At 2.45 my recovery nurse accompanied me to 9 West 1 Ward where
I was placed in the bed 16 position. I
had a lovely view south over Gloucester House (where I had chemotherapy from
April 2011 to April 2012), St
Andrews College and Newtown. I was alert and sat in my chair to have
dinner while Barbara and our daughter looked on.
Wednesday was harder as I felt bloated. My abdomen had been filled with gas to make
it easier to complete surgery. It takes more
than a day before this dissipates. I
also had gas in my colon. Best treatment
is to walk. So, I was up and about
walking around 9 West 1 and 9 West 2 wards and out into the lift area. Over the four days there I walked several
kilometres. Things became more
comfortable as the gas escaped through my stoma or dissipated in my abdomen.
Lesley, the stoma nurse, taught Barbara and I how to care for
the stoma, attach and detach a colostomy bag.
She gave us supplies galore to keep me going for ten days while I am
enrolled as a member to the NSW Colostomy Association of NSW (about 1 kilometre
from home) and then get my supplies monthly from them. Over three days I changed the colostomy bag
as she watched and made suggestions.
Today, Saturday February 22, April the weekend Stoma nurse came and
checked that I successfully manage colostomy bags. I passed the test and she gave me the all
clear to come home!
Meanwhile, Prof Young visited several times and on
Friday afternoon said I could go home Saturday if the stoma nurse and doctor in
charge on the ward were satisfied. Each
day, other doctors checked on me too.
Nurses were excellent in their care.
In fact, I felt confident to ask questions of all and learned a lot
along the way. The quality of all staff
in the ward was excellent including administration, interns and cleaners. Even the hospital food was reasonable
considering how they are trying to feed so many with lots of dietary
requirements for as little as possible.
On one of my walking times around the wards one intern said I
was healing myself. A key element in patient
recovery is walking, however, most patients languish in bed. Thankfully, because I like walking and I was
determined to progress, I walked. At
first it was painful due to muscle deterioration through the operation and my
inability to travel far over the last few weeks due to needing a bathroom. The pain was from the gas in my bowels and
abdomen. Thursday was much better than
Wednesday and by Friday afternoon I felt much more comfortable. In fact I accompanied Barbara through the
hospital to the northern exit on her way home.
I then returned to my ward climbing stairs from the third to the fifth
floor and felt good. Barbara and I even
managed to escape 200 metres up Missenden Road to Hoochie Mamma Cafe where I
enjoyed a ham and cheese croissant on Thursday.
However, I found the walk painful.
The walk home this morning was fine.
Sadly too many patients lie like beached whales on their beds,
slowing their recovery. The nurses told
me I would do better to spend time sitting in my chair rather than lying in my
bed during the day. So, I walked and sat
in the chair on Thursday and Friday. In
the chair I watched four movies on Will’s iPod.
The last two nights I had my bed setting so that my body was reclining
and my legs were bent. I listened to
music on my iPod (listening to Abba at the moment) to shut out noises,
especially the TV of the patient next to me, tuned to the ABC, so the
familiarity kept me awake. One of my
parting suggestions to my nurse was that patients be required to watch their
TVs using earphones.
Wandering around the two colorectal wards I saw a number of
patients in duress. Some men looked nine
months pregnant due to the amount of gas in their abdomen. A couple of these people slept upright in
chairs to have some comfort. One patient
had a nurse assigned to him 24 hours a day.
This means three people, one for each 8 hour shift! I was told this is done in situations like
danger of falling from the bed and mental illness conditions. Based on the behaviour and age of the
patient, I think it was related to mental conditions. What expensive nursing to comply with high
standard protocols. My time at RPA
reinforced my awareness of how as a nation we need to consider how much
resources are put into our health system and how it is paid for. We cannot keep going as it is currently run
because it is too costly relative to the proportion of society wide resources
it is consuming.
So, with my good recovery, I was able to manage myself to a
good degree including adjusting my bed setting using the crank handles,
showering, going to the toilet, walking round and finding my nurse when I
needed something rather than just pressing the buzzer.
Prof Young said I would feel great relief once I had a
colostomy bag. That is an
understatement. You may find it hard to
believe but it is wonderful to be able to move around without feeling a
desperate need for a close by toilet.
The cutting of my lower colon and creating a stoma for use with a colostomy bag was
essential. I could not stay as I
was. Now I am comfortably writing my
blog entry on my MacBook in comfort.
Leaving hospital at 11.45 am this morning I felt I was starting
a new phase in my life. I felt like I
was leaving the womb of the hospital to return to Club 55, my home. I was leaving the security of the mother ship with all its resources to
return to Barbara and my own nest. I
could not walk to the hospital but I comfortably walked home! It was wonderful when the name
identifications were cut from my wrists and we left the ward to the well wishes
of the staff.
Once home at Club 55 I unpacked my bag. We set up my medical box with colostomy, etc
products. But this was not enough. In my new phase I need to be able to handle
the colostomy bag attachment. So, I
needed a man-bag. Barbara and I drove to Broadway Shopping Centre. We enjoyed lunch – another ham, tomato and
cheese croissant and then went to the bag shop. Barbara gave great advice on the appropriate
man-bag. So we chose a travel pack kind
of one where I can store colostomy bag and other requirements; items I used to
keep in my trousers or shorts; a small umbrella; water bottle and other
items. I sling it over my head and
shoulder so it sits securely and comfortably on me.
So today I have walked from the RPAH mother ship to the comfort
of Club 55 and driven to Broadway Shopping Centre to set me up with a man-bag for my now revised physical
body.
My man-bag is beside me as I write this blog update. Once again, thank you for all your messages
of love and encouragement. Thank you to
Barbara, family and friend Chris for your visits.
A thinner me from my weeks of discomfort and two bowel
preparations in two weeks standing in front of the
bougainvillea at Club 55 wearing my new man-bag.
My colostomy bag is hanging from my stomach over
my pants under my shirt on my left hand side (near man-bag).
My colostomy bag is hanging from my stomach over
my pants under my shirt on my left hand side (near man-bag).
My abdomen will take about two months to completely heal with
most healing take place in the next couple of weeks. My challenge now is to help that healing, eg
by daily walking so that I can start chemotherapy to address the growing cancer
in my liver and rectum. The first stage
has been achieved, now to the next stage.
On Monday I am ringing Dr Lisa Horvath, my oncologist to discuss what
happens next. I aim to keep you
informed.
