Archive for the 'Health' Category

Father has a private nurse looking after him to take care of his personal hygiene needs, changing his stoma bag etc. She also helps to make sure that he does his physio daily. She has a truly wonderful personalilty. So warm and caring. She really takes care of father very well. The way she talks and jokes with him and how she persuades and coax him is truly wonderful. Father even called  her “anak angkat” one day.

She is strong too and carries father to and from the wheelchair with professional ease. She is professional yet much more than that with her warm personality. Sometimes there are other trainee nurses who come along daily or there is a replacement for a day or two but none of them are the same. They are carrying out the job of a nurse and nothing more. No jokes. No banter. Just  sitting there with father.

We are truly fortunate to have her looking after father.

I think the biggest difference between a mundane worker and one that does a job extremely well is passion, love, commitment and believe for it. This nurse has it. Just like my kids’ paeditrician. She has it. Sometimes she does not charge me. At times she even calls me up to ask about the kids if they are very sick. One gynaecologist I saw before has it. She uses two offices and runs from one to another, busy like a bee but always with a smile on her face. I asked her how she manages to smile when she is so busy. She simply says “I love my job.” My neurologist has it. No matter how busy, he somehow manages to look relax and entertains most of my questions. These are very busy specialists indeed but I still see their humane side. Some specialists just go through the motions. In fact, I feel that they just can’t wait to get their patients out of the door so that they can see the next and the next. Understandably, they are very busy but then so are the rest.

The job that I love the most is the job of a mother. Yet, I think most of the time, I am like the second batch of specialists. The kind that just go through the motions and can’t wait for the patients to go out the door. I rush around with a frown most of the time. The little one will come and press my forehead to make the wrinkles go away and the big one will ask me to “Stop frowning mummy. Don’t frown. Smile.” I must make a more concious effort to be like the nurse who is more than a nurse. Smile more. Frown less. Love more. Slow down. Be happy at the job which I claim to be the happiest at. I surely don’t look it!

They say that money is the root of all evil and one should not wish for more money. We must be happy and content with what we have. However, I do wish for more money. Money can certainly do a lot… especially when you are old and ill. The standard of care you can get if you have money is so different.

Dad had a stroke last year which resulted in him being hospitalized for 2 months last year. He was unable to eat normally but had to have milk poured in directly to his stomach every few hours. He also had a colostomy which now requires him to carry his fecal matter in a bag. He can’t walk or bathe on his own so he has to use adult diapers.

Dad is much better now. He can eat almost anything now but he still requires help with bath and changing of his stoma bag etc. The five of us, his kids, shares the amount required to take care of dad. This includes a maid and a nurse not to mention his very expensive medication and payments for physiotherapy etc. The nurse is very good and has a wonderful personality to match. Unfortunately she is very very expensive. I am afraid we can’t continue to keep using her for long hours and daily as we are now. Slowly we are reducing her time.

Now, wouldn’t it be wonderful to have a lot of money so that we do not even have to calculate or even think of it or blink an eyelid when providing quality nursing care for dad? Yes, it is at times like this that I wish I have a lot of money. Anyway, whatever it is, I am really thankful that dad is much better now. Dad was even back in Penang with everyone to celebrate the Chinese New Year recently and that is truly a wonderful thing indeed.

Last year I had a cough which lasted for 6 months, from April to around September. It was pretty bad. It was a night cough with a lot of phlegm too. During the day it would disappear but come evening, it would reappear like magic making me cough non-stop. It was difficult to sleep, for the others around me too.

I tried everything, everything! Of course, I went to the doctor first who prescribed antibiotics and cough medicine. When that ran out, I took over the counter cough mixtures. When those didn’t work, I tried home remedies. From roasted or steamed oranges with salt to drinking onions steeped in honey. Yuck! I drank honey with lemon, took manuka honey, gargled with salt water several times a day, irrigated my nose with a Netti pot, took lozenges before sleeping and even during sleep but nothing worked.

Finally, I went for a chest X-Ray and was told that I had active TB and may have to take around 9 months of medication and my whole family would have to be screened. I was told to go to the National Respiratory Centre to get confirmation and medication. The place was packed. I saw people coughing out blood, they took a sputum test but I couldn’t cough out any sputum and they told me to come back. I was so terrified I never went back. I went to a private practitioner instead, a chest specialist who took more chest X-Rays and who gave me more antibiotics and cough mixtures.

The cough did not go away. I even had fever to go with it which scared me even more. However, no appetite or weight loss that a TB sufferer would get. A second visit to the specialist with some allergy pills prescribed. By this time the cough was getting better. It was a lingering cough but I went to see the specialist just for some peace of mind.

Eventually the cough did go away on its own. I don’t think it was any of the medication that did it. It just ran out its course eventually. The washing with the Netti pot helped I supposed. So much phlegm came out. Yuck!

Whatever it was, I am glad that I am rid of the cough now. It is no fun coughing everyday and  waking up with a sore throat every single day. I hope that this year I will have better health and improved immunity.

Can anyone recommend a good multivitamin?

I am having a sore throat as I write this. A fine time to be sick with school starting in a week’s time and the boy starting primary school for the first time. What is worse, is the fact that I managed to pass it on to both kids who are both now coughing and having fevers and cold and we three are on antibiotics.

I have been pretty sick this year. I was coughing especially at night from April up to September! Till I was so sick and tired of being sick. All this led to me taking a chest x-ray which showed that I had active TB! My goodness. That scared me so! I went to see a couple of doctors and took more x-rays. All thanks to that first x-ray I am now full of radiation. Hmm…

I was sent to the National Respiratory Centre which was so full they did not have time to see me accept to order me to do a sputum test which turned out negative because I didn’t know how to cough out any sputum. I never went back for a follow up because it was too long ( I couldn’t wait! If I was sick, I should be receiving treatment immediately, not wait two weeks to see a doctor!). I was also scared stiff to catch something there. I saw people coughing out blood. I got scared silly thinking about all the airborne respiratory deceases that I could catch just by waiting for my turn to see the doctor.

