Settling in for the long haul

Tom continues to improve daily. He had yanked out his feeding tube back on Thursday night but they ended up approving of his swallowing ability so he’s now eating food. Dialysis continues but not on a daily basis. It’s now performed every other day and for just 4 hours. There is still hope that his kidney function will be regained. Another plus- the ventilator has been disconnected and he is able to cover the tracheostomy site in order to talk. The voice is very soft, but he can actually communicate now! Problems continue with heart function: he was experiencing fibrillation during the night. To alleviate the issue, they have placed him on medication and it is resolving the problem. Physical and occupational therapy continue: they are working on building his strength so he can stand and walk again. He’s been spending more time sitting in a chair. So far, he’s been a good patient once the medications wore off. Saturday he shifts to “step-down ICU”. Another positive move! How are his mental functions? That’s still coming back. He forgets where he is and why he’s at the hospital. I think his recognition of people is pretty good. I’ll know better later today or tomorrow when I go down.

The current time line shows him remaining at the hospital until December 16th. On that day we have a discussion with a Medicaid representative on how to deal with the next stage of care. He will need to move into a rehabilitation facility. We don’t know if he will still have the tracheostomy at that time, or if they will close the site. If it’s open, then he will be heading to Portland for care. It’s doubtful that he will remain a business owner for long. I already have angry business landlords calling demanding their monthly rent ( they are a pair of grumpy old curmudgeons!). The previous owners of the business (Tom purchased it back in May of this year) are probably going to have to regain ownership. I’ve already fielded quite a few calls from them. In order to protect myself and the healthy siblings, I spent 35 min talking with my lawyer. We need to stay completely out of the worm can. No financial connection is best. If Tom were to qualify for Medicaid, they would cover the entire bill and any additional facility costs and therapy, but I don’t think he will. Guess I’ll be doing some research in my spare time.

On the home front, we’ve been experiencing cold weather! Finally, a frosty morning today. The freezing rain continues to cling to many trees. the hillside across from us was glinting silver during the afternoon sunbreak. Tom’s laundry, unceremoniously dumped into huge garbage bags and tossed in my garage since we moved him out of his apartment, has finally been completed! Now I just have to repack it and take it back to Eugene. Dave was thrilled to be able to park the car in the garage again without having to stumble over the bags.

It’s been nice to take a few days off. Too bad I’m still connected to everything via phone, texts and the internet!