Introduction
When will The University of Tennessee Medical Center take down the artificial Christmas tree, still perched atop the building in the photograph? Someone needs to remind them that the tree is still up there.
Welcome, dear reader, to the 131st article in the family topic section. I affectionately call my father-in-law Paw. This is a story about Paw's two recent hospitalizations, thirteen days apart, at UT Medical Center. Thanks to God, my 86-year-old father-in-law is now back to normal at home.
In a complex hospital maze, have you ever taken a left turn, when you should have turned right to get back to your truck in a parking garage? The conclusion explains and adds a humorous conclusion to the stress of Paw's recent hospitalizations. The occasional twitch below my left eye is about to stop.
January 25-29
My father, Earl Ferrell, born on Saturday, September 17, 1927, passed away at home on Friday, January 25, 2008. I remembered silently. Mrs. Appalachian Irishman didn't say if she remembered. The coincidence of the following was not funny.
Last month, on Saturday, January 25, my aged father-in-law was admitted to the UT Medical Center. At about 2:20 PM, other family members and I watched as an ambulance took him to the emergency room. He was admitted that evening. The conclusion to the first article this month mentioned hospital stays last month by my brother and father-in-law.
Just over six weeks prior, on Monday, December 9, 2024, at about 6:30 PM, Paw was taken by ambulance to the emergency room at the UT Medical Center. He was released, not admitted, about 2 AM the next morning. An infection was treated further by a follow-up visit to his primary care physician. His hospital admission on January 25 was due to a similar infection.
My wife, sister-in-law, our niece, and I took turns sitting with my father-in-law in his hospital room. His interior room offered no windows to see the outside world. I pulled one night shift, sleeping only about an hour. Paw, well enough, was discharged to home on Wednesday, January 29. A follow-up with his primary care physician was arranged.
February 7-11
Paw was getting along about as usual at home. On Friday, February 7, however, laboratory results from his primary care appointment earlier that week indicated another infection. His primary care doctor wanted him to be taken to the emergency room. My sister-in-law drove him there in her car. Later that evening, he was admitted again at UT Medical Center. Weekend plans changed. At least this exterior room had a window and offered an outside view.
Once again, the same four family members as late last month took shifts to stay with my father-in-law at the hospital. Hospital beds must be designed to be uncomfortable. The two plastic-covered chairs were not ergonomically designed for human comfort. With no thermostat to control the room temperature, the centralized heating and cooling system constantly blew too cool air into the room. I covered the long vent, below the window, with anything handy to restrict the frigidly cool airflow.
Properly treated with intravenous antibiotics, my father-in-law was discharged again to home on Monday, February 10. A ten-day regimen of oral antibiotics and follow-up at his urologist's office next Wednesday afternoon should permanently resolve the problem. That is our hope and prayer as a family. Dear Lord, thank you for your grace through Christ Jesus. Please allow next Wednesday's office visit to fully resolve my father-in-law's recent difficulties. In Christ's name, Amen.
A kidney stone was the culprit all this time. Thankfully, it was nothing more serious. A kidney stone that causes an infection, three trips to the emergency room, and two hospitalizations is serious enough.
How would you like to be hospitalized twice, thirteen days apart? May no one reading this article ever have to endure that ordeal. Paw did.
My Review of the UT Medical Center
The doctors and staff at the UT Medical Center did right by my father-in-law, for which we are thankful. That is the main point. Before his most recent discharge on Monday, Paw and I conversed at length with one physician in the room. That arranged a call that I received from Paw's primary specialist. In his hospital room that day, one doctor was in the room, while I conversed by phone with the primary specialist. We do not want my father-in-law, in a few days, to have to come back to the hospital for a third stay. Two admissions thirteen days apart were enough.
Hospitals, however, are not fun. Monitoring devices beep and chirp. Hospital odors linger on clothing. Bright and cheery rooms are not a top priority. Why do hospitals prefer dark shades of wall paint in patient rooms? Wouldn't white or light blue wall paint be better?
From home, the one-way drive to the UT Medical Center is about 20 miles. Along the way, stretches of Alcoa Highway need to be repaved. The highway is rife with potholes. The entrance and exit ramps to and from the hospital are rugged and should be repaved. These critiques, however, are toward the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT).
As for the hospital facility, a primary parking garage, where we parked, is six levels high. The two-way lanes are narrow and lit only by the sun during the day. Turning at least nine corners leads to the top level, where I often parked my 2006 Frontier. Driving the distance from the top level down to the entrance is about seven tenths of a mile. Circling at least nine tight corners while facing oncoming traffic, with sunlight and headlights providing the only light, is frustrating. It could make a driver dizzy. At least we didn't have to pay for that type of parking experience. The garage is lit at night. Why can't the lights stay on during the day?
The UT Medical Center itself is a maze of buildings. To find a patient's room, you must know which elevator takes you to the correct floor in the right building. Finding the right elevator is somewhat challenging.
At least the cafeteria food offers variety at a reasonable price. I suggest, however, that buttermilk be added to the beverage offerings. I like a good glass of buttermilk at supper.
Surgeries Today and in April
Today, my youngest sister-in-law, who lives alone in Nashville, underwent surgery. My other sister-in-law, who lives with her father, drove out to stay with her younger sister. Thankfully, the surgery for my youngest sister-in-law went well. She should recover quickly and completely. Her discharge to home should be later today or tomorrow.
In April, my sister-in-law, the middle sister, will undergo surgery to replace her bum right knee with a sparkling new “bionic” knee. As far as we know, no hospital stays or surgeries are in the works for next month. Of course, a person never knows.
Conclusion
What about the humorous conclusion to the stress of Paw's two hospitalizations thirteen days apart? I will confess it now.
Outdoors, especially in the woods, I find directions without a compass. The position of the sun, even behind clouds, points the compass. I often simply sense which direction is north. At night, observing the right stars, if visible, finds north.
Last Sunday, I stayed the second shift with my father-in-law. My local sister-in-law relieved me. Darkness fell before I left. Clouds hid the stars. If it were a clear night, light pollution from various light poles and buildings would have filtered out starlight.
Exiting the south elevator, I turned a second left instead of right. Outside in the darkness, I turned left again, not right as I should have. Meandering around various buildings and parking lots, I finally waved at a passing vehicle. With egg on my face, I asked the kind lady if she knew which direction led to the main parking garage. She pointed in the exactly opposite direction that I had taken. Thanking her, my surgically repaired and “bionic” right foot pounded the same asphalt and concrete back to where I started.
Back inside, near the same elevator, I turned properly to the right. Weaving correctly through the building maze, I came out near the correct parking garage, where my truck awaited me. My truck laughed when I shared my story with him. At home, my wife was somewhat amused.
I hope that you also laughed a little. Just remember to turn right and go straight from the south elevator at UT Medical Center and in life. You will come out right!
Dear Lord, thank you again for blessing us with everlasting life through your Son. I do believe that my wife's side of the family has experienced enough hospitalizations recently. Please bless us all with good health, if it is your will. In Christ's name, amen.
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