<p>paying3-I am also a little slow on the uptake here and just found this thread. I hope that your DH’s surgery has gone well and that he makes a complete and speedy recovery!</p>
<p>I hope once the surgery is over and the OP and DH are safely and comfortably ensconced back home that she will update us on how the hospital experience went. Primary concern for DH and professional curiosity as to the actual nurse to patient ratio and practical ramifications of same.</p>
<p>briefest update from limited email access: Surgery for HOCUM (hypertrophic obstructive cardio-myopathy) a complete success. Recovery is onerous and one-step at a time, but very doable, day by day. Am still in NYC. Will update when return to my own computer on Thursday.</p>
<p>ALL of your pointers, tips and expressions of best wishes helped me and therefore us tremendously.</p>
<p>I’ll feedback the details upon my return. THANKS to ALL.</p>
<p>Thanks so much for taking time out of your routine to let us know all is OK. Look forward to hearing how many new friends you made at the hospital!</p>
<p>p3t, a big relief that the surgery was successful. Recovery is a process but will happen in due time. Sending more positive energy your way that each day is better and better . Thank you for providing an update at this time! Thinking of you!</p>
<p>Thinking of you as well. Thanks so much for the update at this busy time. Sorry you had to travel so far from home and support for this surgery. Am curious as to details when you have time, as it is not a surgery I’m familiar with. Best wishes to you and your H. Holding you in the light…</p>
<p>Thanks for the update - the most daunting part is hopefully over now and I hope he mends quickly.</p>
<p>It’s so good to hear that the surgery was a complete success, Paying3! Thank you for letting us know. Now, of course, the real work begins, but I’m sure you’re up to the task. Just remember to be patient with yourself and your H. Get as much rest as you can, and eat healthfully. We look forward to hearing the next update when you have time.:)</p>
<p>Thanking for posting an update p3t. I’m glad the surgery was a success. I will continue to keep you and your husband in my thoughts.</p>
<p>So glad the procedure went well. Best wishes for a speedy recovery for your H.</p>
<p>Back home with great appreciation for successful 5-hour myectomy and mitral valve repair, pursuant to HOCUM (hypertrophic obstructive cardio-myopathy). See, I learned to talk medical.</p>
<p>Different than bypass actually. This is one of the causes of those tragic sudden deaths of young athletes right on the field, where there were previously no symptoms whatsoever. The operation involved a scraping of a thickened heart wall (a congenital malformation that finally caught up with him) and mitral valve repair. I can’t believe they actually turned off his heart and lungs, scraped the inner wall of that muscle and then restarted his heart. Where was he in those moments? I learned a lot of terminology and drank some good NYC espresso. I neither knit nor read; just couldn’t. I brought the stuff but couldn’t do it.</p>
<p>H was curious about whether they had worked on his heart inside or outside his body. When he learned it all happened inside its “home” he was glad they didn’t use the Mayan heart surgery techniques. His humor is bizarre sometimes. </p>
<p>On the hospital’s nurse-patient ratio, it was 1:2 in CCU, then 1:6 on the step-down unit so much better than we had been told re: the stepdown. </p>
<p>Thanks to someone on this thread describing it, I asked a desk secretary who, with great effort, located the one newer style chair that flattened out completely horizontally (rather than the recliners found throughout the hospital). I’m not sure which floor it came from but it appeared and allowed me to stay at the hospital whenever I wished to all night, except of course in CCU. </p>
<p>I began but soon discontinued the written notepad. I started very discreetly writing notes (especially on names) but then I did feel it could be perceived as overbearing. More importantly, for some reason I was able to remember EVERYTHING - names, pills, room numbers as they changed. MUCH better than on normal days. Must be the old training from waitress jobs during college summers. </p>
<p>It was COLD everywhere; as I learned, it keeps the machines working well. If not for CC, I never would have packed my sweatshirt/hoodie which saved the day. </p>
<p>The nurses were AWESOME. Professional, hardworking, just the best. We offered food (bagels…) for shifts and they declined, so at the very end as we were leaving I labeled a big bag of chocolates (M&M’s and Hershey’s Kisses), along with some Atkins Diet Chocolate Bars for each shift, from patient (H) in room (x). By doing that as we exited, it seemed more like a thank-you. I tell you, the professionalism was so strong that it trumped any sense that we would somehow garnish better care by feeding them. Mostly the staff said they had no time to eat. I felt badly about that. It shouldn’t be.
