Re: Knee replacements - soon!

[Guest guest]

Hi Judy,

You could always take a copy of this with you, and if they start making you

feel uncomfortable again you could had it to them.

I have done similar things at timew and been really glad I di so.

All the best for your op.

Aussie Margaret

RTHR 1990 revised 2004

Re: Knee replacements - soon!

| Well, I donated my first pint of blood yesterday - the actual

| procedure didn't bother me so much as the nurse - she was grousing the

| whole time about my small veins and how she wasn't sure she could get

| the blood, and then when the blood was flowing (rather slowly), she

| was staring at it constantly and making remarks about how it might

| stop anytime - I get this kind of talk pretty often from people who

| have to draw my blood or put in an IV, and it gets old pretty fast -

| Maybe they say all these things just to cover themselves if things go

| wrong, but it makes me feel like I've been " bad " , like it's my fault

| my veins are small - and it also doesn't instill much confidence in

| the person doing the procedure. Hopefully when I go back to give the

| second pint I will not get this person again.

|

| Judy

Send instant messages to your online friends http://au.messenger.

[Guest guest]

Well, fortunately, they are not all like the nurse I had - in fact,

now that I know there is one place in my arm they can almost always

get blood from, I usually point it out to them and they usually use it...

Judy

> >

> > Well I gave two pints of blood on my first knee and didn't need it so

> > this time I opted not to donate and dr. agreed. I didn't need blood

> > this time either. Giving blood was worse to me than any of the

surgery

> > and it wasn't bad. I just don't like a needle in my arm and see the

> > blood come out. they did draw a pint in 6 minutes though.

> >

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Judy,

It sounds like you've got everything under control,,,although it

might not feel like it sometimes when the Pre-op Paranoia sets in...

So here is a brief list of some o the possitive things that you have

going for you...

1. An O.S. who has been given good reviews about his handiwork by

actual patients.

2. A nurse who has taken the time to listen to you & answer your

questions.

3. A supportive Hubby.

4. A body that is mostly healthy, except for those darned knees!

5. You will be spending a week or so Post-Op staying at a Rehab

Center...Good move!...My hospital also had the same option, but I

couldn't take advantage of it due to other obligations....But I've

met several other TKR's who did,,,A very good Post-Op place to be,

since they can monitor everything, help you bath & all that other

stuff & get you up & about before you go home....By the time you go

home, you will be through the worst of the inconvenient parts,,,And

when you go home, that's when the real fun of rehab & pain will start!

But it will be a different sort of pain than you've been living

with,,,and week by week it should get better...

6. I will stick to my earlier advice for your 'to do' list...And will

really strongly recommend buying old magazines & taking them to your

Rehab Center.....The articles are short, you will learn a lot, &

really now, the TV in your room may become pretty annoying after a

few days......Actually, I had a friend who brought me a couple of

Sudoku Puzzle books during my 5 days of hospital time, and they

helped enormously.....Now that I think about it, I had never heard of

Sudoku before, but fell in love...I'm still at the 'beginners level',

but they take less concentration than crossword puzzles & are kinda

fun...So you might want to look into Sudoku & see if it's something

that might interrest & distract you for a few minutes...

7. Coughing clerks & public pools....Ewe!!!...In a perfect world,

they would be nothing to worry about...But you have enough to worry

about right now without the paranoid thought of 'germs'...I actually

went to a dentist pre-surgury because I'd had a semi-painful tooth

for a few years but learned that 'infections' were a leading cause of

TKR failures,,,So I got my tooth fixed & my mind eased.

You'll be back in the pool around January!, but until then,,,Keep on

preparing the way you have been...You're gonna be fine!

Bob

>

> Thank you Bob for having a positive reaction to my post - I do know

it

> will be harder with both knees, but I just want to get it all over

> with - I have been obsessing about this for the past year as I have

> more and more pain and can't do the things I enjoy. I know two

people

> who have had the same doctor I'm going to have and they have nothing

> but positive things to say about him and his " handiwork. " Plus he

has

> the most wonderful nurse who has spent a lot of time with me going

> over everything in great detail and answering the questions I keep

> coming up with.

