Pat_Elliott
<font color=blue>Kimberly's proud papa!</font><br>
- Joined
- Oct 2, 2001
- Messages
- 1,213
Hi!
I've been such a depressing old sot lately, but I'm a happy camper tonight. First and foremost, Amy passed the one-week mark with no bleeding. Those not following our soap opera might say "whaddaheckhetalkinbout?" Those that have been, especially those sharing similar stories with me, will understand the sigh of relief that came at 4 PM today.
So we get back from the OB and I have an urgent message to call my "High Risk OB Case Manager." This morning, fueled by lack of sleep, impatience with the lack of hotel rooms in Danville next week, anger at the increasing pressure by Health America to take up residence at the Taj Mahal without any assistance, and somewhat emboldened by the encouragement of my fellow Dis'ers, I called up the insurance company, told them I was taking my wife to Danville a week late and considered it partially on their heads, certainly their own financial mistake, if she wound up in a $600 per day hospital bed in August instead of a relatively low-cost motel. Amy's OB spoke with the insurance company and assured them she would order just that if Amy's stress level went any higher.
Well, lookie here.....
As of 12 noon Monday, Amy's got a private room and bath in an assisted living facility two miles from the Danville facility, a place that's been described to me by a Danville contact as "more like a resort than a home'." She'll be provided three meals a day plus snacks, meaning she won't have to cook for herself, nor wait for me to bring something fresh each Friday night. Being a senior center, they have nurses on board 24/7, and a direct line to the Geisinger emergency room. Knowing that Amy will never be alone will let me sleep at night. And against facility policy, they've given me a waiver allowing me to spend the night when I come up.
And since Amy's going to spend her birthday there (the admittance nurse put it together when she filled out the paperwork), they're already planning a Birthday party for her, and I'm taking the day off and surprising her in mid-week. Ok, so it's not birthday dinner at the Outback. But it's a lot better than small room in a remote hotel. And, they're already modifying the room so I can set her up a computer workstation and she can continue (within doctor's restrictions) to tele-commute until about mid-August, which has been approved by her employer, Uncle Sam. And hey Rajah: They have a twenty gallon fish tank, and they serve haddock on Fridays! You and I could both be happy there.
The best part: full ride. We'll pay no out-of-pocket expenses. The savings on the room, the groceries, the now-unnecessary daily visits by an outpatient nurse (never mind the priceless value of my piece of mind) is several thousand dollars.
And what do you think was the first thing Amy said to me when I got off the phone and told her? With a big smile, she said "Does this mean we can still afford to take Kimberly to Disney next May?" Is that my girl, or what?
Ok, so the problems still exist and we're going to be separated. But father time keeps ticking along, all the bumps in the road are smoothing out, and it doesn't take much vision to see the end of the tunnel.
Phew, I hope I get to write a letter like that every week...
All my happy best,
Pat
I've been such a depressing old sot lately, but I'm a happy camper tonight. First and foremost, Amy passed the one-week mark with no bleeding. Those not following our soap opera might say "whaddaheckhetalkinbout?" Those that have been, especially those sharing similar stories with me, will understand the sigh of relief that came at 4 PM today.
So we get back from the OB and I have an urgent message to call my "High Risk OB Case Manager." This morning, fueled by lack of sleep, impatience with the lack of hotel rooms in Danville next week, anger at the increasing pressure by Health America to take up residence at the Taj Mahal without any assistance, and somewhat emboldened by the encouragement of my fellow Dis'ers, I called up the insurance company, told them I was taking my wife to Danville a week late and considered it partially on their heads, certainly their own financial mistake, if she wound up in a $600 per day hospital bed in August instead of a relatively low-cost motel. Amy's OB spoke with the insurance company and assured them she would order just that if Amy's stress level went any higher.
Well, lookie here.....
As of 12 noon Monday, Amy's got a private room and bath in an assisted living facility two miles from the Danville facility, a place that's been described to me by a Danville contact as "more like a resort than a home'." She'll be provided three meals a day plus snacks, meaning she won't have to cook for herself, nor wait for me to bring something fresh each Friday night. Being a senior center, they have nurses on board 24/7, and a direct line to the Geisinger emergency room. Knowing that Amy will never be alone will let me sleep at night. And against facility policy, they've given me a waiver allowing me to spend the night when I come up.
And since Amy's going to spend her birthday there (the admittance nurse put it together when she filled out the paperwork), they're already planning a Birthday party for her, and I'm taking the day off and surprising her in mid-week. Ok, so it's not birthday dinner at the Outback. But it's a lot better than small room in a remote hotel. And, they're already modifying the room so I can set her up a computer workstation and she can continue (within doctor's restrictions) to tele-commute until about mid-August, which has been approved by her employer, Uncle Sam. And hey Rajah: They have a twenty gallon fish tank, and they serve haddock on Fridays! You and I could both be happy there.
The best part: full ride. We'll pay no out-of-pocket expenses. The savings on the room, the groceries, the now-unnecessary daily visits by an outpatient nurse (never mind the priceless value of my piece of mind) is several thousand dollars.
And what do you think was the first thing Amy said to me when I got off the phone and told her? With a big smile, she said "Does this mean we can still afford to take Kimberly to Disney next May?" Is that my girl, or what?
Ok, so the problems still exist and we're going to be separated. But father time keeps ticking along, all the bumps in the road are smoothing out, and it doesn't take much vision to see the end of the tunnel.
Phew, I hope I get to write a letter like that every week...
All my happy best,
Pat
I have been following your soap opera and have been praying for you all. God bless you both and Kimberly!
