Kirk here-this is the update for the day.
After a sleepless night (Dawna felt quite sick from the post-prednizone treatment) we shuttled to the Euromedic clinic at 8am. There were five patients in our group and all had family or friends along for support. Some of the patients were quite disabled from their MS and only a few with slight issues.
On this day they only performed stenting on two of the patients- Dawna was not one of them. In her case, the doctors found that though preliminary Doppler results indicated that she had blockage on both sides, only one side would be venoplastied. Their reasoning was that there was sufficient blood flow on one side during surgery while the other was blocked. After the venoplasty, doctors indicated that there was better blood flow in the vein, post surgery. After being moved to her bed, Dawna's hand were warm- something that hasn't been for some time. This was the good news so far. However, Dawna was in a lot of pain from the surgical site in her groin. The surgical team had limited conversational skills in English and were slow to assist her. At the time that I left, she had been given a Tylenol and was waiting for it to kick in. Before coming to Poland, Dawna had made a English to Polish translation sheet of common phrases. This was a huge help as she was able to indicate what she needed. The nurses made a copy of it for future use with English speaking patients. There was also an ex-pat from Poland who had come from Mexico with her son. She was also invaluable in getting information from the doctors about remaining patient questions. Information was limited otherwise, and the surgical team seemed eager to leave without distraction. Having the ability ask direct questions about procedures and post surgical follow up was essential for patients and family to feel more at ease.
After a sleepless night (Dawna felt quite sick from the post-prednizone treatment) we shuttled to the Euromedic clinic at 8am. There were five patients in our group and all had family or friends along for support. Some of the patients were quite disabled from their MS and only a few with slight issues.
( Dawna's Bed )
On this day they only performed stenting on two of the patients- Dawna was not one of them. In her case, the doctors found that though preliminary Doppler results indicated that she had blockage on both sides, only one side would be venoplastied. Their reasoning was that there was sufficient blood flow on one side during surgery while the other was blocked. After the venoplasty, doctors indicated that there was better blood flow in the vein, post surgery. After being moved to her bed, Dawna's hand were warm- something that hasn't been for some time. This was the good news so far. However, Dawna was in a lot of pain from the surgical site in her groin. The surgical team had limited conversational skills in English and were slow to assist her. At the time that I left, she had been given a Tylenol and was waiting for it to kick in. Before coming to Poland, Dawna had made a English to Polish translation sheet of common phrases. This was a huge help as she was able to indicate what she needed. The nurses made a copy of it for future use with English speaking patients. There was also an ex-pat from Poland who had come from Mexico with her son. She was also invaluable in getting information from the doctors about remaining patient questions. Information was limited otherwise, and the surgical team seemed eager to leave without distraction. Having the ability ask direct questions about procedures and post surgical follow up was essential for patients and family to feel more at ease.
( Immediately Post-Procedure )
