Well gals I have finally managed to put pen to paper...I have been putting off this post, as I have not wanted to live through all the pain and hurt that we have been through over the last couple of weeks, but I feel that I owe it to you lovely ladies and besides I need a good ole natter ;)
First of all though, may I say a big thankyou to all those people that prayed for my Rosie whilst she was waiting for her operation, your comments put smiles on our faces for every one that we read...
Also thankyou so much to the peeps that emailed me personally, even though I wasn't around much on my computer...your encouragement helped us through it all, so again thankyou.
First of all though, may I say a big thankyou to all those people that prayed for my Rosie whilst she was waiting for her operation, your comments put smiles on our faces for every one that we read...
Also thankyou so much to the peeps that emailed me personally, even though I wasn't around much on my computer...your encouragement helped us through it all, so again thankyou.
WHAT HAPPENED
Well Rosie must of fell into a Diabetic coma during the early hours of Friday 23rd September, when Freddy and I tried to wake her for college, there was no response...we called an ambulance and they quickly got to work administering glucose gel to get her blood back upto a healthy reading...all this time she had been deliriously complaining that her arm was hurting...she couldn't move it and it did look rather odd and twisted. The Ambulance team felt her arm and shoulder and thought that it was all ok, but asked if she wanted to go into hospital with them, Rosie declined as she was still a little woozy.
Well Rosie must of fell into a Diabetic coma during the early hours of Friday 23rd September, when Freddy and I tried to wake her for college, there was no response...we called an ambulance and they quickly got to work administering glucose gel to get her blood back upto a healthy reading...all this time she had been deliriously complaining that her arm was hurting...she couldn't move it and it did look rather odd and twisted. The Ambulance team felt her arm and shoulder and thought that it was all ok, but asked if she wanted to go into hospital with them, Rosie declined as she was still a little woozy.
After they had left I tried to help Rosie up, but she screamed out that the pain was too bad!...and then said that she did want to go to the hospital as the pain that she had was just not right...Freddy and I both agreed...seeing her in so much paid was awful.
We arrived at the Hospital at 9.30 am and after a lot of waiting were finally seen at 12 midday, despite the hospital prioritising! Rosie's pain was increasing whilst the doctors were deciding what she had done to her shoulder...after 1 Xray, 1 CT scan and a visit to the Observation ward, Rosie was finally admitted to a trauma ward at 6.30 teatime.
Apparently whilst Rosie was in her diabetic coma, she had a seizure, in which case she must have convulsed and bashed her shoulder quite badly! well very badly infact! At first the doctors thought that they would be able to manipulate the shoulder back into place, but after looking at the CT scan they realised that she had completely dislocated her shoulder and fractured the ball completely.
Rosie also suffers from Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, in other words she has a collagen deficiency, this afftects her skin and bones, she is double jointed and has very soft fragile skin, so as you can imagine teamed with diabetes...this was our worst fear!
We were told throughout the day that something would be done to fix her shoulder that day, but by the time Rosie was admitted to the ward...! Yep you've guessed it! She was too late to be added to the list for surgery!...and we were told that the doctors would come and see us on Saturday morning!...well anyway to cut a long story short and after alot of promises to my lovely Rosie...The Arm Specialist needed to operate on her shoulder and he was off for the weekend until Tuesday! so her operation was scheduled for Tuesday teatime!
We all cried...surely they were not going to let her wait another 4 days in this much pain!...Rosie was in so much agony, it was killing us seeing her like this! she couldn't get comfortable...her back was aching lying in one position, it was all so uncomfortable for her, it was like a living hell for her...for all of us! she was constantly crying in pain and as time wore on, it was getting worse and worse...they had to quadruple her morphine dose, which she had every 2 hours, she was also on 2, 12 hour morphine tablets, and 2 500mg of paracetamol every 4 hours...and still she felt uncomfortable and in pain!
I felt so out of control...I wanted to have the pain for her...I prayed and prayed that the pain would go away, so that she could get some rest....I was with her through the nights, and freddy would sit with her through the day...I took on the roll of nurse when I was with Rosie, I would do everything for her, but seeing her suffer so much...It makes me so angry, an animal would have been treated better!
