G in hospital until Wednesday
G has been in the hospital since Friday afternoon.
Friday evening, his blood pressure was up over 200. They had not given him any meds, which he normally takes after dialysis. Also, just the whole experience of being in the hospital, having an IV put in, etc., I am sure didn't help his blood pressure.
When I left at 7:30 they had taken it again, and it was still over 200.
I guess this continued until about 10:00, when they decided to send him to telemetry unit to be monitored closely. G said it was because he had a lazy nurse who couldn't be bothered to take his blood pressure every 20 minutes.
Anyway, G called me to tell me he was being moved, and then a little later someone from the hospital called me to tell me he was being moved. At least they managed this.
After about 20 minutes I phoned telemetry to get a status report. I actually knew it was too early, but wanted them to know that someone was paying attention.
I happened to have recognized the nurse on the phone (and also recall she was not that great). She said she was just getting ready to call the Dr.
I phoned her back an hour later to find out what was going on. His blood pressure was still high, they were giving him some more meds. They wouldn't start the heparin until his blood pressure got below 180.
I was really worried, because now his blood is thick (INR of 1, when it should be 2-3), and with high blood pressure, he could have another stroke.
Anyway, the good news is around mid-night they got it under control.
The next morning they moved him back to his room in the regular part of the hospital.
That evening I brought in his laptop computer and we watched a movie together. It helps to make things seem a bit normal. I know just being confined to a hospital room with a IV drip isn't fun.
Apparently this morning the Chief Dr. told the residents during rounds (this being the first day of the month they get in a new groups), That G would be in the hospital until at least Wed.
This was news to G, who thought he would be out on Tuesday. Apparently they want to keep him until he has migrated from the heparin to the coumadin, and his INR levels are back to what they should be.
Oh, and some good news. His catheter ran better on Friday than it had on Wednesday, so maybe it will hold out long enough for a fistula to get going.
Friday evening, his blood pressure was up over 200. They had not given him any meds, which he normally takes after dialysis. Also, just the whole experience of being in the hospital, having an IV put in, etc., I am sure didn't help his blood pressure.
When I left at 7:30 they had taken it again, and it was still over 200.
I guess this continued until about 10:00, when they decided to send him to telemetry unit to be monitored closely. G said it was because he had a lazy nurse who couldn't be bothered to take his blood pressure every 20 minutes.
Anyway, G called me to tell me he was being moved, and then a little later someone from the hospital called me to tell me he was being moved. At least they managed this.
After about 20 minutes I phoned telemetry to get a status report. I actually knew it was too early, but wanted them to know that someone was paying attention.
I happened to have recognized the nurse on the phone (and also recall she was not that great). She said she was just getting ready to call the Dr.
I phoned her back an hour later to find out what was going on. His blood pressure was still high, they were giving him some more meds. They wouldn't start the heparin until his blood pressure got below 180.
I was really worried, because now his blood is thick (INR of 1, when it should be 2-3), and with high blood pressure, he could have another stroke.
Anyway, the good news is around mid-night they got it under control.
The next morning they moved him back to his room in the regular part of the hospital.
That evening I brought in his laptop computer and we watched a movie together. It helps to make things seem a bit normal. I know just being confined to a hospital room with a IV drip isn't fun.
Apparently this morning the Chief Dr. told the residents during rounds (this being the first day of the month they get in a new groups), That G would be in the hospital until at least Wed.
This was news to G, who thought he would be out on Tuesday. Apparently they want to keep him until he has migrated from the heparin to the coumadin, and his INR levels are back to what they should be.
Oh, and some good news. His catheter ran better on Friday than it had on Wednesday, so maybe it will hold out long enough for a fistula to get going.
Labels: blood thinners, surgery, VA
posted by Confessions of a Caregiver at
2:03 PM
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