Gene has been tired today. His respiration pressure has stayed at 10 today to help him be less stressed after his debriding procedure. He now has a special suction bandage on his pressure wound which will help in the healing process.
He had visits today from Alan and Pennie, Shelley and Daniel, Dr. Carver, and Ken, Sue, and Ann. Of course, Emily was there three different times today, as she is on many days. Gene continues to be an inspiration. He is working hard at the task of relearning to breathe on his own; he is patient and kind to his care givers and family.
Prayer requests
Please pray for Gene to continue to gain strength, for his respiration to continue to grow stronger, and for his pressure wound to heal. Pray for both Emily and Gene to have strength and courage.
Friday, August 7, 2009
Thursday, August 6, 2009
August 6, 2009
Gene had another debriding procedure done on his pressure wound this afternoon. During the procedure his respiration pressure had to be raised to 15. They will begin lowering the pressure as soon as possible.
Dr. Bryce explained the procedure to Emily and seemed to think that it looked as though it may be quite possible that the wound is now in shape to begin healing. In a day or two, if possible, they will put a specialized draining bandage on the wound that will help with the healing process.
Prayer requests
Please pray for this latest debriding procedure to help Gene's body heal his pressure wound. Pray that his respiration continues to grow stronger. Pray for him to have peace of mind and the courage to face the next steps in his healing. Emily is very tired; pray for her to have strength and to be restored.
Dr. Bryce explained the procedure to Emily and seemed to think that it looked as though it may be quite possible that the wound is now in shape to begin healing. In a day or two, if possible, they will put a specialized draining bandage on the wound that will help with the healing process.
Prayer requests
Please pray for this latest debriding procedure to help Gene's body heal his pressure wound. Pray that his respiration continues to grow stronger. Pray for him to have peace of mind and the courage to face the next steps in his healing. Emily is very tired; pray for her to have strength and to be restored.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
August 5, 2009
Gene's respiration pressure was lowered today to a 5. This is the pressure he needs to be able to maintain in order to go to only oxygen supplementation. It is very hard work for him when the pressure is stepped down. He has been very tired, but has maintained his oxygen saturation level. This is definitely progress. If he continues to do well this evening, they will leave his pressure setting at 5 for overnight.
The pressure wound is still a great concern. Dr. Bryce seems to think that more debriding will be necessary. The family has been told that being weaned from the ventilator will improve Gene's overall ability to improve in all his other areas. He will be able to have more vigorous therapy, and will be more able to be turned so that his pressure wound has a better chance to heal.
Prayer requests
Please pray for Gene to have the strength to keep his respiration improving, and for his body to have the resources to heal his pressure wound. Pray for him to have peace of mind and the courage to face the next steps in his healing. Pray for Emily to have the strength to keep her focus and be able to give Gene the care and advocacy he needs while maintaining the home fires.
The pressure wound is still a great concern. Dr. Bryce seems to think that more debriding will be necessary. The family has been told that being weaned from the ventilator will improve Gene's overall ability to improve in all his other areas. He will be able to have more vigorous therapy, and will be more able to be turned so that his pressure wound has a better chance to heal.
Prayer requests
Please pray for Gene to have the strength to keep his respiration improving, and for his body to have the resources to heal his pressure wound. Pray for him to have peace of mind and the courage to face the next steps in his healing. Pray for Emily to have the strength to keep her focus and be able to give Gene the care and advocacy he needs while maintaining the home fires.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
August 4, 2009
Emily visited with Gene this morning and found him to be having a good morning.
His vent settings remain at pressure 6 and supplementary oxygen 30% - these are considered very low settings and mean that he is not on a rate any more. The ventilator is not breathing for him any more. The pressure is pressurized air that he gets when he takes a breath. The supplementary oxygen he receives is not a great deal above normal sea level air which is around 21%. So he is making great progress with the ventilator. He seems to be breathing comfortably at these settings. It is very hard work for him when they lower his settings, and it is great progress when he is able to be comfortable at a lower setting.
