Here We Go Again

Last night, DH had to be taken to the ER (or ED) as he was showing all the common symptoms of dehydration. Just two days earlier, his urologist had surgically implanted a suprapubic catheter. 

A quick bio of DH: he’s been a quadriplegic for the last 27 years & has dealt with more bladder infections than I care to mention. He’s been thinking about having this procedure for years, & finally decided that now’s the time. 

The procedure went exceptionally well, he was stable & feeling very well, so he was sent home same day.  Friday, his gut was cramping, he was passing a few clots, but that was to be expected. Yesterday morning he awoke with  severe headache, & same cramps. Now mind you, his fluid intake since his discharge has been normal, he took all his meds, along with acetaminophen for the headache. Total compliance.  Headache subsided a little with the cramping , but then about every 1/2 hour or so, it would come back. These yo-yo symptoms went on for a few hours so we contacted his surgeon. All mentioned symptoms were not abnormal. Blood in urine was much lighter which was a good sign–but so was his urine output, despite that he’d been drinking fluids all day. He hollered for a bucket & right then I knew it was going to be a long night for him.  All he did was dry-heave. I took his BP & it registered 64/48.  So, back to the hospital he went, to the ED. After triage & getting a cot, he started coming back to life as the IV fluid was administered.  CT scan was done & no leakage at the surgical site, head scanned as well, all OK. We were told a bed in ICU was waiting for him so I went home feeling good about the outcome. Wrong!

I called the hospital this morning only to find out that he’d spent the night in the ED. I wasn’t worried mostly about that, because I knew he was being tended to. The staff was wonderful. My biggest fear is bedsores.  Those cots are not ideal for anyone with paralysis.  The staff member who answered the phone said they just turned him.  Well, it’s not that I don’t believe her, I just know DH better than anybody, even his own parents.  I’m sure he’s OK, I just  know he’s going to be pissed, because they told him last night a room was ready for him.  And a little about the hospital: it’s brand-new, in an area where drug-seekers & other non-emergent cases are virtually non-existant (looks more like a fancy hotel). There was barely anyone in their ED last night. So we’ll just see……..