Lolo and Lehua got Peggy to Dr. Peroff today (the ear/nose/throat specialist). Dr. Peroff took a look at Peggy's ears and found that the stints were still intact. However, on the left side - the side that Peggy's been having trouble with her hearing - he pulled out a huge chunk of ear wax that Lolo said looked like "chewing tobacco". Yikes. That seems to be what was interfering with her hearing, so now she can hear much better on that left side (so no more talking stink by da medicine room).
Peggy was having major gurgling issues all the way from the house to the doctor's office and her VTE was down in the 300s and 400s. It seemed positional. Dr. Peroff put a camera scope through Peggy's nose to look down her throat. He said that he could see "bubbling" and his assessment was that she needs a new trach. We will discuss this with Dr. Davis by Tuesday's visit.
Once they got home and got Peggy out of the neck brace and back in bed, the gurgling stopped. So Lolo thinks it may have been the neck brace causing a weird positional issue.
One more note - Peggy said that she is feeling a lot of reflux all the time. She has requested that anytime fluids are given, they are given slooooooowly.
Hope to see you all on Sunday at 4pm for Sonia's party!!!
Friday, April 27, 2007
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Doc Visit Report
Here's the report from the doctor visit:
1 - Oxidose: Dr. Davis is rewriting the order so that Peggy can get more at a time so that hopefully we won't run into this problem again. Catherine is picking up the Oxidose right now and bringing it back to the house today.
2 - Bedsore: The skin breakdown on Peggy's bottom is much better. The duoderm has been doing the trick and it is almost healed! Yay! Dr. Davis suggested that Peggy try to reposition herself at a bit of an angle to help avoid this type of breakdown in the future and to help further the healing of this one.
3 - Trach/Cuff: Dr. Davis really wants to avoid having Peggy get a bronchialscope. Not only does he think that it would be invasive, he also feels that it wouldn't really tell us much. Instead, he suggested that we have Peggy's ear doc, Dr. Peroff, do a preliminary scope with his equipment since that would be much less invasive and wouldn't require sedation. Which leads to the next item on the update list...
4 - Peggy has an appointment with Dr. Peroff this Friday at 4pm. Cab is coming at 3pm to pick her up. He will check her ears and hopefully her throat.
A few other things:
5 - The Baza cream has been delivered!
6 - The order for the hand braces that Peggy requested has gone through. The order is in and HMSA will cover it. Peggy should have her braces within 2-3 weeks.
7 - Last but not least - our fabulous Suzanne Maria Rose Ching has cleaned out the infamous shower of terror!!! She has left a charming notice to remind us that nothing should be kept in the shower except for the emergency oxygen backup. We need the oxygen to be accessible in case of power outage. Peggy has been on oxygen more often recently, so it is even more important. Thanks Suzanne - we love you!
1 - Oxidose: Dr. Davis is rewriting the order so that Peggy can get more at a time so that hopefully we won't run into this problem again. Catherine is picking up the Oxidose right now and bringing it back to the house today.
2 - Bedsore: The skin breakdown on Peggy's bottom is much better. The duoderm has been doing the trick and it is almost healed! Yay! Dr. Davis suggested that Peggy try to reposition herself at a bit of an angle to help avoid this type of breakdown in the future and to help further the healing of this one.
3 - Trach/Cuff: Dr. Davis really wants to avoid having Peggy get a bronchialscope. Not only does he think that it would be invasive, he also feels that it wouldn't really tell us much. Instead, he suggested that we have Peggy's ear doc, Dr. Peroff, do a preliminary scope with his equipment since that would be much less invasive and wouldn't require sedation. Which leads to the next item on the update list...
4 - Peggy has an appointment with Dr. Peroff this Friday at 4pm. Cab is coming at 3pm to pick her up. He will check her ears and hopefully her throat.
A few other things:
5 - The Baza cream has been delivered!
6 - The order for the hand braces that Peggy requested has gone through. The order is in and HMSA will cover it. Peggy should have her braces within 2-3 weeks.
7 - Last but not least - our fabulous Suzanne Maria Rose Ching has cleaned out the infamous shower of terror!!! She has left a charming notice to remind us that nothing should be kept in the shower except for the emergency oxygen backup. We need the oxygen to be accessible in case of power outage. Peggy has been on oxygen more often recently, so it is even more important. Thanks Suzanne - we love you!
Party for Sonia
Our amazing private hire caregiver Sonia Soles has received an internship at Queen's. We are so excited for her! Unfortunately for us, it is a full time commitment, so she will no longer be a regular on our Peg's Legs schedule. This Friday is her last day on the schedule. Boo hoo!
We're having a party this coming Sunday to show Sonia our appreciation for all she's done for us over the past year and a half and to wish her good luck with her new endeavor. We hope you can all join us! Here's the details:
Party for Sonia
Sunday, April 29th at 4pm at Peggy's house
Potluck and BYOB - we'll be providing a big cake, papergoods/utensils, etc.
See you Sunday!
We're having a party this coming Sunday to show Sonia our appreciation for all she's done for us over the past year and a half and to wish her good luck with her new endeavor. We hope you can all join us! Here's the details:
Party for Sonia
Sunday, April 29th at 4pm at Peggy's house
Potluck and BYOB - we'll be providing a big cake, papergoods/utensils, etc.
