The road to hell is paved with blood thinner

Today was a day filled with frustration. So much frustration that I don't even know where to start.

First of all, my parents live in a pretty good-sized town with one hospital. And all I can say is that from what we've experienced, the care here is somewhat akin to being trapped in a third-world country.

It's not that the staff is incompetent or mean or rude - it's that they're so short-staffed that it's almost impossible to even get something when you're in desperate need. Take for example, 1 PM today - my dad's suction tube was stopped up for the umpteenth time and needed to be cleaned out, and the buildup of fluids in his abdomen was growing at such an alarming rate that he began to gag over and over.

I buzzed the nurse and explained the problem. Forty-five minutes later she finally came in - AFTER I went and chased her down.

It was that kind of day. Add to that growing list of frustrations that even after Vitamin K and two units of plasma were ordered at 7 AM, they didn't show up until almost 5 PM.

Dad seems better today in some ways. We had a few scary hours where his heart rate went way up, and after discussing it with the nurse we discovered that apparently no one took his prescription med history so he hasn't had any of his heart medication since Wednesday - duh, no wonder! But we got it back down with the help of some oxygen and a bag of ice strategically placed on his head. Believe me, he was one foxy dude with that big old ziploc on his head.

His blood levels still aren't right - the surgeon told us that for the small amount of blood thinner he'd been taking, the level still in his blood four days later is highly alarming. So until that's stabilized, we're in a never-ending cycle of hell.

On the good side, he still has his sense of humor. His roommate is this old guy who is in really bad health and delirious most of the time. Last night, he kept Dad and my sister up all night by yelling "shit!" over and over again, trying to get out of the bed, and all sorts of other shenanigans. My dad turned to my sister and said, "I think he's just trying to get me back since they woke him up last night moving me in the room!" So I think with his attitude, that will be 80% of the battle back from this.

So, I'm off to bed. Still in limbo. Hoping for answers tomorrow. Missing the hell out of my family, including Monkey Man who told me today, "I know that Daddy and I are having way more fun than you're having!"

I hope so, buddy. I hope so.

In tomorrow's hospital vent: The f*cked up cafeteria hours and why the hell can't you get a decent cup of coffee after 6 PM?