OT- DH's surgery cancelled!

[momof5boys]

Oh I just have to vent. My DH was scheduled to have his 3rd back surgery this am(disc replacement) We spent 2 1/2hrs at the hospital only to have his surgery cancelled because he had drainage from his ingrown toenails!(sorry if I grossed anyone out) I feel horrible cuz I'm a nurse(ER so people go to surgery from us regardless of other issues) I have been letting him handle his medical care as this is a chronic problem so I don't go to all of his appts. I knew he had ingrown toenails and was going to schedule him to have them taken care of while he was out on disability from his back surgery. Apparently the PA at his orthos office never looked at his feet during his preop appt. one month ago. I went with him to the general surgeons appt and he looked at his feet but didn't say anything(and this was Thurs.!) So today the preop nurse told the ortho, he looked at my DH's feet and said no the the surgery, said he would do it as soon as they healed(probably 2 weeks!) He goes to the podiatrist tomorrow morning so we'll see what she says. Anyway he now has to change the dates for his disability, and I changed my work schedule around for when I figured he would be recovered enough to be home without me(and I can't fix that now!) It looks like he will probably be having surgery right when the kids go back to school and I can't be 2 places at once! Sorry this is so long and I know nothing can be done now, I guess I'm just mad at myself, I should have checked them myself and not taken his word for what they looked like(the one was really bad and I had no idea) My DH is upset with himself but he has no medical background so why would he worry about it? I just hope he heals fast so we can get this surgery done(he was so anxious about it and now he has to wait longer, so more anxiety!) Thanks for letting me vent!

 

[RMulieri]

I know you are frustrated...but as an RN you know that pts aren't always reliable and like to downplay things that they shouldn't (including and especially the ones you are related to) As an RN also, I always double check things my husband says is fine or feeling better, especially since he once had an ingown toenail as well that was ignored and became a raging infection.I can't say I am surprised that the Drs office missed it.They run so far behind half the time you are lucky if they get your name right and look at you at all before speeding on to the next pt(gotta love ppo's and managed healthcare)..not always their fault and I am not bashing or condoning them missing things like this.At this point postponing his surgery is probably for the best, no sense going into a surgery with an active infection going on.Wishing you guys a speedy recovery.

 

[*KeepMovingForward*]

I understand your frustration-vent away! DH had 3 attempts at hernia surgery before he finally was able to have it done. He has diabetes and I always trust him to monitor and medicate on his own. Twice surgery was cancelled because he was not taking care of business when it came to his sugar. Very frustrating, but in the end it was for his own health. Hope your DH gets his podiatry issues taken care of. I work part time for a podiatrist and while it seems like such a small thing to most folks, those ingrown toenails and the resulting infection can be a real problem.

 

[thegrimdwarf]

Well that stinks! I'm sorry you'll have to continue on with the worry and stress and everything that comes along with impending surgery. I hope the toe clears up and the next time goes off without a hitch!

 

[minkydog]

Awww, hun don't beat yourself up. He's a big boy. So's his doctor. *They* should have noted this before today, not you. I understand, you're a nurse and you should know these things, blah blah blah. You're also his wife and when it comes to your hubby, you're a wife first and nursing largely goes out the window (I've been a nurse for 31yrs. I still ask questions that I know I should know and I can't for the life of me seem to remember my stuff when DH has a crisis.)

Ack! I hate when you get everything all arranged and then it gets all messed up like this. Sorry. Hope the feets get healed quickly (you know you don't want that creeping crud in his new disc!)