STILL HERE IN HOSPITAL!!!!!!!!

Well, sorry for the delay in getting an update on the hospital stay. It has been a very exhausting stay. Mom and I have been switching off about every 5 to 7 days. With one of us at the hospital and the other home taking care of the boys, it has been difficult. It is hard to believe that we have been in the hospital for an entire month. This stay has been full of more “small” problems than I could ever have imagined. We have had more errors this stay than all other times put together. Everything from Elizabeth de-sating, turning blue and passing out from accidentally being disconnected from oxygen with no one responding to the alarm to incorrectly reported lab results causing her to be needlessly exposed to VRE( a bacteria you don’t want to have in a hospital).
At any rate, we have been plugging on, but it has taken a toll on everyone emotionally and physically. Part of the reason an update has been delayed.

We just want to get her home as soon as we can. Since the last update, she successful had the original pigtail tube removed without incident. The fevers continued and the infection was still substantial in the lungs. Her normal surgeon, Dr. Stein, performed a VAT(Video-assisted thoracoscopy) in which they used a camera to go in the chest wall and scrap the empyema infected goop away from the inside chest wall and off the lungs. It was so thick that the antibiotics would not have been able to get to it. She has improved steadily since then. Elizabeth is still struggling with the fluid balances and that is making it difficult to fully heal and re-expand the lung. We will most likely go home on the IV antibiotics and oxygen. However, it will depend on exactly how she is doing when we can get her out of there. There seems to be a push to try to get her out soon. Last Monday was supposed to be the day, then it was moved to tomorrow and now they aren’t sure.

As to the impact of her liver function issues and treatment, those decisions are on hold until after we get through this period. More to come. Please keep prating for Elizabeth.
Dad