Goin' Home

Dad passed on this evening just before 11:00 PM..  Kevin and I were there when he opened his eyes one last time. We told him about all the people far and wide who loved him, who were touched in some way by his life. We expressed the great love for him that we all share in the best way we could.  He looked at us and tried to communicate so much with his eyes, and when I'm better able to I will attempt to put into words what I saw.  Just too hard now.

For those of you that said you were praying, I asked you to pray for peace for dad.  Well, our prayers are answered!.  He is now at peace, and as Paula said "learning all the wonders of the universe."  How cool is that?

I can't wait to see the sunrise tomorrow.  I'll bet he'll have some color suggestions for the Lord.

Do you not know?

Have you not heard?

The Lord is the everlasting God,

the Creator of the ends of the earth.

He will not grow tired or weary, 

and his understanding no one can fathom.

He gives strength to the weary 

and increases the power of the weak.

Even youths grow tired and weary, 

and young men stumble and fall;

but those who hope in the Lord 

will renew their strength.

They will soar on wings like eagles;

they will run and not grow weary,

they will walk and not be faint.

Isaiah 40: 28-31

It's quiet here in Dad's hospice room.  Dad is resting comfortably, and there's not been much change in his condition.  I thought I would share a couple of pictures of his surroundings here at Nathan Adelson.  It is quite beautiful.

The scene above is was taken from the patio just outside dad's room.  This morning when I opened the blinds on the doors the sunshine lit up the room, and you could see so many plants and flowers just glistening in the early morning sun.

There are walking trails and water features throughout the facility.  Dad would love it.  He loves God's creation, and always said that it was one of the things that demonstrated his love for us.  Such great beauty lavished on us all.

.

. . .walk out into the fields and look at the wildflowers...have you ever seen color and design quite like it? If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers-most of which are never even seen-don't you think he'll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you?

~ Matthew 6:27-30 from "The Message"

Dad, we are praying for you today.  Praying for you to have peace.  Peace that comes from knowing you are secure in your faith in Christ and peace in a job well done here in this life.

Hospice Days

Day two at the hospice center is pretty much like like the first.  Dad is resting comfortably, and there's been no change in his condition.  The staff is giving him some medication to ease anxiety and any pain he may have, but nothing else.  [his temp is currently 102.1, so they are cranking up the air]

Mom and I stayed overnight with dad which was nice.  We weren't sure how he'd do overnight and we wanted to be there if he needed us.  The staff here has been great, they've given dad great care.  He's been prayed for, offered a message, and even a hair combing.  The facility is very nice and the grounds are beautifully maintained.  While dad slept I step out and snapped a few shots.  He would really enjoy it.

Well, we've been at the hospice for about 6 hours now. Dad is holding his own but has begun to have some tremor like seizures. They have been giving him the Ativan still (but a higher dose) to keep him calm. They may need to give him something else if this isn't more effective. He is also getting something every 4 hours for pain, although it doesn't appear that he is in any. We spoke with the doctor (Wheeler) and he seemed to think that dad could pass anytime in the next 48 hours or so. We pray for him to go peacefully when it is his time.

We've tried to make all the calls we need to. If we've forgotten anyone please know it wasn't
on purpose.

Dad is here at the facility and all settled in. It is a very nice place and the staff is very kind. He is resting very comfortably, and seems to be relieved that he has no more tubes hooked up. It's all up to him now, just how he likes it.

Dad is on his way to hospice facility. He tolerate the tube removal well.  He is comfortable and not in any noticeable pain.

The vent was just removed.  Dad is breathing completely on his own.

They are giving dad Ativan in prep for the vent removal. It's a anti-anxiety drug

Been a crazy morning. Mom and I were finally able to get a good nights sleep and woke with clearer minds. We had our usuall coffee and oatmeal and talked over Dad's condition. We went into the day confident that we knew his wishes, and that to the best of our ability we would do what he would do if he were able.

So we arrived at the hospital before 9:00am and Dad was not very responsive at all, even with his double-dose of wake up drug. After evaluating his condition, and placing calls to both Kevin and Pam for their support, we decided to move on getting dad off the vent and moved to a hospice inpatient facility.

He'll be transported at 1:30pm to
Nathan Adelson Hospice
4141 Swenson Ave
Las Vegas, NV 89129

Please continue to pray for him, for peace and comfort.

In the last hour or so we have been able to talk with him with his eyes open. I showed him pictures of the family and familiar things and he seemed to be recognizing everyone. Every time I talk with him I relay the messages that everyone haas given me or mom. I continue to reinforce those messages. Bob is well loved.

Some tough news

Dr Syed just stopped by to talk with us and examine dad. His unresponsiveness is a real concern for the doctor and why he's not a fan of taking him off the vent. I asked him about taking him off anyway, because all his life dad said that didn't want to be kept alive with machines. The doctor understood and said that if/when we take him off he may not make it more than 24 hours. (he doesn't know Bob tho'!) He did offer to help us get dad into some sort of hospice program. So we'll need to think about when we have the tube removed. We don't want to be impatient, but we also want to honor dad's wishes.

Jessica his PT came by and worked his limbs. He was pretty out of it the whole time. His temp is 100.6 which may account for some lethargy, but generally we've not seen his wakefulness consistently improve, even with his new double dose of provigil.

We are fortunate that dad has received such good care. Here is a picture of two of his nurses. Jon and Shandel

The neurologist (Dr. Majic) was just here and looked over dad. She thought that he was responding better than when she saw him on Friday. He was able to move his hand and foot on command for her. We asked about his responsiveness and the lack of improvement there and she didn't have much of a response. Thinking maybe about increasing the dose of provigil.

