Ole gets released - for now

Remember, I said I couldn't wait to see how things would be changed today? Ole was discharged this afternoon and is currently at home.

But, I'm okay with it this time. Even I could see marked improvement in his leg.

When I called Ole this morning about 8:30 and he told me he was to be discharged this afternoon, I blew. Indian lady doctor was at it again. She had instructed her senior resident to write the discharge orders and the process had begun. By the time I got up there I was fuming and went straight to the nurse's station and asked for a patient advocate. I also informed them that I would not take Ole home until he had been seen by both the infectious disease doctor and the surgeon. It just so happened that both of them happened to be on the floor at that time and a meeting was arranged in Tony's room. Yesterday the surgeon had ordered a surgical stocking to be put on his leg all the way up to his hip. That apparently helped tremendously because a lot of the redness and pain had disappeared over night and he was now able to walk with very little discomfort. Both doctors very thoroughly examined the leg, ordered further blood work and after getting the results they decided they were comfortable with Tony going home this afternoon. The blood work indicated there is very little infection left. Of course Indian lady doctor was nowhere to be found.

I questioned them thoroughly about activity levels, etc. so both Ole and I understand just what can and can't be done.

I can't tell you how relieved I was after talking with both of them. Prior to this I felt like I was being kicked in the stomach every five minutes.

One very interesting thing about this entire scenario. When Ole was admitted to the hospital on Monday he was put in a double room and had a roommate. Never during the entire time that he was in this room did anyone gown when they came in. I thought this was rather strange because I know that staph is very contagious. But at that point, I ASSumed they knew what they were doing.

Thursday, when the infectious disease doctor got involved they were suddenly able to find a private room for him and everyone started gowning when they entered with the exception of the ID doctor. When he was in the room at one point and a nurse came in gowned he asked her why. He then informed her that Ole definitely did not have staph - the bloodwork that he had done indicated that it was strep. Now all week long he's been being treated for staph, which requires different antibiotics than strep. When a second antibiotic was added that treated strep, that's when he started making progress. Then the damn lady doctor would come in and change the orders and hang something entirely different, something I'm assuming that was for staph only, as each time she would change the meds his situation would quit improving.

Lovely Daughter and I met with the patient advocate about noon and laid everything out. We had both been keeping notes so there wasn't much that we forgot. Lady Indian doctor has only been at MeritCare for 30 days. I don't know where she came from, but she is titled as the attending physician and has a senior resident and an intern following her around and teaching them - if you could call it that. I informed the advocate that the nursing staff was superior, but of course they have to take their instructions from the attending physician. The attending physician is Internal Medicine. And what right she had to override the specialists orders amazes me. So the patient advocate wrote up the report and assured me that it would be turned in as they supposedly take these kinds of things very seriously. I requested a follow-up call because I want to KNOW what the results are. I'm sure she'll just get her fingers slapped, and then be told to go on her merry way - if that.

I also told the advocate that I was just happy to be bringing Tony home alive and with all his parts - at least at this point. I assured her that if there was a reoccurrence of this I would certainly NOT bring him back to MeritCare. Nor will I bring him to Innovis, the other large medical facility we have in town as I've heard horror stories about things there also. I'll just put him in the van and head for the Mayo Clinic in Rochester.

He has 3 followup doctor appointments next week - one with the surgeon, one with the ID doctor and one with the senior resident that was following Indian lady doctor around. We'll definitely keep the two specialist appointments, but we'll have to THINK about the resident appointment.

I'm exhausted. I'm going to go take a nap.