See you Sunday!
Monday, April 23, 2007
Report from Respiratory Home Care
Ed from Respiratory came by for about an hour to check out Peggy's cuff issues. Here is what he said:
Peggy is at 15cc which he says is the absolute limit. He says that messing with the cuff/pillow more than once a day is a bad idea. He says that we need to montior the VTE, especially when Peggy is complaining of cuff problems or "gurgling". When she gurgles - look at the VTE on the vent. It is currently set at 650. It should not go 100 above or below 650. We checked the records and it seems like Peggy is pretty consistently at somewhere around 570. Also see if there is a correlation between her request for oxygen/SATs going down and the cuff complaints.
He told us that technically this is not a medically critical issue since her SATs are good and the vent readings are good. However, Peggy says that this issue is interfering with her sleep which is problem. And if she keeps having people manipulate the cuff, the problem will continue to worsen and potentially become a medically critical issue.
All of this stuff basically is due to the fact that Peggy has "tracheal malasia" which means that the tissue surrounding the trach balloon in her throat is stretched out causing air to leak around it. This is what happens to people who are on ventilators for long periods of time.
As Ed sees it, we have 3 options. The first is to move to a larger trach size. This is a bandaid fix for the problem, since eventually she will develop more tracheal malasia. Our second option is to switch to a different type of trach. There is one called the "Bivona" which has foam around it so it moves more with the patient. The third option is to switch to a longer trach tube so that the balloon inside is further down past the place where the tracheal malasia has developed.
I spoke with Cory today and shared all of this information with her. Her opinion is that the longer trach tube is the best option since she has heard that most adults find the Bivona uncomfortable. She will be calling Dr. Davis to discuss this along with Dr. Druger. From there, we will have to set up the procedure which would be done at Queen's.
FYI - Cory also told me that the Baza cream will be delivered today or tonight. She also told me that we're still waiting to hear about when we can get more Oxidose. In the meantime, Peggy should continue to take the Tylox.
Peggy is at 15cc which he says is the absolute limit. He says that messing with the cuff/pillow more than once a day is a bad idea. He says that we need to montior the VTE, especially when Peggy is complaining of cuff problems or "gurgling". When she gurgles - look at the VTE on the vent. It is currently set at 650. It should not go 100 above or below 650. We checked the records and it seems like Peggy is pretty consistently at somewhere around 570. Also see if there is a correlation between her request for oxygen/SATs going down and the cuff complaints.
He told us that technically this is not a medically critical issue since her SATs are good and the vent readings are good. However, Peggy says that this issue is interfering with her sleep which is problem. And if she keeps having people manipulate the cuff, the problem will continue to worsen and potentially become a medically critical issue.
All of this stuff basically is due to the fact that Peggy has "tracheal malasia" which means that the tissue surrounding the trach balloon in her throat is stretched out causing air to leak around it. This is what happens to people who are on ventilators for long periods of time.
As Ed sees it, we have 3 options. The first is to move to a larger trach size. This is a bandaid fix for the problem, since eventually she will develop more tracheal malasia. Our second option is to switch to a different type of trach. There is one called the "Bivona" which has foam around it so it moves more with the patient. The third option is to switch to a longer trach tube so that the balloon inside is further down past the place where the tracheal malasia has developed.
I spoke with Cory today and shared all of this information with her. Her opinion is that the longer trach tube is the best option since she has heard that most adults find the Bivona uncomfortable. She will be calling Dr. Davis to discuss this along with Dr. Druger. From there, we will have to set up the procedure which would be done at Queen's.
FYI - Cory also told me that the Baza cream will be delivered today or tonight. She also told me that we're still waiting to hear about when we can get more Oxidose. In the meantime, Peggy should continue to take the Tylox.
Cuff issues
Worked this morning at Peg's for a while "sans keiki". Eric had Sawyer at home so that I could get a few things done at the house without him. Nice to be able to turn my "mommy brain" off for a few hours. Kelly was on shift training Lehua. Seems like they spent the whole shift trying to get Peggy comfortable. Peggy was having major "cuff" issues. Kelly called Respiratory and as I was leaving Ed called and said that he would be on his way. He is probably there now, so I'll get an update later and report what he says.
We will discuss this cuff issue with Dr. Davis tomorrow during the doctor visit. Peggy told us today she would like to schedule a visit to the hospital on Friday to get the bronchialscope. I told her we could talk about this and plan it with Dr. Davis and Katherine tomorrow.
I also called Healthcare because Peggy has not yet received the Baza cream. I am thinking that they delivered the "TopiCare" barrier cream instead of the Baza last month, but am not sure on that yet. Regardless, we have the order in for more Baza.
Hope you all had a great Earth Day yesterday. In the morning I watched Oprah's "Go Green" show that aired last Friday. It was very inspiring and motivating! As Oprah and her guests said, if everyone did just one or two things for the planet, together we can make a big difference. For some easy action steps and ideas, check out this link http://www2.oprah.com/tows/pastshows/200704/tows_past_20070420.jhtml
Then Eric, Indy, Sawyer, Maka, and I planted strawberries in our little garden and then spent the day at our friend's kalo farm. See photos attached.