Day 7

I know I sound like a broken record, but dads condition has not changed.  He's still got the ventilator tube, and uses the ventilator at night only.  For the last several days he's been breathing on his own without any complications or trouble.   He still has some secretions, but much less than at first.  He isn't "awake" this morning, even tho' he's just had his Provigil.  The nurse (Shandell) said that they may need to increase the dose.  We are thinking that tomorrow will be a good day to evaluate removing the tube.

Mom and I had a good talk over coffee.  Starting to think about how best to do the things that dad would regarding his condition if he were able to.  Hard conversations, but we are supporting mom as a family without exception. All the kids had a chance to talk with her while we were together which was good. One thing this family does well is support one another.  Mom is understandably more upset every day. All of this weighs heavy on her.

We appreciate your support and prayers.

Not much new to report tonight.  Dad had another successful day off the ventilator.  No problems.  The only thing standing between him and the removal of the vent tube is his ability to follow commands.  This shows his neurological function level.  The pulmonologist believes it would be best to wait a couple more days before we try.  One thing we don't want to do is remove the tube and then put it back in right away.  Too many bad things can happen, plus we believe as a family that dad would not want to be on a ventilator long term.  The neurologist put dad on another drug a couple of days ago (Provigil) to help him wake up.  So far, any improvement in that regard is minimal.  We'll just need to take a wait and see approach.

Mom and I spent some time today talking to dad about what's going on, what our options are, and how we're trying hard to do what he'd want to if he could tell us.  We also talked about some good memories, we read from the bible (Colossians 1 and 2) , and prayed with him to help take his mind off the here and now.    He seems as comfortable as he can be, and doesn't indicate that he's in pain.


Will update more tomorrow.  Hold each other close.

Day 6

Arrived at the hospital today, and they just took dad off the vent. The covering neurologist (Bangladore) said that there's really not much new news. From their perspective the vent can be removed. We are waiting for the other people on dads case to all give the green light.
His vitals are good, BP, pulse, oxy saturation, etc all being maintained while he is off the vent. His nurse (Jon) wasn't a fan of removing the tube yesterday due to the amount of secretion in his lungs, but he thinks maybe today since it is better. We need the pulmonologist (Syed) to agree also. So there may be hope for today or tomorrow.

Dad is much more alert now, trying to talk to us through his eyes which must be quite frustrating. I don't know what he wants to say. Sometimes he seems sad, sometimes frustrated, sometimes worried. I wish I could come up with a way to hear what he wants us to. Mom is doing as good as can be expected, and she understands that this may be a longer road to recovery than last time. Please keep them both in your prayers.

Not only that, but all the broken and dislocated pieces of the universe-people and things, animals and atoms-get properly fixed and fit together in vibrant harmonies, all because of his death, his blood that poured down from the Cross.. ~ Col. 1:20

Dad is much more alert now after the CT scan and a quick sponge bath. The CT showed no new bleed or swelling. We are relieved. He has a slight temp but nothing else new. He's done a great job today being off the vent. They will put it back on while he sleeps just to be sure, then back off first thing in the morning. Both doctor Syed and Eid didn't think dad was awake or strong enough today. We hope for tomorrow.

Dad has been off the ventilator all day so far. His vitals remain good but he is not very alert today which is different from yesterday. Previously when they had withdrawn the Propofol he was awake and alert almost immediately. Today, he's had some periods of alertness but mostly just been sleeping. The doctor has ordered a new drug to help him wake, as well as a change in antibiotic to better deal with the secretion in the lungs.

A new CT scan is on order to make sure that there have been no changes within the brain that we should worry about.

Dad was off the vent and sedative again when we arrived today at 9:00 AM. His vitals are good this morning, BP is down and his blood oxygen is 98%. He still has some secretion in his lungs and needs to be able to cough on his own. Doing some of that but they need to suction him to keep him clear. His nurse today is Jon who is very good. His blood gas results came back and they looked fine.

Day 5

Still early here, and can't yet get in to see dad, so thought I would write a post.

It must have been hard for mom to be in this situation on her birthday, but we did what we could to celebrate. Dad did his part by staying off the ventilator and sedative for about 4 hours. During that time he was somewhat active, moving his left leg and arm, squeezing our hand and making good eye contact when we talked to him. Kevin and Pam took mom shopping and found her a nice sweater to keep her warm in the chilly hospital room, and Dusty got a haircut so he looked his best. We took mom to Jason's deli for lunch, which was her request and then to TGI Fridays for a light dinner and some dessert.

We're not sure what's in store for dad today. They said that they would continue to work him off the vent every day until he could be on his own. I think today the kids need to try to figure out coverage for next week, with work schedules and all. I think today I'll try to read to dad some. Maybe some of his favorite scriptures.

Please keep him in your pryers. I continues to pray for healing, but also peace for him. It must be so hard to wake, and not know what's going on, or be able to communicate. Sometimes I see what looks like that anxiety in his eyes, and I just ask God to give him peace.


Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. ~ John 14:27

Picture

The attending neurologist (Spencer Miller) was in today and talked with us and also showed us his images Dad is doing a little better but still has a lot of swelling. He is off the sedation and is breathing on his own. He responds by squeezing a hand, but has not many other ways. The lung doc (Dr. Eid) says he's not awake enough to take out the tube, but he is breathing on his own.

Just got to the hospital and dad is now breathing on his own.  He seems pretty groggy now.  Need to find out if he is still on the Propofol.

Nurse just said that he is not on the propofol right now.

We got his hearing aides in.  His vitals are a little higher today. (BP, Heartrate, etc)