The Ordeal

   I have two artificial hips already. Arthritis and genetics have done a number on my joints. Thursday I bit the bullet and had the right knee replaced. A 2 1/2 hr. pre-op took place on the Monday before...with lots of blood taken, clean urine sample, EKG, chest xray, etc. When the approval of insurance was secured, I was good to go.
   My friends, the Vrielings, provided me with a ride to the hospital...had to be there by 5:30 a.m. That's when I found out the pre-op failed to prepare a "blood band." That had to be done before I was taken back to get prepped for the surgyer.   
   It seemed like a very long wait, but the anesthesiologist and surgeon finally came...and I was wheeled into the operating room. I was given a spinal block, but it seemed to be a bit difficult...I don't remember too much about that.
   I don't remember waking up in recovery...but I was itching from Morphine and feeling a it queasy. For two days I struggled to keep down water. The first night I had a roommate...who liked to sleep with her TV on...and she snored.
   I finally asked the nurse for earplugs.
   The sign-in and sign-out seemed to take some nurses forever. And they asked the same questions we had filled out in every other form since our first PRE-OP!  Where did all those records go anyway? 
   I was given lots of pain meds, 3 different kinds. The nurse would come and stand at the computer by the bed and ask, "So when did you have your last pain medication?"
   I wanted to say, "You're kidding, right?" She is documenting everything! She is scanning my armband w/every pill, and is supposed to scan the package of meds! I finally said, "I have no idea. Don't you have it there in the records?"
    The second night I had no roommate, and slept very well. I kept reminding them to shut the door, which they seemed reluctant to do. The next day I got a new roommate, who had broken her ankle. She was only there overnight, so we were preparing to be released at the same time...
    The nurse was going over my prescriptions for the pain meds, etc. and said something about a scooter for my knee. My friend spoke up and said, "She just had the knee replaced...she can't use a scooter. They lady in the other bed was to go home with the scooter, but MY ID sticker was placed on her prescription!
    The final discovery was that the physical therapy had filled out a paper for me to take home the knee stretching machine. My social security number was incorrect...she looked at me like, "How could you have done that?"  Oh no, I didn't write that number!!!
    I really would like NOT to go back to the hospital again.