In and out
This evening, I’m reassured about the quality of medical care locally. We arrived at the hospital this morning, right on schedule. That describes the rest of the day, as well.
First of all, the facility here is newer than what I’ve been used to. Oh, I know, hospitals tend to keep the newest toys around, just in case of a “life and death situation”. They have those, really often. But, this hospital was clean, and laid out in a manner that showed forethought rather than renovation madness. The areas were coherent.
Our surgery (I’ve added this instance to my personal experience, even if no blood was shed from my system) went exactly as outlined. Almost to the minute, in fact. While the patient was sleeping (narcotically induced, I believe), I was sleeping in a waiting area chair. Defense against poor TV programming – two screens, two equally awful choices, simultaneous sounds). When the surgeon came to roust me, I was rested and ready.
The recovery time saw a team of nurses on duty, each one on task and making sure that there were no loose threads. We were able to leave the premises just before lunch time. Not bad, considering that this involved real abdominal intrusion. I guess the “hanging around the ward for a few days” is from an earlier epoch.
Before the haze was completely gone, I’d completed the ninety minute drive home, and even stopped for the prescribed meds. And now I wait. If the next forty-eight hours go smoothly, we’ll start the weekend with a little less bile on tap.