I have read up on shoulder dislocation, and it states that if it is fractured as well, the shoulder should be operated on as soon as possible, just in case it causes nerve damage to the tendons! and coupled with the fact that Rosie has other problems...I think they are seriously in the wrong to of made her wait so long for surgery!
I might write to my MP...I feel so strongly, that what!...an Arm Specialist cannot be called from leave to fix someones shoulder!...and what!....is there only one arm specialist in Kent! So if he suddenly passed away....no-one else that injured their arm would get treated!
Na! the more we think about it, the more angry we get...Rosie has been in pain many times in her little 18 years on this planet...everytime she has fallen over as a child, rather than grazing her knees, she would tare like a rubber ball, and need to be taken to hospital to be stitched up! Medway Martime Hospital has always done her proud....but not this time!
Well we are home now and have been for 11 days, it was lovely to get home, as in Hospital it did rather feel like we were in a mental institution, as you can imagine there are lots of elderly patients in the Trauma ward! and to their advantage many of them couldn't hear very well...but there was one particular patient who kept repeating over and over, in a very loud and squeaky voice...
'PLEASE HELP ME' 'PLEASE HELP ME' 'PLEASE HELP ME' 'PLEASE HELP ME' 'PLEASE HELP ME' 'PLEASE HELP ME' 'PLEASE HELP ME' 'PLEASE HELP ME' 'PLEASE HELP ME' 'PLEASE HELP ME' 'PLEASE HELP ME'
OMG! Imagine over and over...luckily the nurses were able to knock her out (not literally! lol) in the night time and we were able to get some peace...occasionally she would start up and the nurses would scurry around and then she would go off again.
Then there was this other Patient, she was put in the room next door to Rosie...She was completely off her rocker! she would throw the furniture about, she pulled all the electrics out of the wall...she turned the taps on and flooded the room! and when one of our favourite nurses went in to help her, she was bitten and scratched!
...but now all the mental hospitals have been closed, where else is there for patients like these...?
The NHS is in total shambles...we saw it all with our own eyes...staying with Rosie 24/7...I would never of left her and a good job too! as if we hadn't of been there for her to get her pain relief on time and other things, she would have been left for hours...there is just not enough nurses for each ward...they do a great job but can't be in 27 places at once...yep Rosie was on a 27'er ward an there was only 1 sister 2 nurses and 2 helpers in the evening...! Ridiculous!
We now have our wonderful, happy and smiley daughter back, she is
starting to laugh again and tell jokes...her shoulder has been fixed!
she has had an aluminium plate bolted to the ball and socket to keep the
shoulder in place...she has been told it is fixed and to start using it again...but after being in that much pain, she has been frightened to use it just in case it breaks again...which is understandable.
Sorry to of rambled on for so long...but i just needed to get it all out! if you know what I mean!...we are on the road to recovery now, Rosie has a list of exercises to do and soon she will be starting Physiotherapy to get her arm and shoulder stronger...
Sorry to of rambled on for so long...but i just needed to get it all out! if you know what I mean!...we are on the road to recovery now, Rosie has a list of exercises to do and soon she will be starting Physiotherapy to get her arm and shoulder stronger...
A lot of you lovely peeps have asked if you can send something to Rosie to cheer her up...Thankyou all, that is such a lovely gesture, if you would like to do this, please email me HERE and I will send you our details.
Thankyou all once again for helping us through this very stressful time...I must say, my grey roots grew about 10 inches over the last few weeks....but as my ole Nanny Hilda would say....Onwards and Upwards ;)
I'm so pleased to hear that Rosie is home again & on the road to recovery. Slow & steady with her exercises & her shoulder will be fine. My 81yo Mum is doing brilliantly after her shoulder surgery.
ReplyDeleteI felt like crying when I read of your nightmare hospital experience. Yes Happy write to your MP. They can't pretend they don't know what's happening if people write & tell them. Perhaps a letter to the newspaper wouldn't hurt either. You aren't criticizing the day to day staff, just the system. Also your point about the surgeon not being available is very valid. It's hard to believe there wasn't a specialist on call for emergencies, as this was. Just what would happen if he died or was sick or injured, would the patients just have to wait endlessly?