Saturday, April 21, 2007
Marvel
Just spoke with Marvel and she's doing much better. She will be back on shift tomorrow (Sunday) from 10 to 6. Yay!
Happy Earth Day!
In honor of Earth Day tomorrow, I thought I'd share a few great links
Download Martha Stewart's Going Green Checklist to post in your kitchen, office, or anywhere http://images.marthastewart.com/images/content/web/pdfs/2007Q2/bas_0507_going_green.pdf
More about Earth Day http://earthday.gov/
Ideal Bite offers bite-sized ideas for light green living http://www.idealbite.com/
National Geographic's Green Guide is a great online resource for green living http://thegreenguide.com/
Have a great day everyone! Go plant something and have a glass of organic wine! Cheers!
Download Martha Stewart's Going Green Checklist to post in your kitchen, office, or anywhere http://images.marthastewart.com/images/content/web/pdfs/2007Q2/bas_0507_going_green.pdf
More about Earth Day http://earthday.gov/
Ideal Bite offers bite-sized ideas for light green living http://www.idealbite.com/
National Geographic's Green Guide is a great online resource for green living http://thegreenguide.com/
Have a great day everyone! Go plant something and have a glass of organic wine! Cheers!
Botox!
Dr. Kimata came by the house today and injected Peggy with Botox to help reduce her saliva output. He said he used 150cc this time as opposed to the 120cc last time and that it should start working in about 3-4 weeks. If it doesn't then we should let him know. As I recall, last time Peggy saw results within a couple weeks.
A few important updates
Spoke to Cory last night - just wanted to clarify a couple things:
1 - Peggy has been saying that she is out of Baza cream and that HCA hasn't responded to her requests for it. To clarify - Cory says that the office did not get any requests and that there were 4 tubes of Baza cream sent at the end of March. This means, that either Peggy is going through more than a tube a week of Baza OR that there are 4 tubes somewhere at the house that have not been found. Not sure, but Cory is aware of the situation and will be working on getting the Baza cream delivered. In the meantime, Peggy can use the TopiCare cream which is like Baza cream, but not as thick. Peggy prefers the thicker Baza cream.
2 - Peggy is out of Oxidose. The problem is that the pharmacy says that she is using more than the prescription allows for and that they cannot refill so soon. We are working with Dr. Davis on changing the prescription so that we don't run into this problem again. In the meantime, Peggy can use Tylox (Tylenol with Codeine) which is what she used prior to the Oxidose. We have an ample supply at the house.
3 - Peggy's toe is still infected. We are monitoring it, but are working on trying to get a podiatrist to the house. If anyone knows a podiatrist that takes HMSA that would make a housecall - let us know!
4 - Sonia noticed a little resistance while suctioning Peggy yesterday. She noticed the resistance between the 17 and 18 mark on the suction catheter. This is just something that we need to monitor. Please report any instances of resistance. Keep in mind, if we have continuous reports of resistance and Peggy continues to complain of feeling something in her throat, there is nothing we can do except schedule for her to go in for a bronchialscope which means a hospital visit and sedation. Obviously, we want to avoid this if we can, but will do it if we have to. FYI - we went through this a year ago and Peggy's brochial scope was perfect - no scar tissue in sight. Let's hope it is still looking pretty down there!
1 - Peggy has been saying that she is out of Baza cream and that HCA hasn't responded to her requests for it. To clarify - Cory says that the office did not get any requests and that there were 4 tubes of Baza cream sent at the end of March. This means, that either Peggy is going through more than a tube a week of Baza OR that there are 4 tubes somewhere at the house that have not been found. Not sure, but Cory is aware of the situation and will be working on getting the Baza cream delivered. In the meantime, Peggy can use the TopiCare cream which is like Baza cream, but not as thick. Peggy prefers the thicker Baza cream.
2 - Peggy is out of Oxidose. The problem is that the pharmacy says that she is using more than the prescription allows for and that they cannot refill so soon. We are working with Dr. Davis on changing the prescription so that we don't run into this problem again. In the meantime, Peggy can use Tylox (Tylenol with Codeine) which is what she used prior to the Oxidose. We have an ample supply at the house.
3 - Peggy's toe is still infected. We are monitoring it, but are working on trying to get a podiatrist to the house. If anyone knows a podiatrist that takes HMSA that would make a housecall - let us know!
4 - Sonia noticed a little resistance while suctioning Peggy yesterday. She noticed the resistance between the 17 and 18 mark on the suction catheter. This is just something that we need to monitor. Please report any instances of resistance. Keep in mind, if we have continuous reports of resistance and Peggy continues to complain of feeling something in her throat, there is nothing we can do except schedule for her to go in for a bronchialscope which means a hospital visit and sedation. Obviously, we want to avoid this if we can, but will do it if we have to. FYI - we went through this a year ago and Peggy's brochial scope was perfect - no scar tissue in sight. Let's hope it is still looking pretty down there!
Friday, April 20, 2007
The Krystal Kaper...Part 2
As we mentioned, Peggy arrived to the Arts at Mark's just in time. We got her settled in a spot near the stage and the program started. She was one of a few winners, but it was so neat to hear them call her name for the "Pegge Hopper Award". Everyone was so impressed that she came. You could hear a lot of "ooh, Peggy Chun's here" whispering in the audience. Suzanne Ching and Andy Yim showed and then Hanna and her mama.