>

> Yes, I'm also paranoid that the surgery could get postponed - I was

> upset in the grocery checkout line when the clerk kept coughing -

into

> her hand - which she then picked up my items with... I do water

> exercise at a nearby pool but I will probably only go another time

or

> two - just to not expose myself to a lot of extra germs.

>

>

> Thanks,

>

> Judy

>

[Guest guest]

Why is it that some of the nurses who take blood, for whatever purpose, act

like they're taking bayonet practice? After both surgeries, there was an

8-week period where followup blood tests for clotting and whatever else they

check after were done once a week at my local healthcare clinic.

I learned very quickly that there was one nurse I had to avoid at all

costs... Luckily, since then, there have been enough complaints to have her

transferred to some less painful job.

Greywolf - RTHR-2003; LTHR-2004

mdavison@...

Re: Knee replacements - soon!

Well, fortunately, they are not all like the nurse I had - in fact, now that

I know there is one place in my arm they can almost always get blood from, I

usually point it out to them and they usually use it...

Judy

> >

> > Well I gave two pints of blood on my first knee and didn't need it

> > so this time I opted not to donate and dr. agreed. I didn't need

> > blood this time either. Giving blood was worse to me than any of the

surgery

> > and it wasn't bad. I just don't like a needle in my arm and see the

> > blood come out. they did draw a pint in 6 minutes though.

--------------------------------------------

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[Guest guest]

That is a good way of putting it. Throughout all my surgeries I would

call the bllod nurses vampires because they would come so darn early

in the morning at the hospital more times than none before the sun

rise, so that's how they got their name. But I too learned quick if

they don't get anything by the 2 nd try I ask for someone new.

Especially if they are putting in IV's , I am not a pin cushion thank

you very much.

Alot of times I would get the IV nurse, which usually was a asian

american gal that would look at my arm take aim and bingo get it the

first time and no pain.

> > >

> > > Well I gave two pints of blood on my first knee and didn't need it

> > > so this time I opted not to donate and dr. agreed. I didn't need

> > > blood this time either. Giving blood was worse to me than any of the

> surgery

> > > and it wasn't bad. I just don't like a needle in my arm and see the

> > > blood come out. they did draw a pint in 6 minutes though.

>

> --------------------------------------------

> My mailbox is spam-free with ChoiceMail, the leader in personal and

corporate anti-spam solutions. Download your free copy of ChoiceMail

from www.digiportal.com

>

[Guest guest]

Asians are known for having excellent eye sight...really.

We live near a hatchery. All the people they have

sexing chickens are Asians. The owner said they had

a lot of complaints from customers getting a lot of

roosters with their orders when Caucasians did it.

Sherry

Re: Knee replacements - soon!

That is a good way of putting it. Throughout all my surgeries I wouldcall the bllod nurses vampires because they would come so darn earlyin the morning at the hospital more times than none before the sunrise, so that's how they got their name. But I too learned quick ifthey don't get anything by the 2 nd try I ask for someone new.Especially if they are putting in IV's , I am not a pin cushion thankyou very much. Alot of times I would get the IV nurse, which usually was a asianamerican gal that would look at my arm take aim and bingo get it thefirst time and no pain. > > >> > > Well I gave two pints of blood on my first knee and didn't need it > > > so this time I opted not to donate and dr. agreed. I didn't need > > > blood this time either. Giving blood was worse to me than any of the> surgery > > > and it wasn't bad. I just don't like a needle in my arm and see the > > > blood come out. they did draw a pint in 6 minutes though.> > --------------------------------------------> My mailbox is spam-free with ChoiceMail, the leader in personal andcorporate anti-spam solutions. Download your free copy of ChoiceMailfrom www.digiportal.com>

[Guest guest]

>

> Why is it that some of the nurses who take blood, for whatever purpose, act

> like they're taking bayonet practice? After both surgeries, there was an

> 8-week period where followup blood tests for clotting and whatever else they

> check after were done once a week at my local healthcare clinic.