Hugs, Jan :-)
Oh my goodness! Wow!! So glad to hear she is on her way back!! so so scary!! Sending hugs and prayers and sweet sunshine to your Family!!
ReplyDelete~ Get Well Soon!! ~
~vanessa Johanning
I'm so sorry Rosie and you all had to go through that. I can't imagine how helpless you must have felt at times. You have a beautiful daughter and I hope she gets better fast. Best wishes from Georgia! We will say a prayer for you all tonight.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad to hear you are on the mend. I will keep you in my prayers for a speedy recovery. I know how you feel about the er I set there last wkend in the waiting room for 2 hours...ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteMs violet
Oh my goodness sakes this is just aweful. I am so so happy Rosie is back home safe and sound and on the road to mending. Poor girl but she is so lucky to have parents like you to stay by her side the entire time loving on her as you did. She is such a beautiful girl...my prayers and thoughts are with you all. ox
ReplyDeleteSending much love from California!
ReplyDeleteWhat a terrible experience for Rosie and your family. So glad she's on the mend now. My experience with my broken ankle was similar. I waited over a day to get it fixed and there just didn't seem to be enough staff around to help everyone. Definitely write to your MP about it. Can you imagine if our pets were treated this way!
ReplyDeleteSending you all lots of love poor Rosie.x
ReplyDeleteWhat an awful time for you all. Glad she's back home and perking up.
ReplyDeleteYes, make a formal complaint to the PCT about the non-availability of a surgeon - it has to go on record.
xx
OH MY GOD!!! How awful for you all,poor Rosie! I am so glad she is on the mend,but you know what? yet again I am raging at what this government has let the NHS come to! that is mental! fancy making her wait that long for treatment! write to your MP,cutbacks grrrr!
ReplyDeleteThank god she is ok now. It sounds horrendous. Personally, I would complain. I agree she was left far too long in pain. It must have been awful for you.
ReplyDeleteMy friend is in hospital a lot due to an ongoing stomach condition and says exactly the same things about the NHS. Her Mum won't leave her alone in hospital either.
Best wishes to you all. xxx
Love and speedy recovery Rosie xxx
ReplyDeleteWhat a shambles, how absolutely dreadful, you poor things. Any brush with the NHS is never pleasant these days... Glad Rosie is finally on the mend,
ReplyDeleteI am so glad that she is home and on the road to recovery. I too thought that with a dislocation (not even including the break) that it had to be dealt with asap otherwise nerves would be damaged. I cannot believe that the Consultant was not able to be called in, more to the point that there wasn't anyone else that could be called in to treat her! As you say if this person dropped dead would people with arm trauma never get seen? I would def complain, time and time again these problems occur (on a daily basis!) and being British we put up & shut up! If noone complains nothing will ever change.
ReplyDeleteI do hope that all is well and that none of you have to go through anything like this again. Sue x
This sounds awful, I'm so pleased to hear that Rosie is back home and beginning to get back to normal again. I would write to the MP, I think it is really important to keep feeding back this kind of info. How can they continue to make cuts to our emergency services and NHS when they clearly can't cope as it is, it is ridiculous xxx
ReplyDeleteIts so awful, what happened to your lovely Rosie and so unfair! I hope you all can forget this bad bad experience a little in happier times!!!!
ReplyDeleteI cannot help crying while reading this!
Wish you all the best!!!!
Love, Bianca
I can completely understand your situation, im now 30 but when i was 17 i had to have my final hip operation, but because i was now classed as an adult i had to go to a run down, out of the town hospital, basically where they put older poeple with hip, knee and joint problems, most of these poor elderly folk were mentally not right, just like you explained...i was taking a bath just before my operation and an old man walked in on me naked- i screamed!!!!...there were no locks for the bathroom doors or toilets. i was scared when my mum had to go to get to work and i was left recovering from an op on my own- An old lady opposite kept creaming for her dog...but repeated the same words over and over...It was scarey for a teenager!...i didnt want to sleep!- i was too scared to sleep...They were limited on nurses too...The doctor got my notes mixed up with the knee op that the elderly woman had next to me and tried to make me stand within hours after having an op on my hips i was in agony- he was foreign and i couldnt understand what he was saying...i had to spent a week at the hospital- i couldnt wait to leave! the whole ward was something out of a horror movie!
