Wow- Swedish Issaquah is NICE! I gave birth to Elin here and remember being sad about having to leave so abruptly when she was transferred to the NICU at Swedish First Hill after she stopped breathing at 12 hours old. This hospital is PLUSH!
We are use to SCH. By "use to" I mean we should have our own furnished suite by this time but alas we are always assigned to miscellaneous rooms in the ER, ICU and general recovery floor in River. At SCH we share rooms; we have roommates that have multiple "loud" guests/family members and leave the TV on ALL NIGHT. I overhear conversations I shouldn't be listening too and other inappropriate things that usually only close friends disclose to one another.
Swedish Issaquah is the Ritz Carlton- my friend refers to it as a "spa-spital". It is amazing. Anya is staying in the "peds" unit- she is the ONLY patient. We have all the nurses' attention and the doctors and other specialists come specifically to see her. I'm sure it's different when the 10-20 rooms are full but seriously- this is unreal.
Oh- why are we here. Well for starters- it's not about Elin..........
LONG STORY- Here's the short version.....
Anya complained about her foot on Sunday and had another fever. (She had been sick the previous week and missed skiing on Sunday and school on Monday and Tuesday). We skipped skiing (again), but I had a sinking feeling something wasn't right. I sent her to school on Monday and then to urgent care at SCH Bellevue on Monday night when she was still limping in the afternoon (when I made her walk home from the bus stop) (no guilt here, ahem). They diagnosed her issue as "acute reactive arthritis" after doing a x-ray and hearing about her recent illness. No blood tests were done or even suggested.I tried to send her school on Tuesday but she wouldn't walk. On Wednesday it was better again but she was in MAJOR pain when she came home and the fever came back Wednesday night. Thursday morning we went to the pediatrician and the rest is history!
She is in good spirits but the constant doctor interruptions and IV pokes (she keeps blowing her IV's) are tough. She has been a trooper though- man am I proud of her. The silver lining I'm trying to grasp from all this trauma is that Anya is an amazingly stoic patient because of all the terrible things she has had to witness her sister endure. Anya has attended many of Elin's early morning (trough) blood draws where it takes the phlebotomist 3-7 pokes to get a vein that allows enough blood to be drawn for the multitudes of tests. She has seen her sister go in for multiple surgeries, scans, MRI's, and other procedures and return to us wounded but well cared for. Anya has learned from all of these experiences and when the nurses ask her to be still to try for a third time to get a good vein for her IV, she sits still and silently weeps, but stays stoic and strong through the process. When the task is done she cries and needs comfort but, man, am I learning a lot from watching her. She is amazing and oh so wise beyond her years. After many tests, scans, labs, x-rays,and MRI's they have determined she has a staph infection in her bones on her foot. The treatment is many days of in hospital IV antibiotics and then a long course (several weeks) of oral antibiotics at home.
Timing wise we are hoping at the earliest to be discharged on Monday; at the latest Thursday. She REALLY wants to do her Valentine party at school so I'm dangling that carrot to get her to walk and use her foot and get out of the hospital as soon as she is able. She can return to school on oral antibiotics as long as she is well enough physically to attend.
Crappy stuff but we are surviving. When both my kids couldn't walk this week I was a little hopeless, but my spirits are returning. This IS curable and my kids are TOUGH!
