Saturday, August 29, 2009

29 August 2009

The fever is here.



Jeremy's temperature was up over 39 degrees today (update: 39.9 this evening), so he has been hooked up to antibiotics and is stuck in hospital. No gate pass today!!



He did feel a bit warmer than usual last night, but he was around 37 degrees, and even this morning at 8am, he was under 38. However, when it was time to go, the last check found he had breached the 38 mark.



As you'd expect, Jeremy was massively disappointed (as you would). However, it's funny how things work out in the end. This morning, we were a little bit stressed when the overnight nurse forgot(?) to take Jeremy's blood at 6am, and it was not done until after 9am. However, that delay meant that they had to wait until after 9.30am to get the results. The obligatory last obs/checks (to get out) found that his temp just broke 38 degrees. That meant he had to be hooked up to antibiotics and encouraged to enjoy his immediate hospital surroundings. If there was no delay in the morning, we probably would have arrived home just in time to figure out we needed to bring him straight back to hospital. So from one perspective, that was one round trip saved.



Other news (1)


New single seat fold-out sofa beds have arrived! I'm pretty sure it was an upgrade provided through the Cure Our kids charity - linky here. As there is no longer a representative of the charity on the ward, we haven't seen or heard anything for quite some time. Eg. They used to have food in the pantry, but for the past few months whilst we have been there, it's been a bit like Old Mother Hubbards...

Anyway, so I got this brand new sofa bed to break in on Thursday night - it was much more comfortable than the old ones (estimated to be 13 years old). Entry/Egress is more challenging due to high and wide armrests, but the main distraction is the new car smell!



Other news (2)


There has been an outbreak of gastro in the ward and all the common areas have been closed off. In the past, we have known that some patients were kept in isolation due to having gastro, but now it seems that these carers were not careful with hygene, and it has spread to other patients. So for now, all the common areas are off limits until further notice. This means that the ward is definitely less "convenient" and less "friendly" for all residents.



Public service announcement: Most of you should be familiar with this concept, but yet for some of the population it must be foreign. If (!) you wash your hands, there is some benefit to use a substance called Soap! (Not to be confused with SOAP). Apparently, using soap is part of good hygiene.
A special thanks goes out to those who have failed to wash their hands properly. Without you, this outbreak/clampdown would not be possible./End

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