ReplyDeleteAnd it smelt so bad!!!! i cant describe the smell but oh my!!!!
your poor daughter i totally feel for her...I'd love to do her a get well illustration...xxxx best wishes, kazzy x p.s i totally love your style and blog ;0)
I am so happy to hear she is on th emend but what an ordeal for her and you all. This post has left me reeling on so many levels.
ReplyDeleteWhy is the specialist alowed to go off for his weekend and leave this poor kid in pain knowing that there mayy be nerve damage not only thatbut the pain she is in and coming off that much morphine?I would write to as many people as I could if I were you. We had to stay with our son while he was ill 24/7 because the nurses had so much ot do and we felt he would be left alone even if they are teens they still need to know they are not forgotten when they are sick.Nothing worse.
As for the poor dears who should be on a Psych ward is appalling they dont get the care they need and are "knocked out" because the staff arent able to deal with them.The Psych patients in the system are disposable and it is so wrong.
Then the poor nurses who are overworked and understaffed.It was like this when I trained to be a nurse and has steadily got worse. The NHS is a shambles you are right but when you have a government who will always see the education system and Healthcare not as a priority this will continue.It falls on deaf ears and uncaring hearts.
Now I am rmabling ,Rosie is getting better and we are glad. Hugs and kisses and get writing this should not go unsaid.I think you will regret it if you dont. Love xxxxx
I don't blame you for being very angry, what an horrific story.
ReplyDeleteSo pleased that Rosie is now so much better, sending much love for her continued improvement.
Love Carol xx
Gordon Bennett, you poor things! what a nightmare for you all and especially Rosie.ouch! My dad did exactly that to his shoulder, they gave him paracetamol and told him to rest it, then when he got septicemia and was given a week to live all hell broke loose and he was admitted as an emergency. Reading this story,the posted replies and several personal experiences it seems you have to stamp your feet and scream at the top of your voice to be heard by the NHS.I wonder sometimes what the astronomical taxes we pay here in Blighty get spent on! My mum was a staff nurse on a children's heart ward, I think it needs to go back to how it was in the 50s, regimental and thorough with a scary sister keeping order.OOOh rant over. I'm so glad Rosies on the mend anyway, lets hope she can forget the pain (get her moving that arm Happs, my dad was the just the same!)..big hugs to you xxxxxx (oh and bugger the grey roots, you'll still be gorgeous-you might even start a fad!)
ReplyDeleteHello and glad to hear your Rosie is on the mend. We have just got my mum out of Medway Maritime, she broke her hip on the 10th of August. Like you I tried so hard to be patient but have ended up feeling that we were failed badly by the hospital. My mum is 77 and has dementia and has ended up in a care home because being in there for so long has made her much worse. I get the feeling they could have been on the same ward (Arethusa)as there was a lady in with my mum at one time who was shouting out 'help me' all the time. (Until my mum told her to shut her noise up.)
ReplyDeleteI will be glad if I never have to go to that hospital again.
x
O My goodness i have only just read of Rosies pain i am so very sorry that you all had to endure such a tough and horribe time. I agree that they should not have made you wait so long to me that is disgusting with Rosies on going medical history. I am happy to hear that she is now on the mend. Please pass on my best wishes to her. Take care, dee xx
ReplyDeleteIt makes heartbreaking reading....So glad you stopped with her, makes you wonder what would have happened otherwise. Take care gorgeous Rosie!
ReplyDeletePoor Rosie!
ReplyDeleteAm so glad all has ended well. Hoping that she continues to recover well and feels more herself with every moment that passes.
xx
H
I'm so sorry to hear of all the suffering your Rosie has been put through. How helpless you must have felt! I'm so glad she is home and comfortable now. What a terrible experience. I wish nothing but the best for her from this day forward.
