October 23 2012

I am a second year adult nursing student (very mature student).  I am on placement with a community nursing team now and one of the nurses I am being mentored by worked on a neuro ICU so she had some encouraging stories. It's sometimes difficult with a bit of medical knowledge. Most of the time I am Helen's mum but a little bit of the time I do revert to being the interested student. I let the staff know that I am a nursing student eventually because then most of them know that maybe I understand what is being said between themselves, or is written on charts, etc.  Sometimes they think the relatives don't know anything.  

Helen had a rough night last night, coughing and being suctioned many times. The nurse today said that she has coughed up a large mucus plug which potentially could have blocked her trachy!!! She had a battery of tests today - blood, urine, stool and sputum. She also discovered that she was dehydrated because of the constant diarrhoea. That may be part of the reason for her high heart rate yesterday. She has been pumped with a couple of litres of fluid now and her heart rate has dropped

She is being seen by the stroke specialist on Thursday. Apparently this is because the main man is on holiday and she needs to be reviewed. The process has been started to "discharge" her but obviously this will take weeks if not months because the funding is going cross-county. We live in one PCT, Helen is in hospital in another and wherever she goes for rehab will be a third. They have got to fight amongst themselves about money.

She has got splints on her feet/legs now and they are waiting for hand/wrist splints to come.

I have asked the hospital for a letter saying that she is in HDU and incapacitated. Apparently they get that quite often so they are happy to do this. I can start to work on finances (well mine anyway) next week.

Helen's Hope: October 23 2012

Tuesday 23 October 2012

October 23 2012

I am a second year adult nursing student (very mature student).  I am on placement with a community nursing team now and one of the nurses I am being mentored by worked on a neuro ICU so she had some encouraging stories. It's sometimes difficult with a bit of medical knowledge. Most of the time I am Helen's mum but a little bit of the time I do revert to being the interested student. I let the staff know that I am a nursing student eventually because then most of them know that maybe I understand what is being said between themselves, or is written on charts, etc.  Sometimes they think the relatives don't know anything.  

Helen had a rough night last night, coughing and being suctioned many times. The nurse today said that she has coughed up a large mucus plug which potentially could have blocked her trachy!!! She had a battery of tests today - blood, urine, stool and sputum. She also discovered that she was dehydrated because of the constant diarrhoea. That may be part of the reason for her high heart rate yesterday. She has been pumped with a couple of litres of fluid now and her heart rate has dropped

She is being seen by the stroke specialist on Thursday. Apparently this is because the main man is on holiday and she needs to be reviewed. The process has been started to "discharge" her but obviously this will take weeks if not months because the funding is going cross-county. We live in one PCT, Helen is in hospital in another and wherever she goes for rehab will be a third. They have got to fight amongst themselves about money.

She has got splints on her feet/legs now and they are waiting for hand/wrist splints to come.

I have asked the hospital for a letter saying that she is in HDU and incapacitated. Apparently they get that quite often so they are happy to do this. I can start to work on finances (well mine anyway) next week.

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