Update on Graham's conference
Dear all,
OK, that was very discouraging -- I just wrote a long update and I lost it to the great computer in the sky, even though I carefully hit the save button first. Hmm. Think I will save this in word first then... It is so hard to reconstruct!! You will probably be grateful, however, as it was turning into a long letter -- do you think that is a message to me to write shorter ones??
I thought Airasa might write an update, as she took lots of notes, but since I am always on the computer sooner I will beat her to it!!
We had a full group of care professionals plus us at the meeting. Which included his main doctor, a nurse from his care team, an OT person, a PT person, a legal person (who is more to do with money, he hastened to add), and the Community Liaison Officer (I am not sure of her title). Each person took time to tell us what progress Graham was having and then at the end we had open questions and answers. It was very useful to hear what each person had to say about what they were doing to help Graham.
I guess what was best for us to hear is that they will continue to treat him until it is safe to release him to another appropriate care facility (hopefully the one in Santa Barbara) from which he will be slowly introduced into the community and his new living situation there. He will obviously need a home situation where a wheelchair will move around and he will need care of some sort regularly. However, we believe he will be able to return to doing some work eventually as he is learning new skills and eventually will be able to work a computer.
Graham is definitely making progress, though of course it is slower than any of us would like. Because he has feeling in his hands we are all hopeful that eventually he will get the use of them back, but it is very very slow. In the meantime, he is learning to use his arms quite cleverly. He is learning to feed himself as well as wheel his chair. The halo will be removed around 6th of April and he will be scanned and probed and tested to see if he can keep it off or if it needs to go back on again. He will have weak muscles in his neck to retrain when it comes off. There is so much he is having to do and he is really working hard to make himself better.
Your continuing support is vitally important and again I thank you for that.
He has arranged to go to Easter Sunday services at the hospital and I will probably see him later that afternoon and again on Easter Monday, though it will depend on whether I have other things I need to do. Airasa and Ian are going to Ireland to visit his family for a couple of days so that will be good for them.
There is much to be done still, of course. We need to continue to work with people in California to get appropriate care facilities there and Graham has to keep on working to make himself better.
It offers each of us much to contemplate when something like this occurs.
I personally walk more carefully than ever, step out of the tub with special consciousness, think about how wonderful it is to be alive, and am very grateful for the medical profession here and the care that Graham is getting. I expect each of you has also been affected by this accident. Even if you are not part of the team doing things that need to be done, just your good wishes, your cards and letters, your phone calls, and most of all your caring concern are important in Graham's recovery. To those who are actively doing things about finances, care facility research, mail and apartment duties, we are most grateful as you can imagine.
The staff psychologist particularly mentioned how important Graham's support system is in his recovery. So thank you all.
Have a good few days and probably Graham will write his own update my next time in with the laptop -- probably on Monday.
Have a happy Easter Weekend.
Kind regards,
Linda
PS I am going to send a photo in a second email as perhaps that was what made my first email go poof!
OK, that was very discouraging -- I just wrote a long update and I lost it to the great computer in the sky, even though I carefully hit the save button first. Hmm. Think I will save this in word first then... It is so hard to reconstruct!! You will probably be grateful, however, as it was turning into a long letter -- do you think that is a message to me to write shorter ones??
I thought Airasa might write an update, as she took lots of notes, but since I am always on the computer sooner I will beat her to it!!
We had a full group of care professionals plus us at the meeting. Which included his main doctor, a nurse from his care team, an OT person, a PT person, a legal person (who is more to do with money, he hastened to add), and the Community Liaison Officer (I am not sure of her title). Each person took time to tell us what progress Graham was having and then at the end we had open questions and answers. It was very useful to hear what each person had to say about what they were doing to help Graham.
I guess what was best for us to hear is that they will continue to treat him until it is safe to release him to another appropriate care facility (hopefully the one in Santa Barbara) from which he will be slowly introduced into the community and his new living situation there. He will obviously need a home situation where a wheelchair will move around and he will need care of some sort regularly. However, we believe he will be able to return to doing some work eventually as he is learning new skills and eventually will be able to work a computer.
Graham is definitely making progress, though of course it is slower than any of us would like. Because he has feeling in his hands we are all hopeful that eventually he will get the use of them back, but it is very very slow. In the meantime, he is learning to use his arms quite cleverly. He is learning to feed himself as well as wheel his chair. The halo will be removed around 6th of April and he will be scanned and probed and tested to see if he can keep it off or if it needs to go back on again. He will have weak muscles in his neck to retrain when it comes off. There is so much he is having to do and he is really working hard to make himself better.
Your continuing support is vitally important and again I thank you for that.
He has arranged to go to Easter Sunday services at the hospital and I will probably see him later that afternoon and again on Easter Monday, though it will depend on whether I have other things I need to do. Airasa and Ian are going to Ireland to visit his family for a couple of days so that will be good for them.
There is much to be done still, of course. We need to continue to work with people in California to get appropriate care facilities there and Graham has to keep on working to make himself better.
It offers each of us much to contemplate when something like this occurs.
I personally walk more carefully than ever, step out of the tub with special consciousness, think about how wonderful it is to be alive, and am very grateful for the medical profession here and the care that Graham is getting. I expect each of you has also been affected by this accident. Even if you are not part of the team doing things that need to be done, just your good wishes, your cards and letters, your phone calls, and most of all your caring concern are important in Graham's recovery. To those who are actively doing things about finances, care facility research, mail and apartment duties, we are most grateful as you can imagine.
The staff psychologist particularly mentioned how important Graham's support system is in his recovery. So thank you all.
Have a good few days and probably Graham will write his own update my next time in with the laptop -- probably on Monday.
Have a happy Easter Weekend.
Kind regards,
Linda
PS I am going to send a photo in a second email as perhaps that was what made my first email go poof!
posted by Fearless Leader Sue at 9:11 AM
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