This morning he sat on the side of his bed with support for 17 minutes. He had his feet on the floor. Physical therapy is trying to have him sit up every day except weekends lengthening the time with each trial. He also had electrodes on his legs for muscle stimulation for about 45 minutes. Gene has movement in his ankles, but at this time cannot lift his leg up from a sitting position.
He is on an air mattress which changes pressure point periodically, this should help greatly with his pressure wound. His body position is also being changed every two hours with a wedge, although as described previously this is a delicate balance since it sometimes causes his oxygen saturation level to go down and he has to have the wedge removed.
Dr. Bryce, the wound doctor, came in this morning and indicated that his wound will need to have debriding again in the next few days. It is very important to keep dead skin from accumulating on the wound, since it can prevent healing and only healthy skin can heal. Dr. Bryce has let the family know that pressure wounds often get worse before they get better. The procedure should be able to be done with a local anesthesia there at Kindred.
When Emily visited with Gene this evening she found him to be in good spirits. His ventilator settings remained at 6 pressure and 30 oxygen for the second day. She read some to him from his Master Gardener newsletter, and assured that the nurses attended to him.
Prayer requests
Please pray for Gene's strength to continue to improve, for his respiration to grow stronger every day, and for his body to have the resources to heal the pressure wound that he has. Pray for Gene's children, grandchildren and Emily to have peace of mind.
His vent settings remain at pressure 6 and supplementary oxygen 30% - these are considered very low settings and mean that he is not on a rate any more. The ventilator is not breathing for him any more. The pressure is pressurized air that he gets when he takes a breath. The supplementary oxygen he receives is not a great deal above normal sea level air which is around 21%. So he is making great progress with the ventilator. He seems to be breathing comfortably at these settings. It is very hard work for him when they lower his settings, and it is great progress when he is able to be comfortable at a lower setting.
This morning he sat on the side of his bed with support for 17 minutes. He had his feet on the floor. Physical therapy is trying to have him sit up every day except weekends lengthening the time with each trial. He also had electrodes on his legs for muscle stimulation for about 45 minutes. Gene has movement in his ankles, but at this time cannot lift his leg up from a sitting position.
He is on an air mattress which changes pressure point periodically, this should help greatly with his pressure wound. His body position is also being changed every two hours with a wedge, although as described previously this is a delicate balance since it sometimes causes his oxygen saturation level to go down and he has to have the wedge removed.
Dr. Bryce, the wound doctor, came in this morning and indicated that his wound will need to have debriding again in the next few days. It is very important to keep dead skin from accumulating on the wound, since it can prevent healing and only healthy skin can heal. Dr. Bryce has let the family know that pressure wounds often get worse before they get better. The procedure should be able to be done with a local anesthesia there at Kindred.
When Emily visited with Gene this evening she found him to be in good spirits. His ventilator settings remained at 6 pressure and 30 oxygen for the second day. She read some to him from his Master Gardener newsletter, and assured that the nurses attended to him.
Prayer requests
Please pray for Gene's strength to continue to improve, for his respiration to grow stronger every day, and for his body to have the resources to heal the pressure wound that he has. Pray for Gene's children, grandchildren and Emily to have peace of mind.
Monday, August 3, 2009
August 3, 2009
Gene is having a much better day today.
It is very hard work to learn to breathe on your own again after the kind of shock to one's system as Gene had. He has some paralysis in one side of his diaphragm as well as the weakness that his pneumonia caused, so he really has to work hard when they lower the help that the ventilator gives him. He currently gets pressure and supplemental oxygen. The pressure today was at 6, and he has been breathing very comfortably. When he can sustain his breathing with pressure at 5 he will be ready for the medical team to take him off the ventilator and put him on supplemental oxygen only. The family also understands that once he off the ventilator it will be much easier to address all the other medical concerns including that pressure sore.
