Both mom's doctor's called me today about mom's condition. They both wanted to discharge her to go
back to her nursing home. Her WBC was 13 this morning which means she still has an infection. She is
not on any antibiotics. I thought she might have a UTI and they sent out a sample. The lab returned with
enough bacteria that I thought the ID doctor would start her on at least a mild UTI antibiotic before sending
her back to the nursing home. Not so. She says if we just keep giving her antibiotics she will become immune to more of them. While this is true it doesn't seem like a good idea to send her back with it unresolved. Since she wouldn't change her mind in a day or 2 it is wise to send her back I guess. They can treat a UTI at the nursing home. The strangest part of this is that most of these labs take 72 hours to return the full result that they prescribe the right antibiotics from. The test tells them which will work. It has been less than 48 hours since they took the sample so how she knows that she wouldn't want to prescribe antibiotics I don't know. Now the nursing home will have to test her urine and start the whole process all over again or wait & obtain the labs at 72 hours from the hospital. Like I say though if the facility can treat it when they want to what is the point of keeping her in the hospital longer & have the ID specialist say no we won't give antibiotics for it. When I asked if the colonization was over 100,000 she said yes but it was a mix of different bacterias. Don't know what that means but she is a little less responsive like she is when she has
a UTI.
Dorothy Harris (Mom) usually lives at Sandy Lake Rehab in Coppell, Texas but is in the hospital right now & Robert Harris (Dad) lives at Vista Ridge Nursing Home in Lewisville, Texas
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Saturday, January 26, 2013
Friday, January 25, 2013
Mom - Friday, Jan. 25, 2013
Mom - Friday, January 25, 2013
Called the hospital today and her Hemoglobin is up to 10.? which is slowly climbing. This is good.
However her white blood cell count has risen back to 13. Not good so they were going to send her
back to the nursing home but will wait and collect a WBC count tomorrow.
When I saw her last night, 24th, she was showing signs of discomfort & I knew it had to be either
a passing stomach ache or the infection coming back & was looking for the WBC this AM to tell
me which it was but when I called no count had been ordered which was strange considering there
was one all week. This AM would have been the 72 hours since last antibioitic dose which would
be when any infection would return. So I called and as POA requested one & sure enough the
WBC is climbing back up. I figured the dropping WBC through the week was while she was
still having the antibiotics in the system. The funny thing is I expected it to be 13. I have gotten to know her so well I could predict the count.
No new ones have been ordered and the Infectious Diseases MD hasn't seen her today or made
new orders. Maybe they are waiting to see if the WBC is higher, same or lower tom. She has had
an awful lot of antibioitics in her system. Tomorrow we will see. I am glad her hemoglobin is going
in the right direction.
Called the hospital today and her Hemoglobin is up to 10.? which is slowly climbing. This is good.
However her white blood cell count has risen back to 13. Not good so they were going to send her
back to the nursing home but will wait and collect a WBC count tomorrow.
When I saw her last night, 24th, she was showing signs of discomfort & I knew it had to be either
a passing stomach ache or the infection coming back & was looking for the WBC this AM to tell
me which it was but when I called no count had been ordered which was strange considering there
was one all week. This AM would have been the 72 hours since last antibioitic dose which would
be when any infection would return. So I called and as POA requested one & sure enough the
WBC is climbing back up. I figured the dropping WBC through the week was while she was
still having the antibiotics in the system. The funny thing is I expected it to be 13. I have gotten to know her so well I could predict the count.
No new ones have been ordered and the Infectious Diseases MD hasn't seen her today or made
new orders. Maybe they are waiting to see if the WBC is higher, same or lower tom. She has had
an awful lot of antibioitics in her system. Tomorrow we will see. I am glad her hemoglobin is going
in the right direction.
Caregiving
Caregiving is some of the most difficult and
demanding work that we will ever do. It demands great patience and
strength of character. It is not a role for wimps or martyrs; it is a
role for the courageous and the optimistic.
You will probably have many moments of sorrow, even despair, but you will never, ever regret taking on this very difficult work. For the rest of your life, you will know that within you lives a hero.
You will probably have many moments of sorrow, even despair, but you will never, ever regret taking on this very difficult work. For the rest of your life, you will know that within you lives a hero.
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