After the program, Peggy was of course MOBBED. She always is when we go out! People just love her and everyone wants a chance to say hi. They all wait around her patiently for her turn. Marc Turner came by from next door to visit. It was so great to see him. He had to wait in line to see Peggy! At one point Valerie was concerned because she thought that the oxygen tank was empty. Suzanne went to help her out and they figured out the problem - it wasn't on! Just shows that Peggy doesn't actually need it which is great.
Peggy spent a lot of time meeting and talking with various fans and fellow artists. Then, as things were winding down and Peggy had moved over by the door, I looked over and realized that Kay was ambu-ing Peggy! I ran over to see what was going on. Kay was dutifully ambuing and Val was checking the vent. Peggy didn't look distressed, so I picked up the spellboard and Peggy spelled out "I was spelling BLINK". I said, "Guys, Peggy says she was spelling 'blink'". Kay says, "She spelled 'I can't B...' - were you spelling 'I can't blink'? That's not news! We all know you can't blink! Why would you spell that?!"
So it turns out that Peggy was spelling "I can't see...blink" but it was misinterpreted as "I can't breathe". To top it off, because of the way the ambu bag was set up, it would only connect to the side of the trach opposite the tubes, so they were ambuing her with the vent still connected which was why the vent wasn't alarming and they couldn't find anything wrong! FYI - to make the ambu bag connect when it is set up like that, you would have to undo the velcro straps and connect to the middle. Practice it next time you're with Peggy.
This all doesn't sound particularly hilarious as I write it, but it sure was funny last night! We were laughing so hard. Then Peggy started spelling about how funny the incident was and how we need to put it on the blog. She kept spelling "KRYS" or something and Kay and I were having the hardest time figuring out what the heck she was saying. We must have spelled out "KRYST" about 10 times. Finally we get it that Peggy has spelled out over and over that we should call this the "Krystal Kaper". Kay and I are like, "what the heck are we talking about? Who is Krystal???"
I talked to Peggy about it today and it was all just a silly joke Peggy was trying to tell to make light of the situation - she was trying to tell us that we should name the whole thing after someone fake so that no one would have to take the blame for the little miscommunication goof-up. It was just a silly joke but we kept making her spell it out and turned it into this huge thing - Valerie had "Krystal" spelled out like 5 times on a piece of paper! How would you like it if you were telling a silly little joke and the audience just wasn't getting it, so they made you spell it out over and over and over and they still couldn't get it - ugh. Sorry, Peg!
I'm proud to report that we got Peggy home safe and sound. Hanna met the gang at the house and everyone got her in bed and tucked in for the night. I just find it so amazing how it all comes together. I love to witness the daily miracles that we are blessed with - getting Marvel's shifts covered, getting Peggy in the chair perfectly, getting Peggy to the event just in time, the list goes on and on. Can you believe that Peggy's eyes were perfect all day so she could spell and guide us through the whole experience yesterday? Miracle!
And who are the miracle workers? Peg's Legs!!! We are all so grateful for each and every one of you. Our group is such an inpsiration and last night is perfect example as to why. You see with Peg's Legs...ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE! You guys ROCK!
The Krystal Kaper...Part 1
As many of you know, Marvel has not been well this week. She was scheduled for 5 doubles this week, much of which was covering Lolo who is unavailable this week. Kelly helped us earlier this week cover some shifts, but left for Disneyland on Wednesday, so we're quite short handed which has had me and Suzanne scrambling. But we've made it thanks to all of you who have jumped in to help - you are all ANGELS! I did hear from Marvel again last night and it looks like she is going to be out for at least the rest of the weekend. This means that we still don't have anyone for TODAY (FRIDAY) from 3:30 to 10pm or on SUNDAY from 10am to 6pm. If you are available at all during these times, please call me!!!
So, without Marvel, the big question was HOW ARE WE GOING TO GET PEGGY TO THE ART SHOW TO GET HER AWARD?!!!! Marvel and Lolo are always the leads on our outings, so we had no idea how we were going to pull off getting Peggy to the show last night. The Hawaii Watercolor Society was so excited for her to come and Peggy was too. And guess what - WE DID IT! I just have to share the miraculous and hilarious story of how we did it...
The day started with the infamous Thursday morning duo Andy Yim and Suzanne "Maria Rose" Ching. Together, we made sure all of Peggy's equipment was charged and ready to go. We packed her bags, picked out her outfit, and had Peggy give us a list of what not to forget. Cathy the nurse called and said that she strongly recommended that we have Peggy go on oxygen since she's been a little congested. So Suzanne and I had to dig the oxygen tank out of the shower and make sure it was ready to go since Peggy never uses it on outings.
Suzanne had to go and babysit her grandson, which was OK because Shelly Mecum came at 2pm to help us with the next phase. We knew that Andy had an appointment to get to so she had to leave by 3:30, so we got started getting her ready to get into the chair. Peggy had to potty first, so Shelly and Andy got her up. Now, keep in mind that I have Sawyer with me and he's going through some intense separation anxiety and "clingy-ness" ever since he was sick. He doesn't want to be put down or held by anyone else for more than 2 minutes. Also keep in mind that the cab is scheduled to pick Peggy up at 4pm and the reception is at 5pm.
