Settling back in at the U

I never though getting admitted into a hospital ward could feel like a reunion, but that's exactly what yesterday felt like.  Every doctor, nurse, aid and therapist (except the new resident) had worked with Shirley before.  She completed an assessment with Physical Therapy yesterday.  Whitney, the PT who worked with her last saw her just over three weeks ago when she was in the ICU and had a trachea tube in and was on the ventilator.  Whitney was amazed with Shirley's progress.  She got out of bed with only the slightest of assistance and then walked halfway down the hall and back.

Shirley's friend, Anisa, who is an RN on the floor was just starting the first of six days of shifts and made sure she was assigned to Shirley.

We're back on the 8th floor of the medical center, but are across the hall from the room in the previous stay. We've traded in the room with the view of the Olympic Mountains for the Northern Cascades in the background with Lake Washington in the foreground a few hundred yards from our location.  The view would be idealic were in not from the looming newly renovated Husky Stadium that takes up about a third of our view. (Go Ducks!)

Additional assessments were done today with Occupational and Speech Therapists.  OT will continue working with her on a daily basis, but Speech Therapy basically gave her an "all clear."

The one thing I will miss about Regional Hospital is the abundant free parking around the facility.  Parking on the UW campus is $15 a day.  I can get validation from the nursing station taking it to $10.  I've found a secondary visitors garage that isn't staffed on weekends (gates open for free parking) and if you play your cards right, isn't staffed when the attendant takes meal breaks.  We also start giving us free parking vouchers after 14 consecutive days in the hospital stays.  Unfortunately, this is a benefit we've  been about to take advantage of three times before.