Gene's granddaughter, Elizabeth, spent part of the day with him today and read to him part of his memoir from the years he lived on the river down the Stepping Rock. He was very engaged with the story. The family will leave reading material in the room and any visitors who would like to read something to Gene is encouraged to do so.
Prayer requests
Please pray for Gene's body to continue to grow strong enough to allow his body resources to be used for the healing of his pressure wound and for his breathing to continue to grow stronger. Pray for Gene's children, grandchildren and Emily to have peace of mind.
It is very hard work to learn to breathe on your own again after the kind of shock to one's system as Gene had. He has some paralysis in one side of his diaphragm as well as the weakness that his pneumonia caused, so he really has to work hard when they lower the help that the ventilator gives him. He currently gets pressure and supplemental oxygen. The pressure today was at 6, and he has been breathing very comfortably. When he can sustain his breathing with pressure at 5 he will be ready for the medical team to take him off the ventilator and put him on supplemental oxygen only. The family also understands that once he off the ventilator it will be much easier to address all the other medical concerns including that pressure sore.
Gene's granddaughter, Elizabeth, spent part of the day with him today and read to him part of his memoir from the years he lived on the river down the Stepping Rock. He was very engaged with the story. The family will leave reading material in the room and any visitors who would like to read something to Gene is encouraged to do so.
Prayer requests
Please pray for Gene's body to continue to grow strong enough to allow his body resources to be used for the healing of his pressure wound and for his breathing to continue to grow stronger. Pray for Gene's children, grandchildren and Emily to have peace of mind.
Sunday, August 2, 2009
August 2, 2009
Gene was very tired today. His vent pressure and oxygen level are giving him very minimal support and so he is working very hard to breathe on his own. He is probably also worn out from all the visits from his children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren yesterday.
There is a delicate balance in treating his pressure wound - keeping him turned and keeping the pressure from being immobile in bed from worsening his wound, and keeping him in a place where his breathing is sustained at a level that gives him enough oxygen for healing. It seems that when he is turned much on his right side to relieve pressure on the wound, that he encounters difficulty with keeping his oxygen saturation level high enough - and sometimes the respiratory therapists move him back to his back. Of course the pressure wound is of great concern to all of his family.
The doctors have explained that his body is giving the highest priority for use of resources (food, water, oxygen, etc) to keeping his vital organs working and that the pressure wound is last in line for these resources. This time is very difficult for the family, as non-medical professionals, to try to understand all that's going on with him and to know exactly how to advocate for him in the best way.
Prayer requests
Please pray for Gene's body to grow strong enough to allow his body resources to be used for the healing of his pressure wound and for his breathing to continue to grow stronger. Pray for Emily to have peace of mind that she has been a strong advocate for Gene and has done her best to help see that he has had the best care.
There is a delicate balance in treating his pressure wound - keeping him turned and keeping the pressure from being immobile in bed from worsening his wound, and keeping him in a place where his breathing is sustained at a level that gives him enough oxygen for healing. It seems that when he is turned much on his right side to relieve pressure on the wound, that he encounters difficulty with keeping his oxygen saturation level high enough - and sometimes the respiratory therapists move him back to his back. Of course the pressure wound is of great concern to all of his family.
The doctors have explained that his body is giving the highest priority for use of resources (food, water, oxygen, etc) to keeping his vital organs working and that the pressure wound is last in line for these resources. This time is very difficult for the family, as non-medical professionals, to try to understand all that's going on with him and to know exactly how to advocate for him in the best way.
Prayer requests
Please pray for Gene's body to grow strong enough to allow his body resources to be used for the healing of his pressure wound and for his breathing to continue to grow stronger. Pray for Emily to have peace of mind that she has been a strong advocate for Gene and has done her best to help see that he has had the best care.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
August 1, 2009
Gene had lots of visitors today.
