Cat scan and Doppler exam and Eye exam all coming to a patient near you
This was A day!!
The ortho MD's came in and said, "You have calcification in your soft tissues in your hip. This is a phenomenon we are meeting in the Iraqi vets because of the type of trauma wounds they are suffering. Because you are having difficulty walking, we are doing a cat scan(usually middle of the night when no other patient is scheduled) to see if surgery is warranted. We don't like to do surgery because it is also trauma to the body, but because you are having difficulty walking, this is an alternative to consider." Do pray that surgery is not warranted, Jason is feeling down about this possible step backward and possible surgery.
Dr. Aquilar, Jason's new Rehab MD stopped by. He wants to stop the Lovinex, blood thinner, but before that he wants Jason to have a doppler ultrasound to check one last time for blood clots in Jason's legs. Doesn't think there is any but to be sure.... He also checked Jason's bottom wound and said it is about 1 inch by 3 inches and very, very shallow. It will heal from the inside, probably not grow together. Dr. A said it looked very good, not oozing etc. He was pleased at the healing.
Dr. Garvey had scheduled an eye exam for Friday after lunch, so I hope we will be able to get to that exam, unless one of the others interferes.
We made a visit to the prosthetic dept. because Jason's shrinking sleeve was hurting him and he had not worn it all week. Dan gave him two different sleeves and recommended that Jason wear the heavy latex sleeve for as long as possible. Dan and Jason had a lively discussion over the possibility of a boxing prosthetic as Jason worked out on a boxing bag very regularly in college, karate and the army. Dan has hesitation because he knows the prosthetics could be abused and actually used as a weapon. He saidthat he had a soldier who wanted the hook/metal fingers prosthetic sharpened "to have an advantage in fights." Of course, Dan refused.
In PT Jason worked out on the total gym which is a back board weight machine that works the buttocks, thighs, hips etc. Jason was "cheating" in that he wasn't using his hip, but would pick the whole area off the board to bend the knees to the crouch position. Jason also had two people use the strap to move his leg and move it in the socket. Kyla was very pleased she had help today. This intense period of working with Kyla all morning will come to an end as the soldiers are returning from their 30 day convalescent leaves for the holidays. Jason may not have as much time with Kyla which makes me sad because she is so good and has bonded with Jason. They have a really good working relationship. Dr. A recommended massage and ultra sound for the hip area and Kyla started these today.
Visitors:
Jason had a visit from...The Hooter's girls (four) who delivered a calendar filled with pictures of girls and their bikinis. The calendar was signed by many of the models. Jason was impressed that the months were not in order. I was impressed that he noticed the months were not in order.
When we were walking to Prosthetics, Jason recognized now retired General Sisneki (pardon me for my misspelling). General was removed from his position because he recommended that the US send 250,000 troops to Iraq. General Sisneki himself is an amputee from the Vietnam War. Jason thanked him for his visit and concern for the soldiers and they talked for quite a while.
Jason had a telephone visit for over an hour with Spence his friend from his unit who has returned from Iraq. The Rubles will be visiting next weekend.
Please pray for Jason's strength and courag and healing of mind, body and spirit. Pray that he doesn't need surgery for the calcification, that his reading vision can be corrected and that the doppler will not find blood clots. Thank you for keeping us all in your thoughts and prayers.
My day included my attending my first support group for mothers, wives and other women in support roles for soldiers at WR. It is offered by the USO and the psychiatric department at WR. The meeting was having each of us introduce ourselves by telling the story of our soldier Each wounding different, the emotional pain and suffering of the women present the same, whether they had been at WR a year or just arrived. I offered my name to the newest arrivals and hope to be able to get together to talk. Please hold all the family members of the soldiers in your prayers and good thoughts.
The ortho MD's came in and said, "You have calcification in your soft tissues in your hip. This is a phenomenon we are meeting in the Iraqi vets because of the type of trauma wounds they are suffering. Because you are having difficulty walking, we are doing a cat scan(usually middle of the night when no other patient is scheduled) to see if surgery is warranted. We don't like to do surgery because it is also trauma to the body, but because you are having difficulty walking, this is an alternative to consider." Do pray that surgery is not warranted, Jason is feeling down about this possible step backward and possible surgery.
Dr. Aquilar, Jason's new Rehab MD stopped by. He wants to stop the Lovinex, blood thinner, but before that he wants Jason to have a doppler ultrasound to check one last time for blood clots in Jason's legs. Doesn't think there is any but to be sure.... He also checked Jason's bottom wound and said it is about 1 inch by 3 inches and very, very shallow. It will heal from the inside, probably not grow together. Dr. A said it looked very good, not oozing etc. He was pleased at the healing.
