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| A happy surprise! |
Surprise! Rachel and
Casey arrived this afternoon with smiles behind their masks (as well as a
delicious smoothie in hand! My sisters
know what my mucositis can tolerate).
When Rachel walked in, I did a double-take. She was supposed to be in Williamsburg on Thursday so I
immediately thought that I was lost in my timeless cancer world. What day WAS it? If Rachel was here, then it was Thursday, and therefore shouldn’t
I be discharged? I truly had a few
moments of confusion. So, was my lapse
evidence of "chemo brain", inattention, fatigue, or simply losing track of time? I’m going for the latter three - combined!. After all, my wordplay skills remain
(epically) sharp and improving (given all of my practice time)! Nope, not chemo brain.
As someone who until Dec. 28, 2011 enjoyed very good health,
I have certainly racked up hospital days in 2012. Three of these six hospital stays have been unexpected
surprises. The first being that
oops-we-nicked-your-bladder-while trying-to-harvest-a-lymph-node-surgery on May
2 that led to two weeks of limited function.
Then came my two unwelcome neutropenic fevers. This last hospital stay has given me a chance to evaluate my
inner city 781 bed VCU home-away-from-home against the suburban services
provided here at Sentara’s newly constructed 145 bed Williamsburg location.
Sentara preferences
- The vibe is generally lower key with much less activity and personnel in the halls
- Everyone – without exception – asks “Is there anything that you need?” before exiting the room
- The facility (opened in 2006) “feels like new” throughout with simulated wood floors giving a nice homey touch to the room
- Better parking (just find a spot on the blacktop and walk right in; no waits at the garage)
- Better location (1 stop up the interstate)
- Better patient entrees (patient has control of timing as well)
- Huge windows in every room (but points off for bulky, obscuring curtains rather than completely retractable Roman blinds)
- Evening blood draws are at 6 a.m. rather than 2 a.m.
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| My nifty Sentara standing desk! |
VCU preferences
- The vibe is generally more energetic with more life, activity, and personnel in the halls
- Everyone – without exception – knocks on the room door and then waits for acknowledgement before entering
- The RN shift change includes a patient introduction and bedside report with request for patient input
- The bed is firmly under control of the occupant who knows how she likes to sleep, thank you very much! I have had to unplug the Sentara bed in order to disable the anti-bedsore, “it thinks it knows what I want / need” autopilot position adjustments multiple times an hour. No WAY! Where's that damn plug?
- VCU's teaching hospital status means that many physicians are present / dropping in to touch base about care and treatment status (as a fundamentally social animal who is still in good enough health to welcome visitors, I embrace the energy, company, and information)
- Better in-hospital food options for guests / visitors
- Both hounds are welcome to visit at the same time IF I am not neutropenic
- Free WiFi that blocks fewer sites than Sentara’s free service
Pick 'em
- Room size and amenities (IF comparing against VCU’s Adult Oncology floor)
- Standing desks available at both hospitals (that’s for Megan’s FYI)
- No HDTV. Yes, at this juncture, I am spoiled - particularly when watching Wimbledon
It’s good to have options, yes? Chemo? Get me back to Floor 2 of VCU's Critical Care Hospital. But for this E. coli surprise, I am happy to have Joe, Carolyn, and the thundering herd just down the road. It's been lovely to be more relaxed close to home and under such fine care (and the frozen yogurt has been great since we know all the local haunts!).
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