Easy on the nurses, OK? We really do the best we can under the circumstances. It

may not be

a nurse who is drawing your blood. Lots of places take people off the street,

train them to

draw blood and call them a pheblotomist. They don't have to pay a pheblotomist

as much as

a nurse.........another attempt at cost savings.

A Registered Nurse

[Guest guest]

Must have been one of those I got last time. The best one was when I was in the emergency hospital who moved the IV from my elbow to my arm. They had a special section of just IV-needle-sticking nurses, apparently, had to get special dispensation to get someone from there to come move the needle, and boy was she good.

Ann S. (BTW if I said before that I would sign Ann A, that's wrong. My last name starts with S. My middle name starts with A.)

Re: Knee replacements - soon!

>> Why is it that some of the nurses who take blood, for whatever purpose, act> like they're taking bayonet practice? After both surgeries, there was an> 8-week period where followup blood tests for clotting and whatever else they> check after were done once a week at my local healthcare clinic.Easy on the nurses, OK? We really do the best we can under the circumstances. It may not be a nurse who is drawing your blood. Lots of places take people off the street, train them to draw blood and call them a pheblotomist. They don't have to pay a pheblotomist as much as a nurse.........another attempt at cost savings.A Registered Nurse

[Guest guest]

At 02:42 PM 10/1/2006, you wrote:

Must have been one of those I got last time. The best one was when

I was in the emergency hospital who moved the IV from my elbow to my

arm. They had a special section of just IV-needle-sticking nurses,

apparently, had to get special dispensation to get someone from there to

come move the needle, and boy was she good.

Ann S. (BTW if I said before that I

would sign Ann A, that's wrong. My last name starts with S.

My middle name starts with A.)

I am part of that IV team that they call as a last resort when no one

else is successful at getting the IV started. Most of the time I

can see why the person before me had trouble, but you are right,

sometimes I just don't understand why they could miss such a perfect

vein. :-)

When I had my right hip replaced, one night I needed my IV

restarted. The night nurse (who knew me) asked if she could try to

start it. She also told me she had not started an IV science

nursing school, ten years ago. She tried three times and finally

called the IV team. I guess it was all the bad Karma I had

produced. It was pay back time. :-)

Larry

[Guest guest]

Dear RN - I am an RN also, I used to work in neonatal intensive care.

I know I have small veins and I know it is difficult to work with,

especially with the zillion things nurses have to do these days - what

I was objecting to was that the RN who was trying to get my blood at

the Red Cross (and she WAS an RN as she told me) was giving out with

this neagative stream of comments and vibes for an hour - I always

tried to be upbeat and not upset my patients (mostly, my patient's

parents of course, unless I was on the maternity floor). I just don't

think it's good psychology to go on and on about something in a

negative way.

Thanks for your opinion, though. I am not putting RNs down in any way

- I know first-hand what a hard job they have...

Judy

> >

> > Why is it that some of the nurses who take blood, for whatever

purpose, act

> > like they're taking bayonet practice? After both surgeries, there

was an

> > 8-week period where followup blood tests for clotting and whatever

else they

> > check after were done once a week at my local healthcare clinic.

>

> Easy on the nurses, OK? We really do the best we can under the

circumstances. It may not be

> a nurse who is drawing your blood. Lots of places take people off

the street, train them to

> draw blood and call them a pheblotomist. They don't have to pay a

pheblotomist as much as

> a nurse.........another attempt at cost savings.

>

> A Registered Nurse

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Bob,

Thanks for all those good thoughts - Actually, now that I think about

it, I was planning to go to the pool through next week, then stop just

the week before - you're helping me re-evaluate that. Maybe just my

recumbent exercise bike at home for now - plus those pre-srbery exercises.

I like crosswords, but you're right about the amount of concentration

required - I do sudoku from time to time - they can be frustrating if

they are much more than " beginner " level. I'll consider the magazines

idea, especially for rehab. I am also planning to take a cheap CD

player with some MP3s of relaxing music and headphones - I know how

noisy that environment can be and I already have enough trouble

sleeping...

And I had no idea how busy I was going to be just rearranging my house

and trying to anticipate what I'll need when I come home!

