Duke Day Three and A Plan

I arrived at My Dad’s hospital room before eight this morning since this was going to be a big day of tests. He was just finishing his Cheerios and announced to me that he did not sleep the night before. Not the news I wanted because no one is happy when they haven’t slept. Despite that pronouncement my Dad was his nicest self all day.

He had an echo first thing. He loves the transport guys at Duke and asks them all kinds of outrageous questions. Like today he asked the young man with an intricate hair style that was very tall if he had a sunroof because my Dad worried his hair might not fit in his car.

After the echo his Physical and Occupational Therapists came to see him. This was the highlight of the day. He loved them. I had met his physical therapist the day before and in her interview about him she asked if he lived in a mobile home because it said that on some report about him. I quickly corrected that so as to save her from what he might say if she mentioned it to him. She would have no idea my father’s lifetime campaign against mobile homes.

After therapy my Mom showed up for a nice visit. Unfortunately she had to witness my Dad getting two different IV’s inserted and it pained her so to watch him get tortured. He then went off with two transport guys to get another big test. Carter got to see him before he left as she brought lunch for me, and her grandparents. After eating her lunch my Mom went home since she can’t drive in the dark. She did a great job to get to the hospital on her own and get home.

When transport retuned my Dad a new doctor came in. He looked at Carter who was still there and said, “Don’t I know you?” Carter used to babysit for his kids and sit for his dog. After they got that out of the way, he told my Dad that the tests went well and gave them all the information they needed to proceed with the operation they think will solve his issues. One interesting thing this latest test found is that my Dad had a undetected heart attack sometime in the last five years and one major artery had failed and his body grew a new one around it. Just like my father!

Yeah, Yeah to the news that he can have this operation! Then the hammer fell. They won’t do it until NEXT Thursday and my Dad had to stay in the hospital until then, plus at least four days after. There are still somethings that need to improve in terms of too much fluid to make sure the operation is successful. It was a good news/bad news story, but when I said to my Dad, “It’s a short term pain to fix a long term problem,” he agreed. But I am worried about keeping him entertained and trying to get him enough sleep and bring in edible healthy food for the next week.

Thank goodness I already brought him a good down pillow yesterday. Tomorrow my assignment as primary care giver is to bring better toilet paper, bar soap, lotion and dark roast hot coffee. I am praying the PT and OT ladies come back early and get him up and walking round.

He was wiped out by six PM tonight so I remade his bed with clean sheets and tidied up his room and got him all snuggled down and he fell asleep. Sadly after he fell asleep his favorite resident came by as I was walking down the hall. He wanted to go say goodbye to my Dad because he was changing services. I am going to hate to break the news to my Dad that Crosby is gone. I am praying that the new resident is just as good. We have at least ten more days in this room and that is a long time for my Dad.