So, we get Peggy up to potty and I notice that her skin breakdown is red and exposed. The Duoderm patch is totally gone, so I look around and can't find any more Duoderm. I call Cathy the nurse and she says that Peggy really should cover it with Duoderm to protect it since it is an open would and we don't want it to worsen or get infected. She tells me that she has some Duoderm in the trunk of the car and she will bring it over and help us put it on. She's on Kalihi Street. So with Peggy hanging in the hoyer, we wait for Cathy.
By this time it is almost 3:15. Cathy shows up very fast and puts the Duoderm on and we're ready to go. We lower Peggy down, but it is 3:30 and Andy has to go. So Shelly and I are on our own. I've got Sawyer on my back in the backpack carrier and we're just about to attempt to roll Peggy to get the cloth chux in between the hoyer and her bottom. The clock is ticking and Shelly and I are feeling a bit in over our heads. But, what Shelly and I lack in skill, we make up for in Faith and Determination! So, we position Peggy to roll her and --- hooray!!!! --- in breezes our saviour of the day - old friend and registered RN Valerie Santiago! I think the whole neighborhood heard our cries of joy and relief to see her smiling face!
Needless to say, Valerie, who is the definition of "grace under pressure", slipped right in and took the lead getting Peggy in the chair. Soon after, the fabulous Kay Hoffman comes to our aid as well. We get Peggy ready to drop into the chair. Shelly gets behind her, pulls her up and we drop her in. And this, my friends, is a true miracle - we get her in the chair perfectly on the first try!
I had called the cab guys to see if we could push the cab back to 4:30, but they said that the driver had to be in Waimanalo by 5:30. It is 4:15 by the time we get her in the chair. The cab is waiting, but I can see that we are actually going to pull it off! Since I know that Peggy is in great hands and on her way, I go get ready (a big thank you by the way to Betsy for bringing over bobbie pins for my fashion emergency earlier in the day!). Then, Elroy, Sawyer, and I leave to go pick up Indy from school and go head down to the show.
We get there at just about 5:30 and just minutes later, Peggy, Kay, Shelly, and Valerie come rolling down Pauahi Street like a little parade! Just in time too, because they are just about to start the awards ceremony. They open the doors of the Arts at Mark's Garage for Queen Peggy and we all breath a huge sigh of relief - we did it!
Wanna know how the show was and what kind of excitement happened there? Stay tuned for Part 2 of The Krystal Kaper (and find out why we're calling it that too)...
So, without Marvel, the big question was HOW ARE WE GOING TO GET PEGGY TO THE ART SHOW TO GET HER AWARD?!!!! Marvel and Lolo are always the leads on our outings, so we had no idea how we were going to pull off getting Peggy to the show last night. The Hawaii Watercolor Society was so excited for her to come and Peggy was too. And guess what - WE DID IT! I just have to share the miraculous and hilarious story of how we did it...
The day started with the infamous Thursday morning duo Andy Yim and Suzanne "Maria Rose" Ching. Together, we made sure all of Peggy's equipment was charged and ready to go. We packed her bags, picked out her outfit, and had Peggy give us a list of what not to forget. Cathy the nurse called and said that she strongly recommended that we have Peggy go on oxygen since she's been a little congested. So Suzanne and I had to dig the oxygen tank out of the shower and make sure it was ready to go since Peggy never uses it on outings.
Suzanne had to go and babysit her grandson, which was OK because Shelly Mecum came at 2pm to help us with the next phase. We knew that Andy had an appointment to get to so she had to leave by 3:30, so we got started getting her ready to get into the chair. Peggy had to potty first, so Shelly and Andy got her up. Now, keep in mind that I have Sawyer with me and he's going through some intense separation anxiety and "clingy-ness" ever since he was sick. He doesn't want to be put down or held by anyone else for more than 2 minutes. Also keep in mind that the cab is scheduled to pick Peggy up at 4pm and the reception is at 5pm.
So, we get Peggy up to potty and I notice that her skin breakdown is red and exposed. The Duoderm patch is totally gone, so I look around and can't find any more Duoderm. I call Cathy the nurse and she says that Peggy really should cover it with Duoderm to protect it since it is an open would and we don't want it to worsen or get infected. She tells me that she has some Duoderm in the trunk of the car and she will bring it over and help us put it on. She's on Kalihi Street. So with Peggy hanging in the hoyer, we wait for Cathy.
By this time it is almost 3:15. Cathy shows up very fast and puts the Duoderm on and we're ready to go. We lower Peggy down, but it is 3:30 and Andy has to go. So Shelly and I are on our own. I've got Sawyer on my back in the backpack carrier and we're just about to attempt to roll Peggy to get the cloth chux in between the hoyer and her bottom. The clock is ticking and Shelly and I are feeling a bit in over our heads. But, what Shelly and I lack in skill, we make up for in Faith and Determination! So, we position Peggy to roll her and --- hooray!!!! --- in breezes our saviour of the day - old friend and registered RN Valerie Santiago! I think the whole neighborhood heard our cries of joy and relief to see her smiling face!
