Jason attends cooking class
For Pt Jason walked 14 circuits of the third floor. Dow said "we are definitely walking another floor" as one can get tired of the beautiful photographs freely adorning the walls. I am sure you have seen them, landscapes of the azealas, California poppies, etc. I'll try to get the name of the photographer. Dow says he saw the same photos in Northwestern Hospital in Chicago. I swear I have seen some of them at Loyola Medical Center in Maywood. Same decorator?
The big discussion of the day"Would Jason go to see the Beach Boys tonight?" when they appeared courtesy of USO. The first thing I found out"Jason needs a pass" to leave the building! Whoops, this is not a civilian hospital! So had to get the MD to give an order. Then could we get a chair large enough to be comfortable? After having a good go at it because, the ward said "No" you can't have the usual chair Jason uses, I contacted the MD who obviously doesn't outrank the wardmaster so it was up in the air all afternoon. Jason wound up not going because his friend Dan was coming to see him the last time before deployment Thursday to the Middle East, except when Dow and I checked in after the "wonderful concert down memory lane"at nine, Dan was not going to the weekend so....that is how we spent the day. They did serve a very good buffet before the concert--the hugest shrimp I ever saw! and lots of them. The deserts were truly homemade-especially the pumpkin and pecan pies.
Today Jason attended the first cooking class for amputees in OT. However, the size of the class (Dow says about 30) kept Jason from actually making Fajitas, the menu for the day. He and Jodi have been eating the Chinese carry in for all their meals. Jodi has been sorting and collecting and organizing Jason's room. Jason's room at Mologne is starting to overflow with things given him, including today's gifts--hat and a really neat jacket marked "United States Sercret Service" Do you read a potential problem?
We are in the midst of trying to get accommodations and a van for Lisa and family when they visit starting Christmas. We already have a tour of the White House scheduled for Lisa and the kids, thanks to the office of US Representative Jan Shakowsky. Not sure what will be seen or done but having three little ones; 8, 7 and 4 at Walter Reed will make for a very interesting Christmas experience.
As a grass roots activist:
Win one/loose one.
On the ten minute walk between the hospital and Mologne House, two street lights were out. They were on a path at a corner where many soldiers and family members walk after dark and now with snow/slush could be very dangerous and cause falls. I told one of the LtCol's about the problem and no action. So at the family meeting held every Monday at Mologne House I brought the topic up and Voila "the street lights are fixed!" Remember, I come from Chicag0 where we have the wards. I just have to keep figuring out the right channels of communication. I hope you all speak up in your neighborhood meetings.
I wrote about I think my problem with the foot locker locked on the patient's side of the room. I wanted to use to store Jason's "anti drop night boots" and his "leg pumpers" used to fight clots forming in the legs. On Ward 65 we could use it from the patient's side, on 58 we could not. I talked with everyone including Dr. Todd, head of Jason's Rehab team whom I am sure tried his best. Alas, the locker stayed locked. Now Jason has given up the last of these "patient attachments" and lies freely in his bed so I don't have to worry about storing them during the day. Coming from hospice where we do everything to reduce patient and family stress I really have to rate this "no exception" to an arbitrarily applied rule as a great frustrator and increase in anxiety for me. I feel no one on the floor listened to me. "It was a small thing" to the staff but very important to me as a parent of a very seriously wounded soldier. I think hospitals should try to listen to the needs of the family members of wounded soldiers; we are in enough anquish, we don't need arbitrary rules.
The big discussion of the day"Would Jason go to see the Beach Boys tonight?" when they appeared courtesy of USO. The first thing I found out"Jason needs a pass" to leave the building! Whoops, this is not a civilian hospital! So had to get the MD to give an order. Then could we get a chair large enough to be comfortable? After having a good go at it because, the ward said "No" you can't have the usual chair Jason uses, I contacted the MD who obviously doesn't outrank the wardmaster so it was up in the air all afternoon. Jason wound up not going because his friend Dan was coming to see him the last time before deployment Thursday to the Middle East, except when Dow and I checked in after the "wonderful concert down memory lane"at nine, Dan was not going to the weekend so....that is how we spent the day. They did serve a very good buffet before the concert--the hugest shrimp I ever saw! and lots of them. The deserts were truly homemade-especially the pumpkin and pecan pies.
Today Jason attended the first cooking class for amputees in OT. However, the size of the class (Dow says about 30) kept Jason from actually making Fajitas, the menu for the day. He and Jodi have been eating the Chinese carry in for all their meals. Jodi has been sorting and collecting and organizing Jason's room. Jason's room at Mologne is starting to overflow with things given him, including today's gifts--hat and a really neat jacket marked "United States Sercret Service" Do you read a potential problem?
We are in the midst of trying to get accommodations and a van for Lisa and family when they visit starting Christmas. We already have a tour of the White House scheduled for Lisa and the kids, thanks to the office of US Representative Jan Shakowsky. Not sure what will be seen or done but having three little ones; 8, 7 and 4 at Walter Reed will make for a very interesting Christmas experience.
As a grass roots activist:
Win one/loose one.
On the ten minute walk between the hospital and Mologne House, two street lights were out. They were on a path at a corner where many soldiers and family members walk after dark and now with snow/slush could be very dangerous and cause falls. I told one of the LtCol's about the problem and no action. So at the family meeting held every Monday at Mologne House I brought the topic up and Voila "the street lights are fixed!" Remember, I come from Chicag0 where we have the wards. I just have to keep figuring out the right channels of communication. I hope you all speak up in your neighborhood meetings.
I wrote about I think my problem with the foot locker locked on the patient's side of the room. I wanted to use to store Jason's "anti drop night boots" and his "leg pumpers" used to fight clots forming in the legs. On Ward 65 we could use it from the patient's side, on 58 we could not. I talked with everyone including Dr. Todd, head of Jason's Rehab team whom I am sure tried his best. Alas, the locker stayed locked. Now Jason has given up the last of these "patient attachments" and lies freely in his bed so I don't have to worry about storing them during the day. Coming from hospice where we do everything to reduce patient and family stress I really have to rate this "no exception" to an arbitrarily applied rule as a great frustrator and increase in anxiety for me. I feel no one on the floor listened to me. "It was a small thing" to the staff but very important to me as a parent of a very seriously wounded soldier. I think hospitals should try to listen to the needs of the family members of wounded soldiers; we are in enough anquish, we don't need arbitrary rules.
posted by Katy (Scott) Zatsick | 12/13/2005 09:55:00 PM
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