The Howard clan as well as some extended family gathered at Emily and Gene's house for a visit and took the opportunity to go and see Gene in shifts. He so wanted to be able to be there. He had been instrumental in helping to plan the event and was particularly looking forward to seeing his three great grandchildren. He has loved watching his grandchildren become parents and is so proud of all of them.
The babies are not allowed to go inside Kindred, so the Mom's (Shelley and Lauren) went into the hospital room to visit with PaPa, and Steve, Pat, and Russ stayed outside and held Max and Madison up to the window so that PaPa could see them. He really enjoyed getting to see them.
As always, Emily had quite the spread. All the visitors pitched in and brought things or helped once they got there. The hit of the meal had to be Emily's corn. She cuts it off the cob, scrapes the cob to get the "milk" and puts it in a pan with butter and salt and probably some pepper and cooks it down. Today, Patrick worked the corn after the women working the kitchen assembly line got it all cut and scraped. Every single kernel of corn was eaten! There was also honey baked ham and turkey, and then green beans, tomatoes, a squash casserole, and cucumbers all from garden produce.
Visitors included -
Russ and his daughter Elizabeth and her son Elijah as well as Elizabeth's Mom Betsy
Lynn and daughter Shelley with her son Max, and daughter Liga, and son Valdis. Alan came later in the day after taking his Mom to the hospital (see that story on Lynn's blog)
Steve and Pat, and daughter Lauren and her daughter Madison, daughter and son-in-law Sarah and Ryan, and son Patrick
Emily's sisters Frances and her husband Bob, and Joyce and her son Mark,jr., as well as her son David, his wife Cyndi and their daughter Allison.
Gene's cousin Mia and her son Clyde
Prayer requests
Please pray for Gene's to have the strength to do the hard work to be weaned from the respirator. Pray that his body will grow strong enough to allow his body resources to be used for the healing of his pressure wound. Pray for Emily to draw strength from her family this weekend and to have the courage to continue caring for Gene and keeping her own needs in mind.
The Howard clan as well as some extended family gathered at Emily and Gene's house for a visit and took the opportunity to go and see Gene in shifts. He so wanted to be able to be there. He had been instrumental in helping to plan the event and was particularly looking forward to seeing his three great grandchildren. He has loved watching his grandchildren become parents and is so proud of all of them.
The babies are not allowed to go inside Kindred, so the Mom's (Shelley and Lauren) went into the hospital room to visit with PaPa, and Steve, Pat, and Russ stayed outside and held Max and Madison up to the window so that PaPa could see them. He really enjoyed getting to see them.
As always, Emily had quite the spread. All the visitors pitched in and brought things or helped once they got there. The hit of the meal had to be Emily's corn. She cuts it off the cob, scrapes the cob to get the "milk" and puts it in a pan with butter and salt and probably some pepper and cooks it down. Today, Patrick worked the corn after the women working the kitchen assembly line got it all cut and scraped. Every single kernel of corn was eaten! There was also honey baked ham and turkey, and then green beans, tomatoes, a squash casserole, and cucumbers all from garden produce.
Visitors included -
Russ and his daughter Elizabeth and her son Elijah as well as Elizabeth's Mom Betsy
Lynn and daughter Shelley with her son Max, and daughter Liga, and son Valdis. Alan came later in the day after taking his Mom to the hospital (see that story on Lynn's blog)
Steve and Pat, and daughter Lauren and her daughter Madison, daughter and son-in-law Sarah and Ryan, and son Patrick
Emily's sisters Frances and her husband Bob, and Joyce and her son Mark,jr., as well as her son David, his wife Cyndi and their daughter Allison.
Gene's cousin Mia and her son Clyde
Prayer requests
Please pray for Gene's to have the strength to do the hard work to be weaned from the respirator. Pray that his body will grow strong enough to allow his body resources to be used for the healing of his pressure wound. Pray for Emily to draw strength from her family this weekend and to have the courage to continue caring for Gene and keeping her own needs in mind.
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