ER #20/#4

When I called in this morning to find out what time Dad was going to have his physical therapy I was told he would be going to the emergency room this morning. About 1:30 this morning Dad had a low fever, so they gave him Tylenol. When they went back at about 4:30 a.m. to check his temperature they found that he had removed the PICC line! (They also found that the fever had gone down.) Dad needed to go to the Kaiser ER to get another inserted. But before he went to Kaiser, he had a shower to take. Sylvestre & Jose loaded him on to the shower gurney and gave him a shower.

The special shower gurney for giving residents who can't stand a shower.

CNA Sylvestre moves Dad into position for a shower.

The EMTs from American Medical Response (AMR) arrived just before Dad got out of the shower. They loaded him on to the gurney and transported him to the emergency room at Kaiser Moanalua. I rode with EMTs Lisa & Javier; Lisa was driving, Javier was in back keeping an eye on Dad. I found out today is Javier's 1st day on the job & Lisa is originally from Vancouver, BC. Since AMR is a bona fide ambulance they took Dad in through the ambulance entrance, so I got to go in that way, too.

L to R: EMT Lisa, Dad, & EMT Javier.

EMT Javier unloads Dad from the ambulance & prepares to enter through the ambulance entry door seen in the background.

Once Dad got to the ER, they asked a bunch of questions about the PICC line and Dad's medication schedule. They took blood for a bunch of tests and another series of cultures. It turns out Dad's blood work showed he had a high lactate level but his white blood cell count went down. Because it was a Sunday, there was no one available at the Ambulatory Treatment Center (ATC) to insert the PICC line. So Dr. Tam-Sing had Nurse Molly insert an IV line and gave Dad today's dose of Daptomycin. Dr. Tam-Sing also had Dad given 2 units of fluids to correct his lactate levels. Dad was finally discharged about 4 pm. We go back tomorrow to have the PICC line inserted at the ATC. Later in the week Dad will have a follow-up appointment with Dr. Baragi.

EMT Javier debriefs Nurse Molly, while EMT Lisa works with ER Tech Edgar to transfer Dad to the ER bed.

This was the monitor about 2 & 1/2 hours after Dad arrived.

Vials of blood for tests.

Blood culture samples.

Intravenous pump with Daptomycin drip.

Here are some of the signs in this ER treatment room. I like that they have a how-to-wash-your-hands sign by the sink; this should be posted at all public bathrooms. There is also an infographic for pain levels.

Johnny from JCRG Transervices took us back to Maunalani. Dad was feeling more pain, he said ouch at almost every bump that the van went over. Since I was a passenger, I was able to get a really good photo of the damaged Middle Street bridge. We got back just before diner, on my way in I asked Chloe if it was possible to get a peanut butter & jelly sandwich with a banana and vanilla Magic Cup for Dad's dinner. She said, Sure!, walked in to the kitchen, and was back before I finished signing in, saying it was done! That's one of the other things I like about Maunalani!

Dad rests in the back of the JCRG van, while Johnny prepares to leave Kaiser.

You can clearly see the damaged portion of the bridge.

Yesterday Suzanne & Manu gave me a bag of omiyage for Curtis & me to split. I took it over to his house this evening. I ended up taking the Trader Joe's Cuckoo for Coconut Trek Mix; although it makes a mess & is difficult to eat in the ER I like the flavor. (Curtis picks up the Trader Joe's Simply Almonds, Cashews, & Chocolate Trek Mix for me when he is in Las Vegas. It's much easier to eat in the ER.) I left the rest for Curtis since he has many more people in his household.

After I got back from Maunalani, I headed to Easter dinner at Curtis & Lori's house. Fortunately they had a bunch of food and I did not need to make anything since I would have had no time to make anything today!

The roast before cutting. (Photo by Curtis)

The dinner spread; I had more than 1 portion of protein ...

... and more than 1 portion of dessert.

Happy Birthday to Chad, Bev, Stef, Garrett, & Maya!