Thursday 6 April 2006 - Operation day

06.00am - Tea and toast

07.20am – Shower

08.00am – Last post Op drink [water]

08.40am – Pandemonium! A patient in the next bay to ours appears to be in serious difficulty. I am unsure if he has had a Cardiac arrest or if he has stopped breathing but staff are arriving in numbers from all over the place. The curtains have gone around his bed but you can hear the concern from those around him. One voice, of a female nurse, could be heard above all the others trying to get him to respond to simple requests in a reassuring manner. I would not have thought this is a usual occurrence in the hospital because of the amount of personnel now surrounding his bed: I can see between a gap in the curtain and the window wall that separates the two bays that there are several people around his bed trying to get him to respond.
He awakes but is unsure of where he is; his eyes must be constantly opening and closing, in and out of consciousness I guess.

09.00am – All the panic, as controlled as it is, appears to be over they are still trying to get the poor man to stay awake.

Meanwhile, I had a visit from the Surgeon, who apologises for not recognising me. I can see no reason why he should remember me, he must see countless other cases, but he is genuinely concerned that I look ‘different’: I assure him it must be the new pyjamas instead of the usual black attire.

I may get called into the theatre earlier than expected [I hope it is not at the expense of the guy in the next bay] and have to sign the consent form for the operation.

The man in the next bay may have had a stroke and it has now been over an hour since he first gave cause for concern: keep fighting mate, stay awake.

It has now been 2 hours and he is still keeping them on their toes.