ReplyDeleteMaureen
My Oh My, I am so sorry poor Rosie and the both of you had to go through this. I know how frustrating the Health Care system in America is, so I can only imagine. Glad to hear Rosie is on the mend! Thoughts are with you all.
ReplyDeleteDearest Happy and Rosie,
ReplyDeleteI am so happy to hear your home and on the mend. So sorry for your ordeal in the hospital though. Thank goodness you have such great parents to stay with you and to be sure you got all you needed. I know the exercises will be painful at first but know they will get easier with time and your shoulder will be stronger for it. I would love to email you to see what you need but my puter won't let me for some reason. If you care to leave me a message at this URL I will gladly respond. Take care and get well soon. Happy, you and hubby get some well deserved rest. You are all in my prayers.
http://theharriedlifeofacrocheterandcrafter.blogspot.com
Blessings,
Misty and Pets.
Poor Rosie! Thank God that she has you and Freddie! xxx
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry y'all had to go through all this. I know from own experience that hospitals do not necessarily create an environment that will help a patient get better. I am glad Rosie has recovered now!!!
ReplyDeleteyou are a shining star!!!!!!!!!! you have magic. your mom is so lucky to have you by her side for sure!!!!! good luck to the both of you. i can't imagine the stress. not even one little bit!!!
ReplyDeletesending good vibes from across the pond!!!!! love to your family!!!! love to rosie!!!!
take care
sue
I'm so sorry to hear of you going through so much with your precious Daughter! But thankful that Prayer has been answered and she's back Home now and on the mend. Your Health System isn't the only one in shambles... we are experiencing similar obstacles in America too & so many don't have Health Insurance at all now or inadequate insurance that refuses to cover so much that is needed. A very disconcerting thing to experience or witness... we too have been there and done that & so my Heart went out to you when I read your Post. Our Prayers and Healing Energies are being sent your way... Hugs & Blessings from the Arizona Desert... Dawn... The Bohemian
ReplyDeleteI am so sorry to hear what your darling daughter has had to go through and I cried when I read your blog. Unfortunately I have had experience of the NHS and not favourabley having spent years in extreme pain and them not being able to diagnose it! Of course if you ever saw the same english speaking doctor twice it would help but that seems too much to hope for. I ended up unable to stand or walk for over a year and it was only my GP who pushed for them to find the cause. Anyway cured I now am and I am sure that Rosie will make a complete recovery with you and Fred to care for her.
ReplyDeleteBig hugs to you all
Pene x
Nothing surprises me with regards to hospitals and the NHS unfortunately and I am sorry to hear that Rosie had to wait for so long for surgery. Please do encourage her to use her arm, it is really important that she does so.
ReplyDeleteMy son also has Ehlers Danlos so I fully understand where you are with the problems she has and does face.
Keep strong and smiling.
Lorraine
Wow...what a terrible experience! I am so glad Rosie is on the mend. There is a scene in the movie, "Terms of Endearment" when Shirley McLaine (the mother) is standing at the nursing station screaming that it is the time for her daughter's pain medication. The helplessness and love area all so raw was so apparent. It immediately came to mind when you shared your story. So sorry you all went through that. Will pray that she heals without complications.
ReplyDeleteOh gosh, Happy my sweet!! I havent been over for a while and what a shock to hear about our loverly Rosie:(
ReplyDeleteMy Dad 84, fell off a ladder about 8 weeks ago and dislocated his shoulder,trip in ambulance, 4 hours in Hosp and they had put it back in again. No complications luckily!
My Dad is a bit worried about using it too much to:(
Lots Love Rosie, keep resting, you have had a hell of a trauma my sweet xxx
And you take care too Happy, our babies are very precious arnt they:) xxx
love
michelle x
aww I am just catching up on your blog and I'm sorry that Rosie had such an awful time. I hope she is well on the road to recovery now.
ReplyDeleteI cant even imagine how hard it must have been for you to see your girl in pain. I hate it when anything happens to my two nearly grown up children and always wish it could happen to me instead so they didnt have to go through it.
xxx