Another Weekend in the Hospital

I went to pick up Little Guy the other day after he'd been playing on the floor. His face looked dirty, so I tried washing it. Nope. Not dirty. Just gray. Yikes! I had the King check all of his tubing to be sure everything was hooked up correctly, and then had him bring me the oximeter. 84%!!! Not so good. We increased his oxygen, and that didn't help so we increased it some more. Finally we got his sats into a normal range and waited for the oncall dr. to call us back.

The doctor who returned our call was a total jerk. No seriously. He was just mean. He told me he had no idea what NEHI was, but that I had to bring Little Guy to him to be seen. I asked him to please consult with a doctor who did know what it was. Nope. He refused. What!??! You have no idea what my kid has, refuse to consult someone who does, but you want me to bring him to you???? I think not, my friend.

I got a hold of our regular doctor the next day just as he was starting to look a little bit gray again. She insisted that we go in right away to the ER and had them ready and waiting for us. Really, she wanted him to come by ambulance, but I just wasn't having it. I knew we'd be sitting I had oxygen with me and that I could get there quickly, so I took him myself. I don't think she liked that I did it that way, but it was what I felt was best. Imagine that! A mom thinking for herself a little bit about what is best for her child. Novel idea, right?

Anyway, we got right in and they observed him for a while. Of course is sats looked great while we were there. That's what always happens, isn't it? They admitted him for observation which made me cry for some reason. I think I was just overwhelmed and thinking it would be like last time when we were there for a full month. Plus, the doctor I understood to be on call was the one I'd spoken with the night before who was a pompass jerk and too full of himself to ask for help. WHY would I leave my baby with him??!?

As it turned out, an hour before he was admitted the shifts changed and the partner to our regular doctor came on call. She spoke to me personally as I tearfully explained my objection to letting him be admitted. Swine Flu all over the hospital for starters, but she told me she'd put him on the pulmonology unit which was much safer. I also told her how I felt about him being with some doctor who might not know what to do. Remember the one who wanted to send him home with me knowing CPR and nothing else? Yeah. She was a gem. What if I got someone like her again. Again, the doctor promised me it would be she herself who would be treating him.

With those promises in place, I consented to let him stay. We only wound up staying about 24 hours, so I made it home in time to trick or treat with my kids. and Little Guy got to show off his Superman costume. Can't complain about that, right?

So, we are home now. He has a new nurse who comes daily to check his vitals and a nurse who will be coming twice a week for eight hours at a time. I think the goal is for him to be sort of homebound now. We'll see how it works, and how long we get to be home for.

We've increased his oxygen to a full liter, and it's still a little bit iffy. *sigh* We shall see...