하늘의 별 따기

Sorry for the writing style on this one. I'm just aiming to spit the information out any way that I can.

This week has been crazy. My grandmother is in the hospital, has been since Monday. See, her cancer's been out of remission and she's been doing chemo three days a month for the past few months. Something happened last weekend while she was at home, though, and she started feeling dizzy and whatnot. Mommy told her to call or doctor or go to the hospital on Sunday, but Grandma was afraid of getting a transfusion.

So, Monday morning rolls around and the shit has hit the fan. My uncle called my brother trying to reach my mother, because he had talked to my grandmother over the phone and she sounded confused and disoriented. So. My mother called my grandmother, who it turns out had called her doctor's office and has been waiting for them to return her call for the past hour.

Mommy, very alarmed now, calls aback my uncle and tells him that she'll call Grandma's doctor's office and get a response. She does. She informs the, that my grandmother is likely downplaying her symptoms and needs to be spoken to immediately, as the last time she did this (5 years ago?) she almost died.

Grandma's doctor calls her immediately and agrees that something is up. Instructs her to go to the emergency room. (Turns out her insurance no longer covers the hospital that she usually goes to, which is a few minutes from her house, and she must drive to the Pits of Los Angeles to get to this newly cover E.R.) He'll meet her there.

My uncle arrives at my grandmother's house and (after a lot of confusion) gets her and my grandfather into his car.

They wait in the crowded emergency room for over an hour, before my grandfather wanders off trying to find someone to help.

My uncle calls my mother wondering where the effing doctor is and if there is another hospital that they can go to.

My grandfather is escorted back to the waiting room by hospital security. (>_<)

My mother calls my grandmother's doctor, complains that the woman with Leukemia is sitting in a crowded waiting room, and discovers that there is no other hospital covered by her insurance that takes oncology patients and that this hospital does not do direct admits. Doctor admits that he does not have as much "...pull" at this hospital as he has at others and they suck with admitting times.

My grandfather wanders off again, this time finds a doctor who'll listen to his and explains that my uncle is an attorney (he's even dressed in his suit, since he came from work), who had tried successful malpractice suits and is scared for his mother and angry at the wait. Hospital magically finds a bed in the e.r. for Grandma.

Grandma's doctor finally shows up at hospital.

[It is revealed in interview that Grandma actually passed out when she went to the bathroom this morning and fell down and that she had difficulty using her legs to get back to the bed. My aunt (who is living with my grandparents) was called up at this time to help my grandfather get my grandmother up. Neither of the old people wanted my aunt to call for an ambulance. My aunt had been about to go over their heads when my uncle showed up.]

Because it was revealed that she lost consciousness (My grandfather wouldn't actually admit this; he would only say that she was "unresponsive for as long as 30 seconds." Weirdo.) a CAT Scan was ordered to determine if my grandmother had had a stroke. Examination revealed that she had a temp of 103+ and that her blood pressure was dangerously low.

She has an infection, but no one knows the source. They've run her on antibiotics, but nothing's working. She still has a fever and her RBCs are low. Her white count has finally started to rise.

My aunt ducked off the radar, and wouldn't take calls or call my Grandmother all week.

Meanwhile, all week long, Mommy's been dealing with calls to and from Grandma's doctors and their offices, as well as my uncle and dealing with the scheduling and logistics of getting my grandfather around. She's also had to make a great deal of medical calls on my grandfather's behalf to schedule testing for his anticoagulant therapy and testing and other stuff, and Uncover and instruct my aunt on the maintaining (and reminders for) his medication dosages and schedule.

All from aaaaaall the way across the country.

Meanwhile, Grandma's still in the hospital and not getting better. I spoke to her briefly yesterday. She sound as bad as she did the last time this happened. I hope they figure out the source of infection and fight it off. She can't die, she just can't.