OOPS – Part V

Continued from last week

When we arrived home from the airport on Monday after dropping off our guests, we took a nap. It had been an exhausting but fun weekend!

Tuesday, February 25, 2020

Time to call the orthopedic surgeon. At the ER, they gave us the name of one, but he was over an hour away. Googled for a closer one and found the South County Orthopedic Specialists (SCOS) on El Toro in Laguna Hills. Definitely a better choice!

I called and made an appointment with one of their hand specialists. (There are two). The first appointment they had was late in the afternoon on Thursday.

Wednesday, February 27, 2020

We had to pick up a copy of the CD of my x-rays from Mission Hospital before my appointment with the surgeon. I had to do this once before. That time, I called Radiology, and they had the CD ready when we arrived. Not so this time.

We had to go in person up to Radiology with all the paperwork from the ER. Then they had to confirm my identity. Then—finally—they requested the CD. And, we waited. And waited…

Finally, they called my name and gave me the disc. Just another annoyance…

Thursday, February 27,2020

Checked in for my appointment. I was surprised when they had all of my information already. I asked which doctor I would be seeing. I had thought the name Dr. Moskow sounded familiar. The receptionist confirmed he would be my surgeon. Then I remembered he had done minor surgery to remove a cyst under the nail bed on one of my fingers several years earlier. I remembered him, and I liked him!

I got into his examination room (with several exam tables). We had brought the CD of the x-rays, and they copied it into their electronic files. (This place is VERY efficient!)

A nurse removed the heavy, bulky, splint. Thank goodness! Underneath, my skin was all covered in little red bumps, and it itched—badly!

He looked it over. “What did they put under the splint?”

“Nothing.”

He looked surprised and shook his head.

“Do you have something for the itching?”

He brought some gauze soaked with iodine and bathed the inside of my arm.

The doctor checked the x-rays. “The good news is the break is below the joint. This is a much easier situation to deal with.”

Thank GOD!

“You have two choices. You can let it heal as is with the bone out of alignment, but you may have limited movement.”

I don’t think so. I told him I needed to be able to fully use the hand. My work depended on it.

“The second choice is to do surgery and insert a plate and screws. The healing time will be shorter, and you should have good motion afterward.”

No contest! Surgery it was.

I complained about the dumb sling. “It is made out of slick nylon, and no matter how tight we get it, my arm keeps slipping out, defeating the whole purpose.”

“Then don’t use it. Just try to keep the arm upright with your hand above your heart.”

HOORAY!

I started to use the Napoleon technique. I zipped my jacket about ¾ of the way. Then, I slipped my arm inside. This kept it at the right angle, and was MUCH more comfortable than the dang sling.

When I told the nurse how uncomfortable the darn thing was, he pointed out a loop. “This is for you to slip your thumb through.

Really? I pointed to my thumb, which still looked like a bloated boiled sausage and was beginning to bruise. “Uh, I don’t think so.”

He nodded.

He replaced the huge “sugar tong” splint with a much smaller one. This one went from my fingers halfway to my elbow. First, though, he put a black knit “sleeve” on the arm. Then the splint. Then he wrapped it in sticky bandaging—pink! I loved it! Pink and black was a popular color combination in the late ‘50s and early ‘60s. This was much smaller and lighter.

While we waited to see his PA to schedule the surgery, we went back out into the waiting area. Larry went to the desk to pick up the x-ray CD. So, I sat down next to a young lady. She looked very distressed.

She told me she had a toddler at home, and her hand had been going numb. She’d already had a couple of surgeries, and nothing had helped, so she was very worried. She asked about my arm and asked who my doctor was.

“Dr. Moskow."

“He’s the one I’m going to see.”

“You will love him. He did minor surgery on my finger a few years ago. “ I showed her the scar. “I absolutely love him, and I trust him completely.”

I watched as she relaxed a bit.

Larry returned and we went back in to meet with the PA.

Surgery was scheduled for the following Monday. Before then, I’d need blood work and chest x-ray.

As we came out and headed for the elevator, we ran into the same young woman I had been talking to earlier. She was leaving the exam room from the other side. She smiled—a whole different person. “Thank you so much. You’re right. I like him very much, and I feel better about my surgery.” She went on to the reception area, and we got on the elevator.

“Okay, now I know why I was supposed to be here today.” I love those occasions when God affirms my purpose.

We went to my primary care doctor’s office with the orders for the blood work and x-ray.

The on-call physician took the blood samples, but the x-ray facility was already closed for the day. (It was after five.)

So, we went home.

Friday, February 28,2020

We spent quite a bit of time trying to get the x-ray. Lots of running around… Finally got it done.

Saturday, February 29, 2020

Had an urgent call from the surgery center asking if I had gotten he blood work done. Yes, I had. They hadn’t received the report. I gave them the contact information for the lab. SIGH!

Sunday, March 1, 2020

My Christmas gift from Larry was tickets to see The Book of Mormon at the Ahmanson in downtown L.A.. I had no intention of missing it!

Larry helped set up for the coffee hour between services. (I was useless in this department!) Then we attended church. We left immediately to get to L.A.

We made exceptional time, even though it was drizzling.

I hadn’t eaten anything, so we decided to go to go to Abernethy’s, since we were able to be seated. Nothing on the menu was much to my taste. Larry decided to get the burger. So did I. We sat next to another couple and had a delightful conversation with them.

The play was audacious and rude and very funny. (I adore irreverence, and this was right up my alley!) It was written by the writers of South Park and had the same sense of humor.

Afterward, we went to see our goddaughter’s new apartment in Pasadena. (We had made arrangements before we went.)

As we drove there, I was reminded of how much I love the old town. Charming.

We were delighted to find her parents there already. She has a really charming place. Of course, we expected no less since she has always had terrific taste!

We decided to walk the two blocks to Green Street to Green Street Restaurant for dinner. (Keep in mind, my ankle was still wrapped in an Ace bandage. On Monday, the entire sole and heel were solid navy blue!) Still, taking a walk felt good. We took our umbrellas since it had been drizzling off and on.

Our friend from grammar school owns the restaurant, and it is a Pasadena favorite. The food was excellent! He wasn’t there, but we left our business card with a note for him. He emailed the following day. (We are also friends on Facebook.)

After dinner, we went back to the apartment for a short time. We live at quite a distance, so we don’t get to see these friends often. I had missed them!

With surgery scheduled for the next day, we left to get home and get ready for the big day!