I guess at this point I should just stick to a posting schedule that comes naturally - monthly updates!
To pick up where I left off in my last post, my sister had to wait nearly 3 days in the waiting room in the ER - they are just so slammed, short-staffed, etc. They gave her a chair that slightly reclined, surrounded by a curtain mounted on a PVC frame around two sides of her. There was no place for me or Mom to sit or be with her over night, so we had to leave her there alone each night, bring food when we could - no they didn't feed her or otherwise do anything to keep her alive while she was waiting - and hope no one stole her belongings or did anything bad to her while she was waiting.
I have long been disgusted by my home country, but this was...on another level, and deeply personal. I don't see how any of this is sustainable. People are literally dying in hospital hallways still because there are not enough beds or trained healthcare workers to look after all of the sick. It's tragedy on a massive scale, and I cannot comprehend the trauma that will come after all of this.
When she finally got a bed, it was a temporary one within the ER area - meant to be for a short time while they did tests to figure out which medical unit to send the patient, e.g. the cardiac unit. It didn't have a bathroom and they gave her fluid pills. Do you know what those do??? They make you have to pee a LOT. All the while, she was hooked up to an IV and heartrate monitor. Not the best planning. She ended up peeing all over the floor a few times when I was there. Hardly anyone came in to check on her and they mostly didn't respond when she pressed the call button for help.
Another day of that, and they finally had a real room and bed for her in the cardiac unit. She ended up staying a week while they did all the tests and seriously prepped for and contemplated doing open heart surgery. Turns out her heart works at 10-20% of normal, she has congestive heart failure, and she probably has had a few heart attacks. Her heart is severely damaged. They couldn't find any blockages, though. So a month later, we still don't know why she's so sick. It may be all the smoking, junk food, high sugar, high weight and no exercise. She is under very strict instructions to monitor her weight (she had ~20 lb of fluid built up, which was caused by her heart not pumping well), her blood sugar (she's diabetic), her blood pressure, her O2, heart rate, and she can only have 2000 mL of fluid a day and 2,500 mg of sodium, and NO SMOKING. Even then, her prognosis is very bad in the short-term. Maybe a 3 year life expectancy on average.
Her mental health all but makes following these protocols impossible. She can barely keep up with taking medications and showering regularly. Now she is supposed to 180 her entire lifestyle and existence, overnight? And my mom has another severely ill family member to take care of???? She is already 100% to the max stressed out taking care of my dad.
I'm pretty heart broken, even though I have long expected and dreaded this happening. Her habits and lifestyle are so unhealthy, I could see this coming from many many miles off. I guess it is different when something bad actually happens, even if you fully expect it.
...well, on that note, I don't feel like writing anymore right now. I'll continue describing the rest of my US trip another time.
