow down.
M in the Bed 6 wasn't allowed anything to eat in the morning and was mysteriously asked to walk to another ward with one of the nurses. That was shortly after he was examined by four extremely attractive female doctors (I think it was the Sith robe). He was like the cat that got the cream until he was asked to go on his mystery walk.
The mystery was soon solved as he returned grinning (and slightly dribbling out of the corner of his mouth) within half an hour. The nurse hadn't told him where he was going in case he refused. He had been taken to a ward, given a massive local anaesthetic before having his mouth eased open and his offending tooth (the one causing the abscess) pulled out. Within half an hour he was on his way home, looking forward to his first solid meal for a week. The local Chinese takeaway was going to have an unexpected bonus payday though the off licence might have to wait until his course of antibiotics was completed.
He was soon replaced by L, an elderly gentleman with a cheery smile who was suffering with a blocked catheter. He was undergoing long term treatment for prostate cancer as well but, as he put it, it had "begun to get active" in the last 12 months and was becoming a "problem" which I took to mean it was moving into the end stages. I felt very sorry for him as my own grandfather had suffered from the same condition and eventually succumbed after a long and hard battle. He was the reason I signed up for Movember this year.
L was accompanied by a lady who I presumed was his wife but as we chatted it appeared that both had been widowed, had met at a function and had become a couple over time. They were really sweet. L didn't stay long and after his blockage was resolved, he was given the option of an operation or going home. He took the second option, which if I was in his place, I would have done the same.
L was replaced by one of the walking wounded. The patient looked as if he had sustained a facial injury after falling over. He was just settling in as I left the ward ... yes I made my escape but not far.
Meanwhile Mr MA in Bed 8 went for his operation and his bed was filled late in the evening by a man who was accompanied by his very worried looking wife. He was kept behind the curtains for the whole time and sounded very ill when he spoke.
And on to my escape ...
Continue reading...
