Monday, March 30, 2009

So, it really wasn't...

so terrible after all. The surgery, that is. In fact, the nurses and doctors were pretty darn terrific. I wonder if our ENT intervened somehow because the same woman I talked to on the phone turned out to be one of our nurses but she was all about making sure that I was with him as soon as he came out of surgery, and was going out of her way to make sure J. didn't get unnecessarily spooked or anxious. (Dr. K.--if it was you, bless your heart, and thank you for getting it.) In fact, they let us be with him for all of the prep, and they gave him meds to calm him down BEFORE they took him into the O.R., and they even let me administer them. The whole thing was over in 15 minutes and they whisked us back there right away and J. wasn't crying because a completely lovely nurse named Jodi, who will have a place in my heart forever, was holding and comforting him. And then we just hung out for an hour, until J. became less narcoleptic and "bobbleheaded" (Jodi's term), and the smell of the gas dissipated as he got it out of his lungs. (Man, does that stuff smell awful.) He had some water, and then some milk, and seemed more and more his old self. And then we were sent off home.

But I have to say one more thing about the nurse--THAT nurse, not sweet Jodi--because it exemplifies so much of what drives me crazy about the medical profession. First, I want to acknowledge that she was sensitive and decent to J., and to me. But she does have a problem with the how-tos of empathy--for example, when they took J. back, he cried a little, and then my mom started to cry, and the nurse sang out "It's OKAY, he'll be JUST FINE" in about the most cheery voice you can possibly imagine. This was not helpful, not remotely helpful. Are there no bedside manner classes at nursing school? Because I'd be happy to teach one...

1 comment:

  1. Hurting (and relieved) with you on this one: our son had his first of three surgeries a scant three months after he joined our family. It was the most difficult necessary decision we ever made ... until we made the next two.

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