Okay, so I know that isn't really the name of the film, or its title song, but the meeting place for Faye, Lily and myself on Saturday was Trafalgar Square just a few yards from one of the famous fountains there. Saturday brought my busy week to an end and was a lovely day spent with two lovely young ladies. We met at about 12.45 and made our way to the restaurant where we were going to have lunch. This turned out to be a very leisurely affair. We took ages to order our food because we were so busy talking (I think the waitress had three attempts at taking our order) and we also managed to save some money because I had found a discount voucher online which meant that one of our pizzas came free. After lunch we walked across Waterloo Bridge and made our way to I Knit London, the wool shop where I go to my knitting group. Faye bought some wool and a circular needle to make a blanket for her young cousin, and Lily bought a crochet hook which has a light in it so she can crochet in the dark. After making the purchases we headed across the road to a small park which is situated opposite the Old Vic and sat there talking for several hours. Eventually it was time for us to go our separate ways; Lily was going to meet her sister, Faye was off to meet another friend at Greenwich, and I was to wend my way home.
I can't remember the last time that I had such a busy week, and things have started in a similar vein this week with me spending all morning at the hospital for my pre-operation assessment. The operation is to deal with the little problem that I have that is not mentioned in polite society and I can't wait to have the operation because life is just so uncomfortable for me at the moment. I'm hoping that I won't have to wait too long for a date for the surgery.
Tomorrow is psychotherapy day and I must go and do a bit of shopping afterwards. I need to buy some food and a dressing gown. At home I don't bother with such a thing, but I have been told that I need to take one with me when I go for surgery to cover up my nether regions owing to having to wear a wonderful hospital gown that probably will leave everything open for anyone to see.
I may actually be able to spend most of Wednesday at home, although I will be going to the knitting group Wednesday evening and it makes sense to go a couple of hours before it actually starts because it means that I can then miss the crowds at rush hour.
Showing posts with label hospital. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hospital. Show all posts
Monday, 17 May 2010
Monday, 16 November 2009
It's Been A While
This is hopefully me starting to blog a little more frequently again. I have my laptop with me and I have logged into the free wi-fi set-up in the local library (well local to my assisted-living accommodation) so I don't have to book onto one of their computers which can be like 'rocking-horse manure' to get on to at times.
I have now been out of hospital for a week and things are improving as far as my mood is concerned, which is undoubtedly due to an increase in my medication, but I am still having problems with sleep. I either get to sleep quickly and then wake in the early hours of the morning and find myself unable to get back to sleep again, or I have problems getting to sleep so that it is almost dawn before I eventually drop off.
I have to go back to the hospital this afternoon for 'ward round' with my consultant and then I should be out on 'leave' for another week before I have to go back again. Next Monday I am due to start living at home again full time, rather than just visiting for a few hours several times a week.
I have actually been looking forward to getting back to the blogosphere and I really do appreciate all the lovely comments and emails that regular readers have been sending me. It is so heart-warming for someone who lives on their own to have so many friends out there sending messages of encouragement when you are not at your best. I really cannot express how much it has meant to me and how it has helped me during this very difficult period.
I have now been out of hospital for a week and things are improving as far as my mood is concerned, which is undoubtedly due to an increase in my medication, but I am still having problems with sleep. I either get to sleep quickly and then wake in the early hours of the morning and find myself unable to get back to sleep again, or I have problems getting to sleep so that it is almost dawn before I eventually drop off.
I have to go back to the hospital this afternoon for 'ward round' with my consultant and then I should be out on 'leave' for another week before I have to go back again. Next Monday I am due to start living at home again full time, rather than just visiting for a few hours several times a week.
I have actually been looking forward to getting back to the blogosphere and I really do appreciate all the lovely comments and emails that regular readers have been sending me. It is so heart-warming for someone who lives on their own to have so many friends out there sending messages of encouragement when you are not at your best. I really cannot express how much it has meant to me and how it has helped me during this very difficult period.
Tuesday, 29 September 2009
A Sign Of The Times
I went to the hospital this morning for my follow-up appointment with the consultant and to get the results of the biopsy. Things are fine, but the consultant was concerned that the sore area on my nose does not appear to have decreased in size and is still causing me some discomfort even after the removal of the nasty bit. So I was given a prescription for a combination antibiotic/steroid ointment and some dressings to cover the area so that it is not aggravated by my glasses. I'm not quite sure how I am going to apply the dressings though because the offending area is in such an awkward place. Fortunately I have a good supply of the dressings so that if I have the odd problem when I am cutting them to size and shape I needn't worry too much. Said treatment needs to be carried out for three weeks and hopefully by then the soreness will have gone and both sides of my nose will look the same.
As before, I arrived at the department early and having sat down to wait with my book, I was somewhat surprised to be called almost immediately. The consultant arrived almost immediately and I was out of the building 20 minutes before the actual time of my appointment. I have to say that I was really impressed, although today's receptionist was a bit sharp and offish in comparison to the lovely one who was there on my first visit.
