The D’s Surgery
The D’s surgery is scheduled for February 17th. We met with the surgeon yesterday and it went really well. He was so kind to David and answered all of our questions thoroughly. David actually looked at him and showed him his toys, so that says a lot.
So, on the 17th, we’ll have to be at the hospital at 6:00AM for check in and the surgery is scheduled to start at 7:30AM. We’re debating on how much we should tell David about it. We won’t talk to him about it until much closer to time, but we’ll try to prepare him somewhat. Now, I’m just trying not to spend too much time worrying about the anesthesia.
More changes on the work front…
I learned this week that one of my co-workers will be moving on to a different social work specialty within the hospital system. This will apparently happen around the beginning of March. I’m actually quite happy for this person. It has been apparent to me for quite some time that this person has absolutely not been happy in the job. Just in the few days since she told us that she will be moving to this different arena, I have noticed a lightness and a sense of ease that I had never seen before in her. So, I think this will be a very good move for her both personally and professionally.
But, for the department, things will be a little rough. We had all thought that within six to eight weeks we would be fully staffed. However, that won’t be the case. The position has been reposted and so now, in addition to training the new person that starts on February 2nd, we will also probably be interviewing potential candidates. So, I’m going to rise above it. My plan has been to be happy if at least one other person comes to work, so I don’t have to work alone. And I realize that is the nature of life…things are always changing.
How do you know when someone is lying…
We had a case come up that has really kind of rocked my confidence…and it wasn’t even a case I worked on during this current hospitalization for this particular patient. I met with the patient during their last hospitalization and had some concerns for the vulnerable people living in their home, but had nothing other than my instincts to act upon. The patient listed a number of services they were receiving in the community and I felt that the patient’s cognitive abilities precluded them from developing an elaborate story about their community support network. One of my colleagues met with this patient and basically came away from it the same way. I had given her a heads up for the weekend, as I had recognized the patient’s name.
So, it turns out that the vulnerable people ended up being removed from the home over the weekend. We still believe that the patient was probably being honest about their community support network, but given the situation, maybe they weren’t being honest.
So that leaves me with a feeling of unease on two fronts. I’m wondering if my instincts aren’t as good as I had given myself credit for. Do I really know if a person is lying to me? The other issue that comes up is, if this patient was in fact telling the truth, how could all of those people be involved in the situation and not have made a report?? I guess it’s possible that maybe they had. I don’t know…but my confidence has taken a hit…that much I know for sure.
A new co-worker
We’re getting a new co-worker soon. It is a relief and a burden. It a relief to know that we will be fully staffed within a month or two. It is a burden because this new co-worker will need to be trained. And here is where my worry comes in.
I’m the newest member of the team but have been asked to be the point person for training. The reason for this is that I’m the only person who works 40 hours a week. The thought is that continuity will be helpful to the person being trained. Of course, I’m feeling some anxiety about being so new to the job and being responsible for training a new person.
I do feel confident in my abilities and feel reasonably competent in my day-to-day work at the hospital. However, I am finding myself having to go to my co-workers for guidance, probably once a week. So, it makes me wonder if I’m really the best person to do the training. The only benefit will be for the two of us to learn together, I guess.
So, I’m going to try and meet with my co-workers and come up with a plan so that I can still follow the directive from my supervisor and also make sure the new person is properly trained.
Surgery Saga…
So, we got an appointment with the other surgeon. We cancelled the first appointment we had. I’m relieved and now just wanting to get the actual surgery scheduled so we can get this all behind us. I’m still worried about the anesthesia and probably will be worried about this every day until the day after the surgery.
Oh Lordy!
So, with the D’s upcoming surgery, I’m a little bit of a basket case. Of course, I’m obsessing over every detail. I thought I had worked through some of my worries, but not entirely. I haven’t been overly concerned with the surgeon we were referred to. A hernia repair is a pretty simple and straightforward thing. I have been obsessing over the anesthesia, given the D’s history of severe asthma. Part of that obsession has to do with where the particular surgeon would want to perform the surgery. There’s an ambulatory surgery center associated with the clinic connected with this doctor and I’m just not comfortable with the D having his surgery in that environment. If something were to go wrong with his anesthesia (or anything else for that matter) he might as well be across town from the hospital, even though he would only be a block away from the hospital.