Thanks,

Judy

>

> Hi Judy,

>

> It sounds like you've got everything under control,,,although it

> might not feel like it sometimes when the Pre-op Paranoia sets in...

>

> So here is a brief list of some o the possitive things that you have

> going for you...

>

> 1. An O.S. who has been given good reviews about his handiwork by

> actual patients.

>

> 2. A nurse who has taken the time to listen to you & answer your

> questions.

>

> 3. A supportive Hubby.

>

> 4. A body that is mostly healthy, except for those darned knees!

>

> 5. You will be spending a week or so Post-Op staying at a Rehab

> Center...Good move!...My hospital also had the same option, but I

> couldn't take advantage of it due to other obligations....But I've

> met several other TKR's who did,,,A very good Post-Op place to be,

> since they can monitor everything, help you bath & all that other

> stuff & get you up & about before you go home....By the time you go

> home, you will be through the worst of the inconvenient parts,,,And

> when you go home, that's when the real fun of rehab & pain will start!

> But it will be a different sort of pain than you've been living

> with,,,and week by week it should get better...

>

> 6. I will stick to my earlier advice for your 'to do' list...And will

> really strongly recommend buying old magazines & taking them to your

> Rehab Center.....The articles are short, you will learn a lot, &

> really now, the TV in your room may become pretty annoying after a

> few days......Actually, I had a friend who brought me a couple of

> Sudoku Puzzle books during my 5 days of hospital time, and they

> helped enormously.....Now that I think about it, I had never heard of

> Sudoku before, but fell in love...I'm still at the 'beginners level',

> but they take less concentration than crossword puzzles & are kinda

> fun...So you might want to look into Sudoku & see if it's something

> that might interrest & distract you for a few minutes...

>

> 7. Coughing clerks & public pools....Ewe!!!...In a perfect world,

> they would be nothing to worry about...But you have enough to worry

> about right now without the paranoid thought of 'germs'...I actually

> went to a dentist pre-surgury because I'd had a semi-painful tooth

> for a few years but learned that 'infections' were a leading cause of

> TKR failures,,,So I got my tooth fixed & my mind eased.

>

> You'll be back in the pool around January!, but until then,,,Keep on

> preparing the way you have been...You're gonna be fine!

>

> Bob

>

>

> --- In Joint Replacement , " Judy " <jdytart@>

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Judy,

I have editted your Post & put my response in ( )

Maybe just my

> recumbent exercise bike at home for now - plus those pre-surgery

exercises.(Yes! Yes & Yes!)

>

I do sudoku from time to time - they can be frustrating if

> they are much more than " beginner " level.

(Yeah, Sudoku can be frustrating, even at the best of times, & Post-op

will not be your best of times....So leave your pride behind, pick up a

coupla 'beginner' Sudoku books & knock yourself out(I mean that

literally, because you can start a puzzle, work for 5 minutes, snooze

for 5, work for 5 etc, and after a few hours, when you realize that

you're still working on the same puzzle, then you can simply scribble

in a profanity of your choice & start all over with the next one &

still feel a sense of accomplishment....I'm looking over the Sudoku

books that I brought home from the hospital & laughing about how simple

it is now to finish them off...

>

> And I had no idea how busy I was going to be just rearranging my house

> and trying to anticipate what I'll need when I come home!

(Yeap, " Rearranging your house " ...That's what you need to do...It will

keep you busy & hopefully distract you from worrying overly

much...Write down a 'List' of what needs to be where, and then show the

List to your Hubby & Kids & Yourself & explain to them that this is

what you need for Pre-Op Peace of mind...But make it 'fun' for

them,,,,turn it into a scavenger hunt...Ice bags, shower chair, old

magazines, rubber soled slip on shoes,,,Lions & Tigers & Bears, oh my!

Bob

P.S...Please don't forget the bottled water!!!!!

[Guest guest]

In my case, the night nurse wouldn't even try, although I have award-winning veins. It was standard procedure to get one of the experts, and after she did it I was very glad.

Ann S.

Re: Re: Knee replacements - soon!