The hospital that I attended is the largest in my part of London and is, of course, home of one of the London medical schools. The original hospital building is now at the centre of a mass of more recent additions, although many of them are probably more than 50 years old. The dermatology clinic is located in a separate building opposite the original building and today I walked past the original building on my way to the crossing to the dermatology building. Either side of the main entrance to the original hospital building there are stones marking the foundation of the hospital (by King Edward VII) and its opening (by King George V). But what attracted my attention was a stone on the corner of the building which also had an inscription carved on it.
There can be nothing that indicates how inferior a position in the hospital hierarchy that nurses occupied at the time that the hospital opened than the fact that they had a separate entrance down the side of the building. The window that can be seen on the edge of the photograph is in one of the newest parts of the hospital, the Golden Jubilee Wing (that's the Golden Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II, not the hospital). Today, such discrimination is not evident.
Oh, what a sign of the times!
As before, I arrived at the department early and having sat down to wait with my book, I was somewhat surprised to be called almost immediately. The consultant arrived almost immediately and I was out of the building 20 minutes before the actual time of my appointment. I have to say that I was really impressed, although today's receptionist was a bit sharp and offish in comparison to the lovely one who was there on my first visit.
The hospital that I attended is the largest in my part of London and is, of course, home of one of the London medical schools. The original hospital building is now at the centre of a mass of more recent additions, although many of them are probably more than 50 years old. The dermatology clinic is located in a separate building opposite the original building and today I walked past the original building on my way to the crossing to the dermatology building. Either side of the main entrance to the original hospital building there are stones marking the foundation of the hospital (by King Edward VII) and its opening (by King George V). But what attracted my attention was a stone on the corner of the building which also had an inscription carved on it.
There can be nothing that indicates how inferior a position in the hospital hierarchy that nurses occupied at the time that the hospital opened than the fact that they had a separate entrance down the side of the building. The window that can be seen on the edge of the photograph is in one of the newest parts of the hospital, the Golden Jubilee Wing (that's the Golden Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II, not the hospital). Today, such discrimination is not evident.Oh, what a sign of the times!
Thursday, 10 September 2009
A Bit Of A Nose Job
Last night (actually it was the early hours of this morning) I was unable to sleep so I was sitting at the computer drafting a post for this blog (I haven't finished it yet, but will probably do so tonight or tomorrow) when I remembered that I needed to make an appointment to see my GP because the results of my ambulatory blood pressure test were in. So I logged into the website to see if there were any appointments available and while I was there I happened to look at the 'Letters' section of my medical records and saw that a fax had been scanned in relating to my referral under the 'two week rule'. Opening this item I was horrified to see that the hospital appointment was this morning and had I not yet received a letter from the hospital informing me of this fact.
So, it was a change of plans for today and a trip to the hospital to see the consultant dermatologist for him to have a look at the area on my nose that has been causing me so much trouble over the last couple of months. I arrived early (I always do, I am a bit of an early freak) and as luck would have it I was taken into the consulting room at least 20 minutes before my appointment time. I sat there for a couple of minutes and then the consultant arrived with his SHO and he took the usual history; illnesses, medication that I am taking, how long had I been troubled by this strange area on my nose. Then it was onto the examination couch for him to have a look at it under magnification and to prod it and stretch it and generally have a good feel at it.
The diagnosis? Probably a basal cell carcinoma. Then he made a small mark on my nose and told the SHO that he wanted a biopsy taken and that I should go back to see him in three weeks. After that I was escorted to the operating theatre and the biopsy was done. There was the usual briefing about what exactly was going to happen, I was made comfortable on the operating couch, and asked to sign the consent form. This was the first problem. I had taken my glasses off and put them in my handbag before getting on to the couch and now I couldn't see where I needed to sign on the form. So the very nice SHO pointed me in the right direction on the form and I scribbled something that experience tells me was probably a pretty good attempt at my signature.
Then I was covered with some towels to ensure that my clothes would not be covered in blood and told that the local anaesthetic was to be administered. The area where the biopsy was to be taken was very near my left eye and it was suggested that because of the bright lights that would be shining on the area I might like to close my eyes. I was going to do exactly that anyway because there was no way that I was going to watch a needle approaching my eye; I'm afraid that I am not very good when it comes to injections of any sort and local anaesthetics in particular. There is no doubt that this injection was the most painful part of the whole procedure, for after a few minutes the area was completely numb and tests to see whether I could feel anything sharp touching the area showed that the anaesthetic had done its job. The biopsy was taken and then it was a case of trying to stop some of the bleeding sufficiently for a stitch to be inserted. I take aspirin every day because I have an unusual form of angina and this means that it can be quite difficult to stop bleeding sometimes, and today was one of those occasions.
