A very sick girl

Well, as Michaels post said, Sara is back in ICU.

As I've posted she's been requiring increasing suction over the last few days. I've been jumping up and down to get her back out of 3N and they wouldn't do it because she wasn't sick. Well, now she is.

Yesterday morning she spiked a high fever and started sweating profusely. She was working hard to breathe and was constantly coughing stuff up out of her lungs. By early afternoon they were having to stay pretty close to her (Duh! she's a freaking quadriplegic who can't push a call button for help and you leave her alone??) Anyway, they did a chest x-ray and it was not good. Looks like her left lung is either collapsed or pretty full. The immediately got aggressive on the respiratory therapy, using a type of ventilator that beats pressure into her lungs to help expand and break up any junk in there. They started the treatment as I left work for the hospital.

By the time I got there she was done and then unresponsive to me. She wouldn't wake up without significant stimulation. The doctor had also just decided to transfer her to ICU. They were surprised to see me walk onto the ward literally minutes after the decision.

I finally got her awake enough to tell her I was there and that she was going back to ICU and would be ok. I gathered all the stuff from her room and she drifted off as they wheeled her out of the room.

We got her down there and settled in. She was dirty, sweaty, smelly and the receiving ICU nurse was compelled to give her a head to toe bath, change all linens and bedding. Sara really appreciated it and looked more comfortable. She still kept having trouble keeping her eyes open so I asked her if she was just that tired, and she said yes. I stayed for a long time, stroking her arm and holding her hand. I told her that Mom was going to sit right there and watch over her, she needed to sleep. I rubbed peppermint lotion into her feet and hands (Burts Bees - awesome stuff - and the scent is very relaxing to her).

I talked to the ICU supervisor for a long time about how she got back to ICU. Multiple ICU nurses were upset at her having to come back and being sick again and the condition she arrived in. I won't go into the details of all of it, but she can't be at that level of care. I told them if they tried to make me put her in a level of care below what is safe and appropriate for HER condition, then they'd get two rude words out of me and a speed-dial to my lawyer.

So, now the focus is on her getting better again. It is a devistating blow to us and her in particular. But, we like to end each day with some positive though, regardless of the appearence of the circumstance. So, yesterday she and I came up with we are glad she's back in ICU because she feels safer there than where she was. She didn't want me to put back up her roadmap to home, as it has changed once again. So I will work on the new roadmap so we can see our goal and the steps to there, when it is time. But the order of the day is getting this pneumonia cleared up as quickly as possible.