At 02:42 PM 10/1/2006, you wrote:

Must have been one of those I got last time. The best one was when I was in the emergency hospital who moved the IV from my elbow to my arm. They had a special section of just IV-needle-sticking nurses, apparently, had to get special dispensation to get someone from there to come move the needle, and boy was she good. Ann S. (BTW if I said before that I would sign Ann A, that's wrong. My last name starts with S. My middle name starts with A.) I am part of that IV team that they call as a last resort when no one else is successful at getting the IV started. Most of the time I can see why the person before me had trouble, but you are right, sometimes I just don't understand why they could miss such a perfect vein. :-)When I had my right hip replaced, one night I needed my IV restarted. The night nurse (who knew me) asked if she could try to start it. She also told me she had not started an IV science nursing school, ten years ago. She tried three times and finally called the IV team. I guess it was all the bad Karma I had produced. It was pay back time. :-)Larry

[Guest guest]

my first tkr is this friday - the 6th - made it through the ekg and regular little physical part -- hopefully all the bloodwork will be fine -- i just hate the thought of it getting postponed... in some places around here they are cancelling elective surgeries because of lack of blood.... they are not having me donate my own because i have fibromyalgia and chronic headaches and am on lots and lots of meds for all that stuff so they are cross matching and typing it 2 days before the surgery... i had all the bloodwork done last thursday so hopefully if i make it through monday without a call from my doctors office i will be good to go on that part.... i am having one knee done now and the other early next year.... the hardest part for me is going to be doing what i need to do as far as rehab because i have chronic fatigue and am in bed quite a bit and i know i am going to really have to fight that now.... i know i will have pain from this -- it is just my hope that after a number of months i will be able to walk better than i can now and have less pain...

[Guest guest]

Just a minute... I was not, and am not, disparaging nurses as a professional

group. It's a sad fact, that just as in any other profession, there are

those who picked the wrong one, or have no aptitude for certain required

skills.

After two hip replacements, which can't be considered anything BUT " major

surgery " , I have the greatest respect and gratitude to the medical team at

the Haim Sheba Medical Center Orthopedic Department near Tel Aviv... They

were sympathetic, understanding, professional and always helpful and

cheerful (with a couple of exceptions). This is no small feat, since Sheba

is the largest hopsital in the country, with a tremendous patient turnover

and the staff are government employees.

Their Orthopedic Department alone performs 40-50 knee & hip replacements

weekly and overall, more than 500 surgical procedures are done there weekly

(not counting " day/outpatient surgery " ), yet the staff was (almost) always

patient, courteous and helpful, especially in light of the difficult jobs

and the sometimes VERY difficult patients. I went in with the determination

to be as cheerful and positive as I could, but not everyone makes that

decision, and some patients can really be a pain in the you-know-where...

About the nurses in the healthcare clinic... They are all RNs... This is not

in the US, Israel has a socialized medical system where health insurance is

mandatory but affordable, and the personnel requirements aren't defined by

the healthcare plan company, but by the Ministry of Health, which defines

personnel qualifications, the various treatments included in each level of

insurance (my HMO-equivalent calls them basic, silver, gold & VIP) and the

healthcare plan's compliance to MoH rules. As an example, the only thing I

had to invoke my " VIP " for was the ambulance ride home from surgery...

Everything else-- hospitalization, surgery, anasthesiologist, followup

visits, loan of walker & crutches, 12 weeks of PT (6 of home visits and 6 of

outpatient visits to the PT clinic) were all included in the BASIC coverage.

I didn't go to a rehab center when discharged from the hospital because my

progress made it unnecessary.

Just for information, my family of 4 is insured at the " VIP " level, which

includes medical care overseas including major surgical operations

unavailable in Israel for under $100 a month.

Greywolf - RTHR-2003; LTHR-2004

mdavison@...

Re: Knee replacements - soon!

Dear RN - I am an RN also, I used to work in neonatal intensive care.