Eventually the flow slowed enough for the stitch to be put in place, with some difficulty because of the strange location of the offending area, some antibiotic gel was placed on the wound and I was finished. There was the offer of a plaster to put on the wound but I declined until I tried to put my glasses on and found that even with the effects of the local anaesthetic still present I could feel that this was not going to be easy. So, the decision was made that a plaster would be necessary, but again because of the position of the wound and its proximity to my eye, some surgery would be necessary on the plaster to enable it to cover the wound but at the same time make sure that it did not affect my eye. Then it was off to the reception desk to hand in the paperwork about my follow-up appointment, the letter for which will be sent to me soon (I hope).
It is now some hours since the procedure was carried out and the effects of the anaesthetic have worn off and the wound is now giving me some pain. I've taken paracetamol for the pain, as instructed, I've made an appointment with the practice nurse to have the stitch removed next Thursday, and I am hoping that I can manage to get some sleep tonight to make up for all that I missed last night.
Because I had not received the letter from the hospital telling me about my appointment, in the normal course of events I would have missed it and been marked as a 'did not attend'. The fact that I have online access to my GP medical records meant that I found out about the appointment in time to be able to attend, so the hospital's time was not wasted in me not turning up and becoming an addition to the statistics of 'no shows'. This means that I will have another example of the benefits of online record access when I give my next presentation.
About an hour and a half after I got back home from the hospital the postman delivered a letter. Yes, you've guessed. It was the letter giving me details of my appointment.
So, it was a change of plans for today and a trip to the hospital to see the consultant dermatologist for him to have a look at the area on my nose that has been causing me so much trouble over the last couple of months. I arrived early (I always do, I am a bit of an early freak) and as luck would have it I was taken into the consulting room at least 20 minutes before my appointment time. I sat there for a couple of minutes and then the consultant arrived with his SHO and he took the usual history; illnesses, medication that I am taking, how long had I been troubled by this strange area on my nose. Then it was onto the examination couch for him to have a look at it under magnification and to prod it and stretch it and generally have a good feel at it.
The diagnosis? Probably a basal cell carcinoma. Then he made a small mark on my nose and told the SHO that he wanted a biopsy taken and that I should go back to see him in three weeks. After that I was escorted to the operating theatre and the biopsy was done. There was the usual briefing about what exactly was going to happen, I was made comfortable on the operating couch, and asked to sign the consent form. This was the first problem. I had taken my glasses off and put them in my handbag before getting on to the couch and now I couldn't see where I needed to sign on the form. So the very nice SHO pointed me in the right direction on the form and I scribbled something that experience tells me was probably a pretty good attempt at my signature.
Then I was covered with some towels to ensure that my clothes would not be covered in blood and told that the local anaesthetic was to be administered. The area where the biopsy was to be taken was very near my left eye and it was suggested that because of the bright lights that would be shining on the area I might like to close my eyes. I was going to do exactly that anyway because there was no way that I was going to watch a needle approaching my eye; I'm afraid that I am not very good when it comes to injections of any sort and local anaesthetics in particular. There is no doubt that this injection was the most painful part of the whole procedure, for after a few minutes the area was completely numb and tests to see whether I could feel anything sharp touching the area showed that the anaesthetic had done its job. The biopsy was taken and then it was a case of trying to stop some of the bleeding sufficiently for a stitch to be inserted. I take aspirin every day because I have an unusual form of angina and this means that it can be quite difficult to stop bleeding sometimes, and today was one of those occasions.
Eventually the flow slowed enough for the stitch to be put in place, with some difficulty because of the strange location of the offending area, some antibiotic gel was placed on the wound and I was finished. There was the offer of a plaster to put on the wound but I declined until I tried to put my glasses on and found that even with the effects of the local anaesthetic still present I could feel that this was not going to be easy. So, the decision was made that a plaster would be necessary, but again because of the position of the wound and its proximity to my eye, some surgery would be necessary on the plaster to enable it to cover the wound but at the same time make sure that it did not affect my eye. Then it was off to the reception desk to hand in the paperwork about my follow-up appointment, the letter for which will be sent to me soon (I hope).
It is now some hours since the procedure was carried out and the effects of the anaesthetic have worn off and the wound is now giving me some pain. I've taken paracetamol for the pain, as instructed, I've made an appointment with the practice nurse to have the stitch removed next Thursday, and I am hoping that I can manage to get some sleep tonight to make up for all that I missed last night.
Because I had not received the letter from the hospital telling me about my appointment, in the normal course of events I would have missed it and been marked as a 'did not attend'. The fact that I have online access to my GP medical records meant that I found out about the appointment in time to be able to attend, so the hospital's time was not wasted in me not turning up and becoming an addition to the statistics of 'no shows'. This means that I will have another example of the benefits of online record access when I give my next presentation.
About an hour and a half after I got back home from the hospital the postman delivered a letter. Yes, you've guessed. It was the letter giving me details of my appointment.
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