A little background...

Good evening, all. I created this blog to avoid some mass emailings (not that they were so bad, but this just seems easier in the long run) about Mom's condition. My mother (DOB 1/23/31) has been in a facility (hospital, rehab, nursing home, etc.) since March 25, 2008. On that day, she went into (an unnamed West Texas Hospital) for a right hip replacement. She has already had a knee replacement, and has a history of problems with arthritis and fibromyalgia. On top of that, she has problems with anesthesia leading to lung problems (she had pneumonia after the knee replacement).

Things went from bad to worse after the hip replacement. She was in the hospital for a few days and scheduled to go to rehab; she went to rehab on time but was returned to the hospital with a bowel/intestinal problem. This lasted a couple of weeks, at which time the hospital told Dad they no longer had a place for her (something to do with Medicare?). Dad was told Mom could be moved back to rehab or to a nursing home; Dad chose the rehab center (we all agreed). She stayed at rehab for about two weeks and made very little progress; in fact, when we saw her there, the physical therapists working with her said she was not working or trying very hard. She had little or no appetite, and had to be helped everywhere (into the chair, to the bathroom, etc.)

After about two weeks at the rehab center, they said they could no longer keep her; the only options were home or to a skilled nursing center where she could get rehab. Because there was a skilled nursing center in Big Spring, we chose that; we knew Dad could not work with her by himself at home. She was moved to the nursing home in Big Spring in late April/early May. We still didn't think everything was right, but had to trust the doctors at the time.

After a few days at the nursing home, her local doctor insisted she be taken back to the hospital; she wasn't doing well at all. She shortly when into intense respiratory distress; the doctor in charge decided to put her into a medically-induced coma and put her on a ventilator at 100% oxygen. When I went to see her, he basically described her condition as critical but not grave; he gave her a 20% chance of recovery.

After about three weeks in the ICU unit on the ventilator (where she wasn't really making any progress), the decision was made to move her to a long term acute care (LTAC) facility. We were able to choose one in the Dallas area. Shortly after arriving, it was determined she would need a tracheostomy for the breathing tube. Mom started making incredible gains after the trach was installed; she was completely weaned from the anesthesia and eventually overcame all breathing difficulties.

She was then moved (about a month ago) to a rehab center in the area; but too much time had passed from when she had been under anesthesia. She had no muscle tone anywhere, including her tongue (she still speaks thickly) and no muscle tone in her extremities (arms and legs). It was determined she was not making enough progress and would need to go back to a skilled nursing facility.

Which pretty much catches everyone up...