Friday, April 16, 2004 11:00 pm CDT

 

We successfully made the move to the Shepherd Rehabilitation Center in Atlanta arriving early Thursday afternoon.  Stevie kept her EMT busy, determined to take off her leg brace and pull out the pic line.

 

By Thursday evening we had seen our primary doctor (Bilsky), the orthopedist (Moore) and her myriad therapists. The doctors gave us sobering appraisals of Stevie's condition which I expected but which seemed to cause Susan to second guess our decision to move.

 

Bilsky prescribed roughly half the pain meds UAB had so Stevie's first 24 hours at the center were hell.  Input from her nurses, therapists and me convinced Bilsky that in this case more is indeed better.  Meds are now a UAB levels.

 

Stevie will need a hip replacement but months away.  In the interim they plan to remove the ball at the top of her thigh bone.  With both the ball and socket shattered, the ball is doing little but cause pain.  I shudder at the prospect of a dangling leg held together only by the muscles but in fact, that is the current situation. We must trust in these doctors.

 

It appears to Susan and me that Stevie's cognitive powers have been set back a week or more.  I attribute this to the overwhelming stimulation she has had in the last 48 hours - a new hospital, a new room, all new people and aggressive therapy.

 

To put an exclamation point on the first day at Shepherd, Stevie pulled out her pic line yet again.  This morning we wheeled through a tunnel to Piedmont Hospital's radiology dept to get another inserted.  We are guarding it with our lives against a determined, devious and incredibly strong young girl.  We wrapped it up in gauze provoking such a fight I had to call the nurses for help to fend her off.  We covered her hands with specially designed mitten which she somehow got off within a minute.  The only real alternative is a vigilant sitter which Susan and I are committed to be.

 

Shepherd offers - and we accepted - the use of a very nice one bedroom efficiency apartment for 30 days at no cost.  Jean, Henry, Spenser and Stacey are coming tomorrow to, among other things, celebrate Spenser's 17th.  Susan and I are looking forward to the energy boost we get when they all come.

 

We continue to be kept strong by your love, thoughts and prayers!

 

         --steve

 

pic line - semi-permanent IV with internal catheter running from the arm to a ventricle of the heart, allowing long term intravenous antibiotics