Stevie returned from surgery at ~
Surgery on her hip to clean out the infected tissue went as the surgeons expected. They did find significant pockets of fluid created by an infection but it appeared that these areas were not actively infected. Her white blood count was 40,000 on Friday and had dropped to near normal by Monday signifying that her natural defenses combined with the antibiotics had triumphed. All wonderful news.
The orthopedic doctors have been very communicative. A resident came by about 8 last night, Dr. Sparks who assisted with the surgery came by at 10 and Dr. Alonzo, the lead surgeon, came by this morning at 7. Commentary: The attention is gratifying but I remain skeptical believing the motive to deflect scrutiny of orthopedic infection rates.
Report from Susan: This morning Stevie woke up and said she was hungry without prompting – this was a first. She ate well. Normally at this point we begin the ritual of telling her where she is, why she is here and her condition. Today, she asked unprompted. Upon hearing she was in an accident, she responded with “I’m so sorry” and teared up. The conversation continued with much improved lucidity though she had no recollection of any of the events of the last 25 days. We do not pretend that she is back but we continue to see lights flickering providing hope.
She will remain in the orthopedics ward for one to three days then back to rehab. Changing rooms is difficult and though the Hospital’s policy is to move the patient’s belongings, in reality it is one of those services that slips through the cracks between departments. We packed up and I moved all our stuff with the staff in rehab’s only comment ‘you are going to bring the cart back, aren’t you’. To which I replied ‘no’, and walked off rolling it and carrying a floor standing fan with the other hand.
Patient care is a euphemism for “don’t bother me unless it’s somethin’ really serious, and don’t even be thinkin’ about callin’ while I’m on break”. This is too harsh for sure but the lack of real caring by a wide swath of healthcare workers is a serious failure of our healthcare system.
Your love, thoughts and prayers continue to buoy our spirits.
--steve