Needless to say, Valerie, who is the definition of "grace under pressure", slipped right in and took the lead getting Peggy in the chair. Soon after, the fabulous Kay Hoffman comes to our aid as well. We get Peggy ready to drop into the chair. Shelly gets behind her, pulls her up and we drop her in. And this, my friends, is a true miracle - we get her in the chair perfectly on the first try!
I had called the cab guys to see if we could push the cab back to 4:30, but they said that the driver had to be in Waimanalo by 5:30. It is 4:15 by the time we get her in the chair. The cab is waiting, but I can see that we are actually going to pull it off! Since I know that Peggy is in great hands and on her way, I go get ready (a big thank you by the way to Betsy for bringing over bobbie pins for my fashion emergency earlier in the day!). Then, Elroy, Sawyer, and I leave to go pick up Indy from school and go head down to the show.
We get there at just about 5:30 and just minutes later, Peggy, Kay, Shelly, and Valerie come rolling down Pauahi Street like a little parade! Just in time too, because they are just about to start the awards ceremony. They open the doors of the Arts at Mark's Garage for Queen Peggy and we all breath a huge sigh of relief - we did it!
Wanna know how the show was and what kind of excitement happened there? Stay tuned for Part 2 of The Krystal Kaper (and find out why we're calling it that too)...
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Fun Morning
We had a bit of excitement today. The vent was alarming from about 7am this morning on Helena's shift. It was alarming "High Pressure" and "Low Minimum Volume". Helena had to ambu Peggy and called HCA. Cathy the RN came in and they were still ambu-ing and troubleshooting at 10am when I came in. Kelly was on shift, so she and Cathy called Respiratory. They told us to change the circuit, which we did. Then Cathy suctioned a few times and a lot of mucous came out and then she was fine. So we're thinking it was a mucous plug.
However, Peggy has been complaining that it feels like there is something in her trach/throat - as in some kind of blockage. We're not sure what this sensation is - it could be scar tissue, but it is not clear. She is also complaining consistently about the cuff and complaining of "leakage". As we've discussed, however, she is at the MAX as far as air that can be put in, so we just need to monitor all of this. If Peggy continues to consistently compain about the sensation in her throat and/or the cuff, we will need to figure out our next step. Please REPORT any complaints from Peggy surrounding this issue so we can monitor it.
Peggy also has a bit of skin breakdown on her bottom. Cathy put 2 Duoderm patches on them and asked us to just leave the patches alone.
A few more things - I wanted to say a big Thank You to Ann Weers who clips the cats' nails when she comes on Tuesdays. What a great help that is - thank you, Ann!
Also, thank you so much to all of you who have been helping us get shifts covered this week - you guys are so awesome! We so appreciate everyone's understanding and willingness to jump in.
One last note - Eric, Indy, Sawyer, and I are all feeling healthy and great again (see photo above!)
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Back in Peggyville
Back to work today. I'm feeling much much better. Yay! Just working on catching up now. Peggy had her doctor visit today. Hope you like Peggy's "Bee in the Flowers" costume for Dr. Davis. Nice job, Hanna! In fact, Dr. Davis told us today that he's pretty sure he hasn't ever seen a costume twice! Here's the update:
Peggy is going to try adding "Aloe juice" to her regime. Aloe juice is good for acid reflux and constipation so we were thinking that it might help with the reflux response that she's been having to the Citrucel. Dr. Davis wants us to call him when we get the Aloe juice and he'll let us know how to work it into her schedule.
Peggy's toenail problem is back again. We need to go back to the cleaning schedule of equal parts saline and hydrogen peroxide every 4 hours or so. We still haven't gotten her to the podiatrist. Too many parties - you know how it is.
Peggy says that she needs elbow pads because her elbows are hurting. Especially her right elbow. She says there is more information about this issue in the ALS caregiver manual. More on this as we find out more...
It is a rainy day here at Peg's. We just heard a crazy scuffling noise in the attic. Peggy says it is the Big White Cat (a neighborhood stray) chasing rats in the attic. Cola and Jack are snoozing on Peggy right now. Eric from HCA told us that Bug has been coming in to sleep on Peggy's bed at night again. Hooray! When he comes in at night, the other 2 cats sleep on chairs - they know who's Alpha Cat around here.
Monday, April 16, 2007
Happy Monday
Just a quick note - I'm actually blogging from bed right now on my laptop. Long story short - Eric and I both got hit by whatever virus the kids had. Thanks to parental teamwork and help from my wonderful parents, we made it through what has been a VERY LONG WEEK. Eric and Indy are back to their old selves again and Indy finally went back to school today. Sawyer and I are still recovering - we hope to be back on our feet (or hands and knees in Sawyer's case) by tomorrow. This was a nasty nasty bug - I pray you have all escaped it. I'll update everyone on Peggy once I return to work and find out what we've been missing!
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Immaculee on TV and Upcoming HWS Art Show
Hi all...Indy's much better, though a little lethargic. We even popped by Peggy's for a visit today. Sawyer however stayed home with Dad - he's still pretty sick, but at least he keeps taking fluids and isn't throwing up anymore.