So I never went back. I went to see some other specialist in a private hospital. My cough did not go away immediately. It eventually did though, about a month after the active tb chest x-ray report. Anyway one look at me and you’d know that I don’t have tb. For once, I am happy to be plump.

That was my health scare for the year. Not as bad as the one I had a few years ago. This one went away. The other, affects my life to this day.

Dad is still in hospital. Poor dad. He had to spend his birthday there and now Christmas there too. With all the siblings away on holiday, I wanted to try to go and see dad at the hospital this weekend but with me and the children having a flu it is not possible now. I do not want to pass anything to him. Poor dad but it will be worse if I pass any germs to him. On the bright side, we hope that we can bring him back to sister’s house when she gets back from  her holiday before the year end so at least he can spend New Year at home. That would be nice. He has been in hospital for more than 2 months now. That is not very nice.

I guess 2010 has generally been a sick year for me. I hope that 2011 will be better health wise. Apart from health, my home has been harmonious and we are mostly happy and content. Even though we have not been radiating with health, we radiated with love. I hope it will be the same in 2011.

Before I delete the sms updates about dad’s progress, I thought I should post it here as a record. I had already deleted some. Here are the rest.

13 Nov 2010 – For 10 days stools leak in pampers 8X a day since d last enema on 4/11 n stomach cramp n anus pain daily fr our FAMILY RECORD. Dr confirm dad has chronic constipation. This am nurses manually “dig out” faeces. Dad to sit on commode daily to pangsai even though pain. He will stop new med tonite, give liquid parafin to soften stool, then next week given enema to clear bowel.

19 Nov – Dr says do not require procedure to stop bleed cos it is reducing. Now prepare n search for matchin blood transfusion in 2 or 3 hors. Bp up from 110/60 at 4pm to 140/90 at 5.05 pm. Dad vital signs good. Sleep 1 hr sessions for 3 times already. Able to chat to brother over the phone.

21 Nov - Dear all, dad transferred to high dependency unit since 4.05am due massive n active bleed. Blood transfusion now. Await dr. Nurses say about 8. Pls come and talk to doc if can. I didn’t sleep at all last night n not sure I can handle d dr.. can come to see dad condition one or two at a time.

22 Nov – Nurses say “better than last nite” they don’t let me go in yet until 10am………..Dr say “one of the d possible causes of bleed” is d ulcer in rectum. Another could b lining of stomach due these few wks stay, many causes he cannot pinpoint. Since no bleed, fr anus since op, possible this issue is addressed. Dr say “pray for best, wait and see these few days” slight bleed in bag is as expected. Hypertension drug will b resumed as it was witheld yesterday. Continue tube feed plus start mouth feed today. Not sure if will be transferred to normal ward today yet………….. Dad  say “durian kueh” when asked what he is thinking. Pain when moved around. My observation is about 1 or 2 nurses rough. Dad say “6 in 10″.

24 Nov- Gd am. Dad slept super well, 1st time he clocked 2+2+3=7 solid hr plus, 1st time in wks. Slept since aunties left 9pm till now…past 24 hr no bleed n still counting bp 140-64……. Dr says dad will no longer be constipated again for life w the colostomy bag… dad refused porridge for lunch even though stopped milk since 12pm. At 2pm we resume milk. Bp at 1pm 150/70. One hypertension drug given, one witheld.

25 Nov – Dad had a good 2+3 hr sleep last night between 11pm till 8am. Enjoyed his yoghurt drink, dhall mixed into his regular belnded fish/egg white porridge… eyes more alert, watched tv……Hv requested if dad can be off oxygen n to check if dad can be taken on “wheelchair ride or ambulate”. Nurse checked, apparently doc has ordered it “dad will be taken round hospital later today as part of his physio. We hv to remind nurses to check his oxygen level…….Latest diet plan for dad is: 3 main meals to be orally fed with added protein drink supp, 2 tea breaks use milk bolus feed plus 9pm to 6am continuous milk pump so no need to disturb his night sleep……..Dad has been taken off intravenous drip, water intake depending on oral, bolus n pump feed. Unable to wean off oxygen yet as oxy level dipped too low n they have resumed oxygen. Changed to softer ripple bed.

26 Nov – Dad’s oxygen on weaning off program. Today 11.30am reduced to 2 litre. Breakfast: few teasp dhall, few teasp peanut soup. Mid morning tea: one marie biscuit mashed in barley. Our oral feed is more like food flavours to lift d spirits… d mashed potato here too hard. We can ta pau frm KFC… lunch. Too sleepy to eat his tofu n egg puding dessert…

29 Nov – Dad slept well 3+3+2 last night 11pm till 7am! 75ml water + 25ml milo + 8 tsp fish n egg white porridge since awoke. Awaiting bath…Dr confirmed he will stop d anti bleed med for tmrw. He requested for stoma nurse fr another ward to assist in colostomy bag management when I related that it took 3 nurses half hr to change bag…..Dad Bp on d low at 2.30pm 90/50. This is without any hypertension drug. Nurses will monitor before decide whether to give, if at all today….3pm bp 110/60.

1 Dec – Dad slept fr 10pm till 6am (short period of wake around 2am). Oxygen 97%, bp 153/67 (use machine at 6am) Drink 1 tin milk w straw at 6am. Spoonfeed himself 10 tbsp porridge n one cup barley at 8am. To shower in bathroom n will take wheelchair ride today….Bp 130/60: oxygen 98%; 36.6 at 10.30am. This am nurses quite slow. Hv to call many times.