Sunday, July 15, 2012

Hospital Tales, Number 1


    Due to her excess weight, drawing blood from Ricki is PRETTY difficult. One doctor was able to draw from a vein under an artery ( vein unseen…), another was good at drawing from her femoral vein. But that was it. It is so difficult to draw blood that she has been sent home with a year's prescription of anti-coagulant injections (Clexan), rather than the stronger Coumadin pills, because Coumadin requires blood tests to be done weekly…..
   But Ricki really knows the techniques pretty well… tie a rubber glove "tourniquet" to make the veins prominent, pat the area to add to the visibility of the vein, and then draw the sample…and while in the hospital, she often played doctor to a stuffed toy I had bought her.
    On our return home, she demonstrated for her father….

 (although she "injects"… I guess mixing up the two procedures…..) [at 0:27 she even lifts up the syringe as the nurses do to check the dosage.....]

5 comments:

Batya said...

as long as she only practices on a toy

mikimi said...

I was given Clexan after my Ankle Fusion for several months as I was morbidly obese and not mobile; I also needed for a month after my Gastric Bypass. But my reason for being prescribed Clexan was a preventative and not because I had anything, I never needed to worry about blood tests. That being said,her excess weight might not be the only reason difficult to find a vein. Many people when in hospital a long time or needing many blood tests often after awhile have a hard time for a nurse/doc to find a
vein. I have vein that "jump" even for a regular round of blood tests and when I do go in, the nurse and I try to remember which arm so we can use it again and we both talk to my vein. On the otherhand when I was in hospital last year for Plastics, I awoke to six venflors and thought I looked like an Xmas tree as there were three red and three green put in as reserve when the mardim saw how each vein blew shortly after the needle went in after I was sedated!
Glad R is home and taking a smeehat active role in her treatment. clean adds up and you should speak with SW at Maccabi and save all medical letters and receipts as you can get compensation and possibly at BL.

Rickismom said...

actually she practiced on me... but without a needle....

Cindy said...

She does know the procedure! Great job Ricki!

mikimi said...

She could possibly be taught...I had to do it on myself and the nurse taught me. Also I forgot to write that when I was in hospital and they couldn't find a vein, they had no problem looking on my feet. I had a freak-out and became very finicky which stag' I would let touch me to do a blood test. A friend of mine in NY (who has had many medical procedures and cancers) told me it is against the law to take blood from a vein. I have no idea if it is true here in Israel but I am still alive!