Suzanne "Maria Rose" Ching let us know that Immaculee Ilibagiza will be on TV - Olelo OC 16 - the first showing is TONIGHT. It is a broadcast of the talk she gave at St. Ann's Church in February. OC 16 is digital Channel 49. Here's the schedule:
Thursday 4/12 (today) at 9:30pm
Sunday 4/22 at 4pm
Thursday 5/10 at 9:30pm
As we mentioned, Peggy's watercolor mosaic "Beginnings" was accepted into the Hawaii Watercolor Society (HWS) show. The show is at The Arts at Mark's on the corner of Pauahi and Nuuanu from April 3 - April 28. Exhibition hours are from 11-6 Tuesday through Saturday.
Even more exciting - Peggy's mosaic won the "Pegge Hopper Gallery Award". Peggy will be attending the Opening Reception and award ceremony on "Third Thursday" April 19th from 5 to 7pm. As most of you know, we were looking for a "B" to help Marvel get Peggy to the reception, and we found one - Shelly Mecum will be the B for the night. Thank you so much to Kelsey, Pat G, and Kay for also offering their company and assistance! You are all so amazing.
Hope you can all attend next Thursday for the HWS opening reception and see Peggy receive her award - especially all of you who helped Peggy with this mosaic - truly, this is an award for ALL OF YOU. Congratulations!!!
Suzanne "Maria Rose" Ching let us know that Immaculee Ilibagiza will be on TV - Olelo OC 16 - the first showing is TONIGHT. It is a broadcast of the talk she gave at St. Ann's Church in February. OC 16 is digital Channel 49. Here's the schedule:
Thursday 4/12 (today) at 9:30pm
Sunday 4/22 at 4pm
Thursday 5/10 at 9:30pm
As we mentioned, Peggy's watercolor mosaic "Beginnings" was accepted into the Hawaii Watercolor Society (HWS) show. The show is at The Arts at Mark's on the corner of Pauahi and Nuuanu from April 3 - April 28. Exhibition hours are from 11-6 Tuesday through Saturday.
Even more exciting - Peggy's mosaic won the "Pegge Hopper Gallery Award". Peggy will be attending the Opening Reception and award ceremony on "Third Thursday" April 19th from 5 to 7pm. As most of you know, we were looking for a "B" to help Marvel get Peggy to the reception, and we found one - Shelly Mecum will be the B for the night. Thank you so much to Kelsey, Pat G, and Kay for also offering their company and assistance! You are all so amazing.
Hope you can all attend next Thursday for the HWS opening reception and see Peggy receive her award - especially all of you who helped Peggy with this mosaic - truly, this is an award for ALL OF YOU. Congratulations!!!
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Back in Pukeville
Indy was getting better and even got to visit Peggy yesterday. We thought she was on the mend, but just threw up again a few minutes ago. She's perked up quite a bit, but obviously still has some tummy upset. We thought little Sawyer was in the clear too but last night he started throwing up and having diarrhea too. Same thing as Indy - mild fever too. He's doing OK - we're just working hard to keep him hydrated. Needless to say I'm home again with them.
I should probably follow my own advice about not talking about what I don't want more of - but when you're cleaning up puke and diarrhea for 3 days it is hard to focus on much else. But I'm working on it. I'm visualizing healthy kids and happy parents moving on to better (and drier) days.
OK - so back to Peggy - She had her Dr. Davis appointment late in the afternoon yesterday. The most important thing from it was a change in her citrucel dose. The citrucel has been giving her some acid reflux, so they reduced it to 1 tbsp with 240 ml water every 4 hours at 6am, 12pm, 4pm, and 8pm.
Monday, April 9, 2007
Easter Review From Pukeville
Well, just minutes after I posted that last blog, Indiana threw up her whole breakfast. She was still chipper and charming so we hoped that it was just a one time puke and that she might be able to pull herself together for Easter at Peggy's. But by 1pm she had thrown up at least 3 times. She actually asked to stay home which shows you just how junk she was feeling. So we sent Eric off to the house with food and stuff for the party and Indy, Sawyer, and I stayed home.
We heard from Eric and my parents that the party was fun. The best part was hearing about how Eric put on the Easter Bunny costume and it had been totally sprayed with cat pee - yuck! Sounds like the kids, Peggy, and the whole gang had a great time - so sorry we missed it. My Easter consisted of watching "Mary Poppins" and cleaning up throw up (Indy continued to puke on the hour for the rest of the day). I was however very grateful that my mom and dad came by to relieve me for a bit and brought with them some of the yummy food from the party. I got to have some of Fortuna's potatoes which is what I was most disappointed about missing! Oh, and of course I was sad that I didn't get to see all of you...but really, did you taste those potatoes?
Indy is still feeling a little sick today, so I'm home with her today. OK - gotta go take care of da kids.
Sunday, April 8, 2007
Catholic News and Shelly's Bday
Happy Easter to all from the Chun Ohana!
Check out this story about Peggy and the Kids at Holy Trinity (Shelly Mecum's class). This is the lead story on the Catholic News Service. This is the wire that goes to every Catholic News agency in the world -- inlcuding the Vatican! So it's the #1 Catholic Story in the World! A perfect Easter blessing... Enjoy!
http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0701933.htm
Speaking of Shelly - her birthday is this coming Wednesday! Happy Birthday, Shelly!!!