So, because that was the main area I was obsessing about, I hadn’t given a whole lot of thought about the surgeon. Our pediatrician recommended him because apparently he does a lot of hernias, both adult and pediatric. The surgeon apparently has good technical skills. Today, however, I decided that I should do a little more investigating around the hospital about this particular surgeon.
I learned that, indeed, he is highly skilled and very competent as a surgeon. But, talking to a few people, it seems that his people skills may be a bit lacking. In fact once nurse went so far as to say, “I can’t imagine that man working with a small child.” Of course, I didn’t learn this information until the end of the day and it sort of sent me into a tail spin.
So, tomorrow, I am going to be calling and requesting a referral be sent to another surgical practice. By using this other practice, I’ll solve a number of problems. My insurance will pay a bit better, even though my insurance is only a secondary for the D at this point. And that’s what I’ll be telling our pediatrician, so I don’t alienate him from his colleague. But, also by using this other surgical practice, I know for a fact that the D will have his surgery in the hospital, with all the associated bells and whistles available to him should something (God forbid) go wrong. I know this because they do not have an ambulatory surgical center at their disposal.
So…wish me luck in making all the necessary appointments!
Easter 2008
Something must have been in the air during Easter 2008. We have had a huge number of maternity cases at work this week. And counting back, the time of conception would be around Easter or so. So, apparently, all the people with drug and/or mental health issues were in the mood around Easter. Wonder what it was about that time of year last year??
My complicated three year old…
So, my three year old just can’t seem to go more than 10 or 11 months without having some sort of medical issue. And I’m not talking about having a cold or a stomach bug. Of course, anyone who has read this blog probably realizes that.
So, what’s the new issue you ask? He has a hernia. It’s a relatively minor surgery to have it repaired. However, given that he has ended up at the Doernbecher Pediatric ICU because of his asthma, I’m a bit concerned about how his little lungs will react (or overreact) to anesthesia. I’ve talked with our pediatrician on the phone since I didn’t go to the appointment where the problem was officially diagnosed and he has reassured me, as best he could.
So, we have an appointment on the 20th to meet with a surgeon. Apparently this particular surgeon, while he’s not a pediatric surgeon, enjoys fixing hernias in children. Whether this is because he likes children or possibly enjoys the challenge of fixing little tiny holes, I don’t know. I guess it could be a combination of the two. He’s the one surgeon I’ve never had any interaction with at the hospital. But, apparently, our pediatrian referred us specifically to his surgeon. So, we’ll meet with him and see how we feel at that point.
Now, we’ll be doing just fine as long as we can have the surgery done in a controlled setting. We’re keeping our eye on things in case the hernia becomes strangulated. And the way things are for this kid of ours, that very well could happen.
So…I’ll keep you all up to date on the saga of the D’s hernia….
My youth is over….
I just learned this today. I heard on the news that Obama is having a special inaugural ball for the youth who supported him. Apparently the tickets are only $75, about half the price of other balls. It’s open for anyone 18 to 35 years old. So…I missed the youth cut off by almost 2 years! I didn’t even know I wasn’t young anymore!
Thankful for Monday…
Tomorrow, I will be thankful that Monday has come. G will be able to return to school after an extended Winter Break. It ended up being three weeks long, instead of only two, due to inclement weather. He is going nuts with boredom and so there rest of us are going a little nuts, too. Holiday staff-down will be over. We will be back to the normal number of social workers on duty and that will be a relief. Things have been a little overwhelming the past few weeks.
And, my weekend on duty will be over. I’m actually reasonably surprised that I’m still at home. When we work the weekend at the hospital, we work a normal shift on Saturday and then are on-call for Sunday. It is 10:00AM and my pager has yet to go off. Given what was going on yesterday, I expected a page as soon as my on-call hours started at 8:00AM this morning. I am keeping my fingers crossed and am hoping that 4:00PM arrives quickly. To give you some idea of what Saturday was like, I had to get the House Supervisor involved and call my boss at home. Just a nightmare of a day.
So…here’s to Monday morning! I can hardly wait for it to come!
