Shiffman’s Progress 7/6

On Thursday Stu sat up in a chair for two hours, mostly spent sleeping, but nevertheless good news.

Tom Whitmore, who writes Stu’s CaringBridge journal, also reports Stu will soon move from Intensive Care and into Acute Care. Now they won’t be waking him up every hour for neurological testing, only at four-hour intervals.

2 thoughts on “Shiffman’s Progress 7/6

  1. All these years I’ve been seeing Stu’s art, and I’ve never met him.

    You can do it, Stu! Then maybe we’ll do lunch.

  2. From my observation from working in a stroke/traumatic brain injury rehabilitation ward, Stu appears to be making good progress. The problem is that he still may have problems with fine motor control for speech and the use of his hands and in walking. His physicians will continue to assess his recovery and order physical, occupational, and speech therapies as appropriate for him to get the best long-term recovery. He undoubtedly will be counseled about diet for post-hospital eating, and I know from seeing it that if he has trouble swallowing, his food will be — well, let’s just say that the semi-solid meals pictured in 2001: A Space Odyssey are the least unattractive version of what he might be given.

    Also, on my units, the nursing staff was so busy, they didn’t have the time to just sit and talk to the patients. It’s important, when you’re in a situation like Stu’s to have someone on the staff who understands what you’re going through, and will take the time to talk with you when you’re feeling scared or are going through a long, awake night. I saw that need and became the sounding board and confidant for many patients who just needed to be treated as a person, not a case.

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