Friday (5/29) proved to be an eventful day, but not in a good way. I arrived home a little early so that Bekka could head out to an appointment. I'd only been home a few minutes when Ollie's sats begin dropping. They very quickly descended into the 70s. Vigorous suction and cough assist managed to get him into the low 80s, but no higher. When he dropped into the 60s before bouncing back into the 80s and after we had been at this for several minutes, we made the call to 911.
By the time the paramedics were here, he was back to around 90, but still sounded horrible. They gave him a hit of supplemental oxygen and we headed out the door. Mom loaded up with Ollie into the ambulance and I followed a little bit later with some of the necessary bags.
By the time, we were all at the hospital and in an ER bay, he seemed to be doing really well. In fact, they were drawing up the discharge papers when his sats crashed again. We got his numbers back up pretty quickly, but his heart rate remained elevated. This is always a sure sign that he is still experiencing respiratory discomfort, even if his sats are in a more normal range.
We requested they send in a respiratory therapist to do deep suctioning. Several rounds of this brought up a large amount of very, very thick (but clear!) mucus. He began to improve slowly and Bekka and I were having discussions with the Doc about admission vs. going on home. The decision was not an easy one and they let us continue hanging out in the ER while we made the decision. Pretty soon, he began to perk up to normal Ollie mode and grinned at Daddy! We knew then we could head home.
In the meantime, members of the WakeMed branch of the Ollie fan club came by to see him. I don't think any parent wants to be a "regular" at their local ER, but it's a comforting feeling to know the nurses like your little fella so much they go out of their way to visit. We've been so impressed with our experiences at WakeMed and with Wake County EMS. We can't begin to offer enough praise for their professionalism AND their compassion.
As of now, we have backed off his Robinul dose (though not completely, as that is not a tenable situation) and are being even more vigilant.
Monday, June 1, 2009
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Ah, being a regular in the ER has it's perks...they bump you to the front of the line! But I totally understand, on one hand it's nice to know they care, but on the other hand you wish they didn't know you quite *that* well.
ReplyDeleteLove to all of you and glad Ollie's having an easier time now.
Thanks for the detailed update Neil. Looking forward to seeing you all tomorrow night!
ReplyDeleteMy Hayden spent 1/2 her life at WakeMed and we loved it there. I continue to pray for you and Ollie.
ReplyDeleteShannon
It is nice to come into the ER and recognize faces. WakeMed has been amazing. The doctors and nurses have all been so caring and compassionate and understanding as well. And they defer to us and our knowledge of Oliver's disease. In my mind, I thought I would dread trips to the ER trying to get them to understand why or why not we wanted to do this or that. But it's not been like that at all.
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