Tuesday May 5

The nurses are noticing that dad doesn't remember what happened the day before. So the doctor is putting dad on Aricept. Actually dad was taking it before he went into the hospital. You don't have to have Alzheimer's disease to benefit from this drug. We should be able to tell in a couple of days if it is helping dad.

Today the doctor decided to switch out dad's trachea tube with a permanent one -- however it isn't really permanent it can be taken out if and when the person doesn't need it anymore. The new one is called a metal Jackson Crack Trachea. I couldn't find anything on the web that explains the difference between that one and the one dad did have other than it is metal and the old one was plastic.

After replacing the tube they don't want to dad to try to talk any tonight. But tomorrow they will put a "plug" in it that will enable dad to start to talk again. With the old trachea you had to put your finger over the opening so he could talk -- not such a good thing because you cut off the oxygen when you do this. With the new Jackson trachea they can put a plug in it so that daddy can talk and somehow oxygen still gets in. Not as much oxygen but that's ok. You don't need the amounts of oxygen the hospital gives you when you are sick.

Nurse S said that things will start to move a little faster for daddy now. However she did make sure I understood he still had a long way to go.

The main thing right now is for dad to cooperate with the nurses, doctors and therapist. He is stubborn and really hardheaded. Hopefully he will realize that everyone wants what is best for him and that he will try to do what they want and to behave himself.

Keep those prayers going up for dad and me.

Kathy

Thursday April 30

Today makes 6 weeks that dad has been in ICU. Can't believe it's been that long. But some days it does seem like a lot longer.

Today when I went to see dad I got a huge shock. A good shock. They had dad sitting in a chair. Not the hospital bed made into a chair but a real chair! I couldn't believe it

I can tell by looking at his arms and hands that he has lost a lot of weight. He seems so frail in a way. He hardly has the strength to do much of anything. I had put a pillow in his lap an he couldn't pick it up. So he will have a lot of rehab to do.

The doctor's orders is for dad to be up in the chair 2 times a day. Today he was in the chair for about 2 hours. The nurse said the time will just depend on him and how he does each time.

Today he was also on oxygen for most of the day. After they got him back into bed they put him back on the vent so he could get some good rest. Getting up into the chair (and I have no idea how they did that), sitting up for 2 hours then back into bed must have been exhausting.

Nurse A said that she thought dad didn't like being put back into the bed. I so can't wait until he can talk. He tried again today to tell me something and I just have no idea what it was and the nurses didn't either. When the nurses tell me that he wants to go home or didn't want to be back in bed lets me know that if he feels something strong enough he can manage to get his point across. This is a good thing.

We still have a long way to go so keep those prayers going up for dad and me.
And don't forget to say a prayer for Aunt Betty. She is home from the hospital but she's weak.

Kathy

Wednesday April 29

When I called to check on dad early this morning the nurse said he had had a good calm night but early this morning he got across that he wanted to go home and he started messing with the bandages on his stomach. They had to give him a little sedation and restrain his hands once more. He had the restraints off for 2 or 3 days.

The nurse didn't say I could not come see dad today but suggested maybe I needed to take a day off to rest. I think what she was really saying is that they finally got dad calmed down and maybe seeing me would get him all riled up again. That's ok, I totally understand.

I called to check up on dad several times today. The last time Nurse A said that dad had been calm and then agitated. Finally she had to give him a mixture of Versed and Fentanyl. (I am not sure when they stopped the Fentanyl drip so I was a little surprised when she mentioned this.) Nurse A couldn't tell if dad was just agitated or in pain so that is why she gave him some sedation and pain medicine.

I totally forgot to ask if they had dad off the vent and on oxygen today. I'll try to remember to ask when I call and check up on dad tonight.

Since dad was making it clear that he wanted to go home I would say that he is getting better. I am hoping that once they are able to take the trachea out and he can talk it will be easier to calm him down. And who doesn't blame him for wanting to come home?

Keep those prayers going up for dad and me.

Kathy