Overnight in the Hospital

 

My Oncologist changed my chemo pills because my last group of pills was not stopping the growth on my lymphoma.

As per orders of the FDA, at least my first dosage of the new pills has to be done in the hospital so that my vitals can be monitored for 24 hours.  What they are particularly concerned about is that this medication can cause tumor lysis that negatively impacts the kidneys.

I went into the hospital yesterday morning and had my first dosage at 12:30 pm that same day.  I did not have to wear a hospital gown but I did have to have an IV of fluids as per protocol of the FDA.

UT Medical was my facility of choice and there is an entire floor dedicated to Oncology and specifically to stem cell transplants, a procedure that has only been around a couple of years but was and is currently managed by two doctors who had started a similar operation up north.  Each doctor has 20 years of experience in stem cell transplants.

My room was spacious as was the bathroom and rather medically modern with all its in-room equipment for both doctors and nurses to perform their duties.  The Television was adequate in size and offered a plethora of channels none of which I was interested in except two or three.

The bed was the latest version of the hospital bed and was very comfortable.

The food however, had decreased in quality since the last time I was there two years ago.

However, the customer service, at least 98% of the time, was some of the best I had ever experienced.

My Oncologist visited me two, letting me know exactly what he was thinking but when I got discharged yesterday at 12:30 pm, it was not until 4:00pm that I was allowed to leave.

Obviously, the discharge process needs to be improved.  The front end and the back end of a hospital stay is really what people remember with the back end of the process being what really stays in their minds.