Sunday, September 4, 2011

She's Bionic Pt4

So I get home from HUP at about730 and decide to make some dinner. I had picked up a small steak for myself the following day and decide to grill it up. I find a rub Mags bought for me and I coat the steak lightly, because while it has a great flavor it is a bit on the spicy side. I then chop up some red potatoes and asparagus, mix them with some dried herbs and EVOO and stick them in the oven. I sear my steak on the stove for a few minutes before throwing it onto the grill. I put my iPod in the docking station and turn it on....a nice dinner, music and (try) to relax.
It works a little and after dinner I take CrazyDog in the yard for some catch and then when he has had enough I plop on the couch and watch a movie. I call the CICU at about 11 to check on Mags then go to bed. I was pretty tired and thankfully slept through the night.
It's Sunday morning so traffic is light when I go to HUP. I bring tea for me and a real coffee for Mags. We talk and enjoy our day together. Her nurse again is Alpha who is incredibly. He checks on Mags every hour or so and tells her she may be going up to a regular room tomorrow. This makes us happy. Dinner time rolls around and after dinner Mags starts to not feel so good. She starts to get anxious and is clearly not ready for me to go. I offer to spend the night with her. She calls her nurse in and asks if that would be okay. He smiles and says "of course it is okay. I will just let your nurse who comes on at 6 know." Mags breathes a sigh of relief and soon Alpha is wheeling a large brown recliner into the room. He positions it about three feet from Mag's bed, 'out of the way in case we need to get in here' he explains. That's fine with both of us. We watch tv and her overnight nurse Chris comes in. He's a very nice guy and asks me if I think I would like anything. I tell him two pillows and two blankets will do me good. He returns in about a minute and soon I'm hunkering down for the night.
And apparently I was very tired because during the night, Chris and another nurse were in the room trying to give my wife an IV and I never woke up. Never even stirred apparently. This was a source of great amusement to everyone present. When breakfast finally arrives I go to their Cafe (which is far better food-wise than the actual hospital food) and grab a small breakfast sandwich for me and some fresh fruit for Mags. Also, some real tea. Tazo, the stuff you pay 2.09 for at Starbucks? .99 cents.
So after breakfast we watch some tv and at this point Mags is feeling better. Physically and emotionally. She has seen a team of doctors who assure her she will not need a pacemaker as was once feared, and that she would indeed be getting out of CICU this day.
So a team of doctors is doing rounds and they come in. It's a mixed group. The lead doc is in his, I'm guessing 40's, the others vary in age from 30 to I think 14. seriously, who was that kid?? The lead guy is Polish or something and he has a slight accent. Nice guy, speaking to Mags about her situation and talking to her about her impending IV.
Let me break there. The staff has told her that she will need an additional IV before she leaves the CICU. Mags argument is why would she need two IV's to go to a regular floor and not need two in CICU? Valid right? They tell her in case something goes wrong with the original line on the floor then they have a backup. Mags argues for a long time because for all of my wife's wonderful qualities, she has crappy veins. And whenever someone tries to give her an IV, the blow a vein. Even the 'experts' have trouble getting them. Seriously, when someone comes in and says "I'm the best at this", my lips curl at the corners into a faint smile because I know whats coming. The best even have trouble getting a line in her.
So back to the Polish doctor. He tells her she needs the IV, yadda yadda...and then he says they could put it into her neck. He looks at her neck and says even those are hard to find. He then looks at me and in the weirdest moment I've had in this hospital he says "now your husband, that's a great vein. I can see it from here." I was sitting on the windowsill 5 feet away. I smile politely and Mags shoots back, "Good. Stick it in his neck." Everyone laughs and the doctor tells Mags she looks great and she will be moved upstairs today and that he would send 'the expert' in to do the IV. Mags and I share a look and nod. I wait another couple of hours for either the 'expert' to show up or for her to be wheeled upstairs. Neither has happened by 11 and we then wonder what we'll be charged for being in the garage overnight.
We decide I should go so I give her a kiss and say a prayer for her and hit the road.