Dr. Garvey had scheduled an eye exam for Friday after lunch, so I hope we will be able to get to that exam, unless one of the others interferes.
We made a visit to the prosthetic dept. because Jason's shrinking sleeve was hurting him and he had not worn it all week. Dan gave him two different sleeves and recommended that Jason wear the heavy latex sleeve for as long as possible. Dan and Jason had a lively discussion over the possibility of a boxing prosthetic as Jason worked out on a boxing bag very regularly in college, karate and the army. Dan has hesitation because he knows the prosthetics could be abused and actually used as a weapon. He saidthat he had a soldier who wanted the hook/metal fingers prosthetic sharpened "to have an advantage in fights." Of course, Dan refused.
In PT Jason worked out on the total gym which is a back board weight machine that works the buttocks, thighs, hips etc. Jason was "cheating" in that he wasn't using his hip, but would pick the whole area off the board to bend the knees to the crouch position. Jason also had two people use the strap to move his leg and move it in the socket. Kyla was very pleased she had help today. This intense period of working with Kyla all morning will come to an end as the soldiers are returning from their 30 day convalescent leaves for the holidays. Jason may not have as much time with Kyla which makes me sad because she is so good and has bonded with Jason. They have a really good working relationship. Dr. A recommended massage and ultra sound for the hip area and Kyla started these today.
Visitors:
Jason had a visit from...The Hooter's girls (four) who delivered a calendar filled with pictures of girls and their bikinis. The calendar was signed by many of the models. Jason was impressed that the months were not in order. I was impressed that he noticed the months were not in order.
When we were walking to Prosthetics, Jason recognized now retired General Sisneki (pardon me for my misspelling). General was removed from his position because he recommended that the US send 250,000 troops to Iraq. General Sisneki himself is an amputee from the Vietnam War. Jason thanked him for his visit and concern for the soldiers and they talked for quite a while.
Jason had a telephone visit for over an hour with Spence his friend from his unit who has returned from Iraq. The Rubles will be visiting next weekend.
Please pray for Jason's strength and courag and healing of mind, body and spirit. Pray that he doesn't need surgery for the calcification, that his reading vision can be corrected and that the doppler will not find blood clots. Thank you for keeping us all in your thoughts and prayers.
My day included my attending my first support group for mothers, wives and other women in support roles for soldiers at WR. It is offered by the USO and the psychiatric department at WR. The meeting was having each of us introduce ourselves by telling the story of our soldier Each wounding different, the emotional pain and suffering of the women present the same, whether they had been at WR a year or just arrived. I offered my name to the newest arrivals and hope to be able to get together to talk. Please hold all the family members of the soldiers in your prayers and good thoughts.
posted by Katy (Scott) Zatsick | 1/05/2006 09:42:00 PM
1 Comments:
Way to go, Jason, for recognizing retired 4-star General Eric K. Shinseki--former Chief of Staff for the Army. I know that Elizabeth must think that your lives are overlapping...Landstuhl, Walter Reed, and now Gen. Shinseki. Although Watt was just an Army Dental Corps colonel, he always knew the key players and the young soldiers' regard for their officers. Gen. Shinseki (then Col. Shinseki) was Commander of the 2nd Brigade in Kitzingen and then Ass't. Chief of Staff in Wurzburg (just a few miles up the road from Kitzingen)while Watt was at the Wurzburg Hospital dental clinic. Patient after patient recounted stories of Gen. Shinsecki's professionalism, courtesy, and encouraging leadership style. Maybe that's what you get when you combine an undergraduate degree from West Point with a master's in English from Duke.
Party affiliations aside, it's too bad that many American voters didn't draw the obvious inferences when so many former generals, admirals, joint chief chairmen, and CIA heads were opposed to Mr. Bush being elected for a second term. Military personnel, whether active or retired, are schooled in keeping their political views private. We had NEVER seen anything like the "Anti-Bush list." At that time Gen. Shinseki was still on active duty, but I'll bet his name would be there if it were election year today.
You were right in two important things about Gen. Shinseki--he lost a foot in Viet Nam, and he (like Colin Powell, Brent Scowcroft, Norman Schwarzkopf, etc.) advised the president that thousands more troops were needed on the ground in Iraq than the "Rumsfeld plan" called for. If we're all lucky, the moderate "Mr." Shinseki will run for U.S. House or Senate from his home state of Hawaii.
We continue to remember you daily.
Tandy Shields (Elizabeth's mom)
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