One Doc Says One Thing, Another Doc Something Else

I cleaned out Linda Lou's room at the old hospital and said my thanks and goodbyes yesterday because Doc Buch, the surgeon, said she was through there. So, today, the other Docs sent er back to that hospital. As near as I can figure, those Docs want her to finish the six weeks of IV antibiotics. At this point neither I nor Linda Lou know if this is six weeks from the start of the last time, in mid November or a brand new six weeks.

So, Linda Lou is back in Triumph Hospital in Dallas. In the same room as a matter of fact. The difference is that they came and took her (their) little fridge and microwave and, of course, I brought all of her stuff home. I spent today doing laundry so I'll take the clean clothes back in the morning. It's strange. I ask these Docs for a straight answer. I do not expect anyone to tell me that Linda Lou will wake up twenty-five years old or anything, I just want to know exactly what to expect. Yet everyone tells me something different.

Update: In answer to the question about why Linda Lou is back in that hospital for the antibiotic regimen, well it's simple. They have something called a PICC line in her, it is a widget that foes in a vein in her arm all the way up to her shoulder (?). Three times a day they hang an antibiotic drip that runs in for around an hour. The rest of the time she reads, sleeps, watches Law and Order, SUV (them Yankee cops up there in Noo Yawk sure must have problems with the Suburbans and Lincoln Navigators bein' stole) and being lonesome.

This lonesome is not the fault of the staff there at Triumph. I think the staff there deserves a whole blog post, along with a little primer for folks who may someday be old and need long term hospital or nursing home care. Hint: it's all in how the patient and regular visitors treat the lower level staff, the nurses and aides, the receptionist, the custodians, etc. Treat those people right and you or your loved one will get that extra inch or care that makes all the difference. Otherwise, you'll get the correct care but without the smiles and, yes, love.