Check out this story about Peggy and the Kids at Holy Trinity (Shelly Mecum's class). This is the lead story on the Catholic News Service. This is the wire that goes to every Catholic News agency in the world -- inlcuding the Vatican! So it's the #1 Catholic Story in the World! A perfect Easter blessing... Enjoy!
http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0701933.htm
Speaking of Shelly - her birthday is this coming Wednesday! Happy Birthday, Shelly!!!
Friday, April 6, 2007
Cleaning, Cuff Stuff, Birthdays, and More Cat Drama
Today was a big cleaning day at Peggy's. Karen, Noni, and Sonia helped me with the kids (Indy was off for Good Friday) while I cleaned and vacuumed up a storm! The house really needed a good cleaning. I didn't get to the kitchen which really needs it, but after 5 hours of cleaning I was DONE!
Peggy was having some trouble with the cuff. She asked Sonia to deflate and reinflate the 15 ccs that were in there, but she just could not get comfortable. She asked Sonia to call Cory who told Peggy that she could have 1 more cc but THAT IS IT. Peggy had Sonia add just 1/2 a cc and it seemed to help.
Marita and the Goddesses came by for a visit. Leilani brought a big puffy cow pillow for Peggy. They were out celebrating Maritas' birthday.
Speaking of birthdays - it was Jason Segler's birthday yesterday. Happy Birthday, Jason!
The cats have been naughty at night. Peggy has had to ask the nurses to kick the cats out of the room so she can get some rest. They sleep all day and then want to party all night!
Peggy was having some trouble with the cuff. She asked Sonia to deflate and reinflate the 15 ccs that were in there, but she just could not get comfortable. She asked Sonia to call Cory who told Peggy that she could have 1 more cc but THAT IS IT. Peggy had Sonia add just 1/2 a cc and it seemed to help.
Marita and the Goddesses came by for a visit. Leilani brought a big puffy cow pillow for Peggy. They were out celebrating Maritas' birthday.
Speaking of birthdays - it was Jason Segler's birthday yesterday. Happy Birthday, Jason!
The cats have been naughty at night. Peggy has had to ask the nurses to kick the cats out of the room so she can get some rest. They sleep all day and then want to party all night!
Wednesday, April 4, 2007
Parties and Cats...Peggy's favorite things
We've been so busy with parties and cats that there hasn't been much else to blog about. In case you are all wondering how the cats are adjusting, check out these photos. The cats have brought so much fun and excitement to the house. They are very affection and have totally "made house". They spend most of their time in Peggy's room - especially Cola who spends most of her time ON PEGGY. Many people have been commenting that she seems like Sara/Boo reincarnated! She loves to sleep exactly where Sara used to. Peggy is very happy, but is a little concerned that she has hurt Bug's feelings. Please help Peggy by giving Bug a little extra TLC and bring him in whenever you have the chance so she can see that he is fine.
The parties for Marvel, Kelly, Lehua and Karen were all great. As most of you know, Kelly has moved out of the cottage. She has "upgraded" to a lovely studio on a property she is sharing with her family. She has been working hard renovating it and has finally made the move. We will miss her terribly in the cottage - she was the best tenant! We will miss Keidis and Flea too. But Kelly will still be working for Peggy Chun, Inc. and doing a few shifts here and there, so this is not really "goodbye" which makes us so happy.
Sunday, April 1, 2007
Welcome Jack and Cola!
Hey bloggers - check out this update! Here's the email I sent to Peg's Legs today in case you missed it:
Aloha Peg's Legs,
We have exciting news to share...and no, THIS IS NOT an April Fool's joke! The Chun household has adopted 2 new feline friends to keep Peggy and the Peg's Legs crew entertained! Jack and Cola are brother and sister cats, just under a year old.
We adopted them from "Joey's Feline Friends", a privately owned, non-profit, no-kill shelter dedicated to the care of homeless, abused, and physically challenged cats.
Teddy, who founded "Joey's", came by with our friend Gail today with 4 cats that needed homes. They basically just let them loose at Peggy's to see if Peggy connected with any of them and vice versa. It was so fun seeing them all cruise around the house and climb all over Peggy - she loved it!
Of course Peggy wanted to keep all of them! But after much discussion (we
especially had to make sure Elroy was OK with the adoption plan) we decided that Jack and Cola were perfect for the Chun Ohana.
Jack and Cola are black just like Sara/"Boo" was. They are very loving and playful. It is hard to tell them apart, but Jack has a short stunted tail and Cola is a little smaller. The best part is they love Peggy and Peggy's room. They are very comfortable climbing all over Peggy - so comfortable in fact, that we have to keep an eye on them since they want to step across her tubes to kiss her face!
Jack and Cola did meet Bug (Peggy's 16 year old big orange cat that basically lives in the driveway) and they seem to get along well enough. Jack and Cola prefer the indoors - they like to be where the people are, so we think it will work out nicely.
So that's the big news here. Peggy's health has been stable. She has been working on more nose painting and is looking forward to Easter fun with the kids.
We wish you all a very happy Easter!
Me ke aloha,
The Chun Ohana
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