Got the next contract signed and ready. Headed to Vancouver Washington for 13 weeks. Maybe I'll start updating the blog regularly again. The trip to Houston hasn't particularly been anything I wanted to tell the world about.
Vancouver looks nice. Can't wait to get on the road. The trip alone will be more adventure and excitement (the good kind we hope) than we had in all of our stay here in Houston. I enjoyed working with the fine people of Houston Northwest Medical Center and will miss them. But...it is time to go.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Friday, February 25, 2011
A lesson in customer service.
There was a change in plans.
Instead of whisking away to the American Southwest for our next stop we stayed in Houston to deal with some oncological OB/GYN problems. This has been yet another trip through the healthcare system from the patient's perspective. This is almost always highly educational. This time is no exception.
We sat with contract in hand preparing to sign when the phone rang. It was Sarah's OB saying some blood tests had come back elevated and that cyst looked different and he thought it should just come out. So, we scheduled the surgery for two days later. YAY expediency! Still, probably not wise to commit to a contract a few states away until we had more info. Surgery day, the doctor comes out of surgery and informs me that he found some things he didn't like and it was either endometriosis (prognosis - irritating but not a big deal.) or carcinomatosis (prognosis - 18 - 24 months to live with multiple invasive and quality of life reducing surgeries to get you that far) He would know for sure by next week. Oh yeah, did I mention that this was on the LAST DAY of my contract here? Yeah, no stress. Luckily, my contacted hospital was willing to renew my contract for 10 more weeks while we sorted this out. This was a long ugly weekend. Customer service in healthcare lesson #1 "Don't tell someone they might have a horrible fatal disease unless you KNOW they do." Now, I see where this one can't be a hard and fast rule. I think he really believed that it was carcinomatosis. He wanted to prepare us for the worst.
Then we found out about a specialty in medicine. There are such things as Oncology OB/GYN surgeons. Turns out there are doctors who do nothing but deal with cancers of female reproductive organs. Now we had to deal with this guy.
Turns out our lesson from the regular OB doctor was but a minor quibble. That, is for the next post.
Instead of whisking away to the American Southwest for our next stop we stayed in Houston to deal with some oncological OB/GYN problems. This has been yet another trip through the healthcare system from the patient's perspective. This is almost always highly educational. This time is no exception.
We sat with contract in hand preparing to sign when the phone rang. It was Sarah's OB saying some blood tests had come back elevated and that cyst looked different and he thought it should just come out. So, we scheduled the surgery for two days later. YAY expediency! Still, probably not wise to commit to a contract a few states away until we had more info. Surgery day, the doctor comes out of surgery and informs me that he found some things he didn't like and it was either endometriosis (prognosis - irritating but not a big deal.) or carcinomatosis (prognosis - 18 - 24 months to live with multiple invasive and quality of life reducing surgeries to get you that far) He would know for sure by next week. Oh yeah, did I mention that this was on the LAST DAY of my contract here? Yeah, no stress. Luckily, my contacted hospital was willing to renew my contract for 10 more weeks while we sorted this out. This was a long ugly weekend. Customer service in healthcare lesson #1 "Don't tell someone they might have a horrible fatal disease unless you KNOW they do." Now, I see where this one can't be a hard and fast rule. I think he really believed that it was carcinomatosis. He wanted to prepare us for the worst.
Then we found out about a specialty in medicine. There are such things as Oncology OB/GYN surgeons. Turns out there are doctors who do nothing but deal with cancers of female reproductive organs. Now we had to deal with this guy.
Turns out our lesson from the regular OB doctor was but a minor quibble. That, is for the next post.
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Next contract
Here we are. Next contract is in Yuma Arizona. I love my Houston people and there are some things here I am really going to miss while we are gone. That being said, I can't wait to hit the road. We stay way too busy and spend way too much money here. There is constantly someone to visit, somewhere to go, doctor visits, dentist, vet, family, Kaju classes. No time for much else. Including this blog.
Perhaps there will be a little more discretionary time on the next contract.
On the side of the RV we placed a large map sticker that is the outline of the USA. It includes individual state stickers. We will be getting three new stickers this trip. New Mexico, Arizona and California. There are rules about sticker placement, as there must be in this sort of thing. The RV must stay the night in the state with all of us in it or no sticker. I wonder how full we can get that map.
Good to be back to adventure.
Perhaps there will be a little more discretionary time on the next contract.