Each nurse had her/his own personality and they need to cope with everyone’s personalities, too, among patients and other colleagues. What a difficult profession. </p>
<p>I was able to interpret some of my husband’s facial expressions and words in the Critical Care Unit when he was still attached to a breathing tube, which assisted them in caring for him precisely. I noticed his furrowed brow and could then read his lips; he was trying to say “breathe” which caused the nurse to explain more fully how he could work with the breathing machine more effectively. When I reported to him the surgeon’s statement that the “gradient” was no longer a dangerous l00 but a terrific “zero”, my H smiled with his eyebrows so I knew he was fully himself although he couldn’t talk. First time we’ve ever celebrated a grade of “0.” </p>
<p>Since we were in an urban NYC hospital, I got a kick out of all the cultural interactions going on. People used each others’ social greetings and knew a lot about each others’ customs. There was a light banter throughout the hospital as people came and went. </p>
<p>Some nights I stayed at the hospital, other nights went to relatives. Having the choice was terrific. They lived two blocks away, so were closer than the hospital cafeteria! </p>
<p>We came home by Amtrak train, rather than a plane. They have handicap-accessible cars that are really nicer (if longer) than sitting up in a plane. </p>
<p>I upgraded my cellphone to include email right before I left, which was a good choice so I didn’t feel isolated. The phone trees worked well for me to communicate with relatives, and I actually got weary of retelling the same news. Sometimes I just needed to walk the hospital neighborhood and clear my head. He was in hospital a week. </p>
<p>Teri, we did find the chaplains – but I had to chase that down in person as the request just didn’t get through properly. </p>
<p>As for knowing a person’s regular medications, OMG, we must have recited that list 12 times before the surgery. I finally just handed it a written list over to each person as it was asked. It was almost funny to us. I offered to pin the list to his gown or scotch tape it to his head, but was told I couldn’t because the safety pin wouldn’t be sterile. </p>
<p>By declining offers that relatives made to sit with me before surgery I found I was given greater access to my H during the pre-op hours. I spent little time in the waiting lounge. That part is a trade-off; for some, having another person sit beside one during the actual surgery would be comforting. I learned that I got better access – including in the Critical Care post-op Unit (ratio 1:2) because I showed up alone, was quiet and respectful, and got out of their way. It’s just important to be deeply respectful of all that’s going on, especially around the ICU environment. </p>
<p>As for the doctors, what can I say. They were brilliant. We live in a time of miracles. </p>
<p>We are still sorting out all the feelings and new understandings from this surprising episode. Gratitude and appreciation for the people in the medical field is what we feel most. Any slipups, delays, irritations to us pale in comparison with the larger healing in play.</p>
<p>^^^^^What great news. Glad he is doing alright, and am happy that your nurse to patient ratio was more in line with SOP than you had been led to believe. Our post surgery unit is a 1:5 ratio, and those nurses work really hard. 1:20 just sounded dangerous.</p>
<p>I’m curious - how did your husband’s pain management work out?</p>
<p>So happy to hear this very positive update! Sorry you all had to go through it though. I’ve spent time in hospitals and agree at how wonderful the staff can be and how caring and attentive. It is no place any of us want to be but it is nice knowing such nice people exist to help. </p>
<p>Here’s to your hubby feeling better each day! You guys are gonna need a vacation this year!</p>
<p>The nurses emphasized to him that he should be “brave but not too brave” and mention any pain so they could stay ahead of it. Morphine at first was changed to percoset, and he found the removal of the chest tube very painful. 20 minutes after pain meds were given it was possible to do breathing and walking after day 3. </p>
<p>In general he was very surprised that he did not feel post-op pain unbearable; it was “very manageable” in his (drugged) perception. The nurses said sometimes the men try to be too stoic and that’s a mistake.
Feeling pain-free, or nearly so, enabled him to do respiratory therapy and ambulate. There was a flat-backed, solid teddy bear to hold to his chest whenver he coughed; actually a medical device to keep the incision stitches held together. </p>
<p>“Keep ahead of the pain” was the working principle and we heard that phrase often. By day 4 or so he was on no more pain meds. In general he found less pain and more fatigue than he had anticipated.</p>
<p>What a wonderful post (#91) Paying3. It so warmed my heart with gladness. Here’s wishing your H continued blessings and rapid healing.</p>
<p>Great news. So happy to hear it all went so well. The lack of RN staffing did sound scary when you first posted. Great to hear how well the RN’s are trained. Good luck with the recovery.</p>
<p>Nice to hear that everything went as planned! Speedy recovery to your H!</p>
<p>So glad to hear that the surgery was successful and that the toughest part is behind you. Also great news about your positive experiences with the hospital and staff. Sounds like your H was in good hands all the way around! Most of all, sending good wishes for your H’s speedy and complete recovery.</p>
<p>Thanks for the update again. I, like others here, have been thinking of you and H throughout this. It’s great that this condition was noticed in time to be able to do something to improve it. I’m sure you’re both glad to be home to some peace and quiet after the hustle-bustle and noise of the hospital and he can now look forward to the daily improvement.</p>
<p>so glad things went well and these posts helped you .</p>