I know I have small veins and I know it is difficult to work with,

especially with the zillion things nurses have to do these days - what I was

objecting to was that the RN who was trying to get my blood at the Red Cross

(and she WAS an RN as she told me) was giving out with this neagative stream

of comments and vibes for an hour - I always tried to be upbeat and not

upset my patients (mostly, my patient's parents of course, unless I was on

the maternity floor). I just don't think it's good psychology to go on and

on about something in a negative way.

Thanks for your opinion, though. I am not putting RNs down in any way

- I know first-hand what a hard job they have...

Judy

> >

> > Why is it that some of the nurses who take blood, for whatever

purpose, act

> > like they're taking bayonet practice? After both surgeries, there

was an

> > 8-week period where followup blood tests for clotting and whatever

else they

> > check after were done once a week at my local healthcare clinic.

>

> Easy on the nurses, OK? We really do the best we can under the

circumstances. It may not be

> a nurse who is drawing your blood. Lots of places take people off

the street, train them to

> draw blood and call them a pheblotomist. They don't have to pay a

pheblotomist as much as

> a nurse.........another attempt at cost savings.

>

> A Registered Nurse

--------------------------------------------

My mailbox is spam-free with ChoiceMail, the leader in personal and corporate

anti-spam solutions. Download your free copy of ChoiceMail from

www.digiportal.com

[Guest guest]

Hi Pudgy, I just wanted to wish you the best of luck for your Knee replacement and a speedy recovery:-) Susiepudgyaunt99@... wrote: my first tkr is this friday - the 6th -

made it through the ekg and regular little physical part -- hopefully all the bloodwork will be fine -- i just hate the thought of it getting postponed... in some places around here they are cancelling elective surgeries because of lack of blood.... they are not having me donate my own because i have fibromyalgia and chronic headaches and am on lots and lots of meds for all that stuff so they are cross matching and typing it 2 days before the surgery... i had all the bloodwork done last thursday so hopefully if i make it through monday without a call from my doctors office i will be good to go on that part.... i am having one knee done now and the other early next year.... the hardest part for me is going to be doing what i need to do as far as rehab because i have chronic fatigue and am in bed quite a bit and i know i am going to really have to fight that now.... i know i will have pain from this -- it is just my hope that after a

number of months i will be able to walk better than i can now and have less pain...

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 10/2/2006 2:22:59 AM Eastern Standard Time, pudgyaunt99@... writes:

the hardest part for me is going to be doing what i need to do as far as rehab because i have chronic fatigue and am in bed quite a bit and i know i am going to really have to fight that now.... i know i will have pain from this -- it is just my hope that after a number of months i will be able to walk better than i can now and have less pain...

You will be able to walk beter with less pain in a couple weeks after the surgery....I am 6 weeks post op (TKR) and have way less pain than before! It's a different kind of pain...more of an achiness rather than actual "pain". The big difference came about 4-5 weeks after....

Most of the PT exercises at first are done lying down anyway, so you should be OK with that....Yes, the first 2 weeks are pretty painful, but that is what the pain meds are for! Use them!

Good luck and keep us posted!

Delaware

[Guest guest]

Lots of luck to you - my daughter has fibromyalgia too so I know how

difficult it can be - and her hip is starting to bother her - I hope

she won't end up with replacements also. But just hang in there and I

know it will be better in the end - a joint that can't rub bones

together and hurt will be so much better...

Judy

>

> my first tkr is this friday - the 6th - made it through the ekg and

regular

> little physical part -- hopefully all the bloodwork will be fine --

i just

> hate the thought of it getting postponed... in some places around

here they

> are cancelling elective surgeries because of lack of blood....

they are not

> having me donate my own because i have fibromyalgia and chronic

headaches and

> am on lots and lots of meds for all that stuff so they are cross

matching and

> typing it 2 days before the surgery... i had all the bloodwork

done last

> thursday so hopefully if i make it through monday without a call

from my doctors

> office i will be good to go on that part.... i am having one knee

done now

> and the other early next year.... the hardest part for me is going

to be

> doing what i need to do as far as rehab because i have chronic

fatigue and am in

> bed quite a bit and i know i am going to really have to fight that

now....

> i know i will have pain from this -- it is just my hope that after a

number

> of months i will be able to walk better than i can now and have

less pain...

>