Thursday, February 10, 2011

how do we get him out of the ICU?

The environment here is not ideal. he has been here for almost 20 days now. his vitals are steady.
why are they keeping him here?
the doctors have all switched and his new cardiologist is still in training. they can look at his heart with out using the chemicals his kidneys need to pass.
so do they need to keep waiting for the kidney to vastly improve to look at his heart?
he gets very little sleep here. they wake him up every 2 hours! and we are talking bright lights on, having big guys lift him up. nurses wipe him down with lotion, and prick him with needles, injections, suction out his throat with a tube down his nose. then a little cart comes rolling in, about every 4 to 5 hours, and draws blood. with a big needle. it hurts him every time.
no sleep. day and night!! 20 days!!
they switch nurses every twelve hours and some do the bare minimum.
if he was in a rehab type place, a less intense place, he'll hopefully have more consistent care. and get some sleep!!
by the way really a great nurse, Allison, brought all this to my attention tonight.  she said, 'really try to get him out of here!'
i will ask and see what has to happen to get him out of here. any other suggestions/advice out there welcome.
Abigail, 11:30 pm Thursday Feb 10

2 comments:

  1. Abigail,
    When you see the doctors/social worker tomorrow,
    could you ask them if we can get a patient advocate for your dad if they offer such a service?
    Maybe such a person can help address the question about the pros and cons of Bill staying at ICU.

    Kris

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  2. Abigail,
    I just read an article on ICU psychosis in NY Times.
    You may find it helpful.

    http://www.nytimes.com/library/national/science/120898sci-icu-psychosis.html

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