On the side of the RV we placed a large map sticker that is the outline of the USA. It includes individual state stickers. We will be getting three new stickers this trip. New Mexico, Arizona and California. There are rules about sticker placement, as there must be in this sort of thing. The RV must stay the night in the state with all of us in it or no sticker. I wonder how full we can get that map.
Good to be back to adventure.
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
So little time
I have so little time here in Houston. It seems like all the time I do have is used visiting family, going to Kaju or working on Irv. (Irv is the RV's name. Pulled by Flo. Yeah, I'm a geek. Get used to it.)
Already searching for the next contract. Hopefully it will be somewhere a little calmer, a little more scenic and a whole lot less people. I might even have time to update my blog once in a while and do a whole handful of those other things I have been meaning to do, but haven't been able to.
Hope you all had a happy holiday.
Already searching for the next contract. Hopefully it will be somewhere a little calmer, a little more scenic and a whole lot less people. I might even have time to update my blog once in a while and do a whole handful of those other things I have been meaning to do, but haven't been able to.
Hope you all had a happy holiday.
Friday, November 26, 2010
Seizures
For any of you that might be tempted...
It is almost impossible to fake a seizure so well that a trained ER nurse or doctor can't tell. We have our ways. Sometimes those ways are hilarious.
So, don't try it. you won't get away with it.
It is almost impossible to fake a seizure so well that a trained ER nurse or doctor can't tell. We have our ways. Sometimes those ways are hilarious.
So, don't try it. you won't get away with it.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Wifi
Haven't updated the blog lately. I can talk about that.
Like anything that brings great joy, wifi can also bring great frustration. At this campground it isn't any better than at Camelot. It might even be worse. The problem here is that the connection to the park wifi is usually really good. Then, the connection to the internet either stinks or doesn't work at all. This means that my precious few minutes of internet time a day are used up doing minor things like scanning and sending timesheets or arranging for ACLS and PALS classes. I can't get to the important things like updating this blog.
As it is, the website is warning me that the last autosave didn't work because the connection was interrupted. I guess it is time to take the crap shoot and see if this post ever sees the light of day. Wish me luck.
Like anything that brings great joy, wifi can also bring great frustration. At this campground it isn't any better than at Camelot. It might even be worse. The problem here is that the connection to the park wifi is usually really good. Then, the connection to the internet either stinks or doesn't work at all. This means that my precious few minutes of internet time a day are used up doing minor things like scanning and sending timesheets or arranging for ACLS and PALS classes. I can't get to the important things like updating this blog.
As it is, the website is warning me that the last autosave didn't work because the connection was interrupted. I guess it is time to take the crap shoot and see if this post ever sees the light of day. Wish me luck.
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
New job, new park.
I started orientation for the new job. This is one of things that goes on the 'con' list for travel nursing. I don't care who you are, a two hour video on corporate compliance is NOT fun. Hours in front of a computer filling out forms and testing over policy and procedure manuals that are all really similar. Oh well, small price.
We have landed in a new RV park as well. The park is physically set up with almost a cul-de-sac in the back. We are there with the rest of the longer term people. Some of whom are here every year and some who have been here for a year or more. It is quite a friendly and very socially active group. Much different than the park in P-Bluff. Very not used to this. One of the families is a younger couple with a 3 year old son. They seem really nice and our boys all get along well. That is definitely a plus.
The park has a private fish pond where Michael caught his first fish. He was very excited. Then the neighbor boy showed up and Michael forgot all about it. The attention span of a 4-year old.
I am still struggling with the switch to waking up at 0530-0600 every morning and commuting through traffic again. Don't miss that at all. I also scratched my eye over the weekend and appear to have developed a minor infection. Waking up with a crusty, gummy, glued shut eye every morning is no fun either. It also makes the computer testing and course work even more fun. Again...oh well.
Life is good.
We have landed in a new RV park as well. The park is physically set up with almost a cul-de-sac in the back. We are there with the rest of the longer term people. Some of whom are here every year and some who have been here for a year or more. It is quite a friendly and very socially active group. Much different than the park in P-Bluff. Very not used to this. One of the families is a younger couple with a 3 year old son. They seem really nice and our boys all get along well. That is definitely a plus.
The park has a private fish pond where Michael caught his first fish. He was very excited. Then the neighbor boy showed up and Michael forgot all about it. The attention span of a 4-year old.
I am still struggling with the switch to waking up at 0530-0600 every morning and commuting through traffic again. Don't miss that at all. I also scratched my eye over the weekend and appear to have developed a minor infection. Waking up with a crusty, gummy, glued shut eye every morning is no fun either. It also makes the computer testing and course work even more fun. Again...oh well.
Life is good.
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