HEAVY WITHIN

Tuesday, June 27, 2006

NEW TERMINOLOGIES


The months of May & June appear to be amongst the darkest moments of my adult life. My dad, GONZALO S. GACHO was diagnosed with Chronic Renal Failure (his kidneys are malfunctioning) last May 2006 and he landed in the Intensive Care Unit of the Brokenshire Hospital last June 04, 2006 with Pulmonary Congestion (he couldn't breathe).

He had his 15th Hemodialysis today and he's now back in the ICU, still intubated and hooked to a mechanical ventilator, and fitfully sleeping.

I've learned a lot of new terms ever since Dad was confined in the ICU last June 4. When someone dies in the ICU, the term "expires" apply. When you call the one in charge of your patient, you call the NOD or the Nurse-On-Duty. "DESAT" means you should be alarmed since the vital signs (heart rate, respiratory rate, & blood pressure) of your patient is below or off the normal range and death is knocking at his doorsteps. "Flat Line" also means that your patient's heart no longer has any electrical activity; it had stopped beating.

Such morbid new terms that I dread to hear.

SENSORIUM is defined as "all the sensory functions in the body, considered as a single unit". My dad's sensorium has changed ever since he was admitted to the hospital. He is now quite irritable. He is very sensitive to the things happening around him to the point that he senses other patients "expiring" in the ICU. This makes him restless and his doctors have to give him sedatives to calm him down.

Epinephrine and dopamine can do wonders to a dead heart... These drugs can make your heart beat again until their effects wear off...

I guess nothing else matters most when you have a loved one confined in the hospital and in critical condition.

My mind and body is taking a beating:from the rigors of securing his medicines; bringing food to my mom who is constantly in the hospital praying for his recovery; to the intermittent stress brought about when my dad "desats" during the wee hours of the morning; to the financial demands of his hospitalization and racking my brains out in securing funds for his daily needs; to the demands of my day job as a product promotions associate; and to day-to-day needs too of my own family.

But I am not complaining. Deep inside, I made a promise to my Dad that I wont give up on him because I know that he'll make it through this. The other night, I told him not to die on me yet because I want him to be there when my eldest, his 11 year-old grandson, brings his bride to the altar. I want him too to bring his grand daughters to the altar when the time comes.

I know he'll make it through this ordeal for I have dear friends who read this blog and who support me in prayers and in whatever means they can.

2 Comments:

At 7:52 PM, Blogger The Mentat said...

I'm sorry I had to find out about your dad this way, my friend. I guess I'm a little bit out of touch these days. I pray your dad gets better and that he'll see the day his grandkids are grown up.

 
At 9:45 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hey Gonz! Been trying to reach you. We'll visit soon.

- Hoovenson

 

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