Posted on 03/11/2006 7:35:59 AM PST by Luke Skyfreeper
Thanks for the reply, onyx. Much appreciated.
Continued prayers for y'all, Luke.
The wound will be fine. Just watch for signs of infection and keep it CLEAN.
She's young and she'll heal faster than you can anticipate right now. I know you're worried and unsder alot of strain and stress. Take care you too.
If it helps you at all, I had the same thing with a gunshot wound many years ago. The darn thing got infected and I had an "open wound" for about three weeks until my body could fight it off and start healing naturally. Tell Mama to clean and pack it as directed, and in a few days (usually 7-10 days), you will see a lot of improvement. Plus that, Mama's cookin', and stories from Dad and smiles and hugs/kisses, are still the best medicine in the world, and your little girl will be up and at'em shortly. You need to quit worrying so much as that will affect all of your family more than the wound itself. Just thank God she is doing as well as she can be, and leave it with Him. It does work, you know.
One time when having surgery the surgeon recommended that I take Zinc in order to help the incision heal quicker. Now I take Zinc whenever I have a wound that is slow to heal. Seems to work well.
Will continue to keep your family in my prayers.
I am not a medical professional and I won't play one hear, but I have heard of situations in which it was deemed better to leave a wound open for a time so, while that can be kind of yucky to deal with, if done with care, it is probably just fine. We're just going to have to keep you all in our prayers a bit longer and increase our efforts :)
Just saw the thread. Thoughts and prayers for you and your family.
Continuing my prayers
I highly doubt that she would be treated differently. In fact, my experience has been that people on Medicaid have MORE resources available for treatment than those with private insurance (I'm a Pediatric RN in an outpatient clinic). Although I'm not a wound specialist, it sounds as though this is the appropriate treatment. In addition, there are far less germs in your own home than there are in the hospital, so she is better off at home. As for wound healing, adequate protein intake is what will help the wound to heal.
Been wondering how things have been going Luke. Thank you for the update. I will remember you in my prayers and hope you will take comfort in knowing that the Lord is with you as deal with these challenges. It sounds like you are doing all the right things with regards to Sara's wound care. And based on my experience your insurance situation didn't have anything to do with your getting the boot from the hospital! They are like that to everybody these days! (hah-hah.) May you be blessed with the Lord's continued grace in the upcoming days to keep you strong and balanced. Keeping you in our FReeper thoughts. Dinah
"Immediately Jesus spoke to them and said, 'Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.'"--Matthew 14:27
I don't really think that being in the hospital is necesarily the best thing at this time. Hospitals are full of germs, that's where sick people go and where she obviously got the infection, so home is probably the best place. Sara is probably more comfortable anyway with those who love her most.
Any hyparbaric chambers near there?
http://www.hbomedtoday.com/
Prayers for your child...........
Luke, when my husband came home from surgery his wound was partially opened. A nurse was assigned to attend to it for two days, but when she found out my husband was a smoker she refused to come unless he promised not to smoke while she was here. I can't post what he told her she could do, so anyway it was up to me to care for the wound.
I always have grape seed extract (Herbal Antibiotic) in the house so I added 3 drops into a clean small spray bottle with water and used it on the wound after I washed it with grape seed extract soap 3 times a day.
We went to the doctor's 3 days later for a checkup and he was amazed at how well the wound was healing after such a little time. We had his approval to continue this method until the wound was completely healed.
Praying for her full recovery, Luke. God Bless.
On the way God bless You All
Prayers continued for your family and Sara.
Let me tell you about my son....
He was in the 5th grade and his appendix ruptured...the infection was so bad...that they couldn't close the incision...it had to be left open, and we had to pack the incision with gauze and saline solution..AT HOME.
We had insurance that paid 100%...and this was about 10 years ago...before insurance companies got hospitals and doctors to send patients home "early" to save costs.
He made a full recovery..he does have a scar...because it was never sewn up...but I was told that if we hadn't taken him to emergency when we did..and waited more that a few hours he would have died..because of so much infection.
Therefore...I personally do not see that the care given your daughter has anything to do with your lack of insurance. We were told to try to keep his sister, if she was ill with anything contagious away from him if possible..
But, the main warning was to keep the site clean, and the packing changed per instructions...and to be sure and take ALL of the antibiotics he was prescribed.
He missed over 1 month from school..and was not allowed to play sports for two months...
I don't know if this will help you or not..or make you feel better about the care he is getting.
Having worked in hospitals and in the medical field...I would NEVER hesitate to call or take her to the hospital if you feel anything needs done...they don't care about your insurance, IMHO...but they do care about your daughter.
I will continue to pray for her and for you---I know from experience how hard it is to change the area...you just want to cry for your baby having to go through that...just know that I am praying for you all...
God Bless you..
sleuth
"Luke" - this may seem an odd thing to compare Sara's incision with, but bear with me. Some years ago I had a cat who got an abcess on his neck from a cat fight. So much tissue had become necrotic that the cat had a hole in his neck about the size of a 50 cent piece after the surgery to clean out the infection. (It was ghastly to look at because I could see things not meant for non-veterinarians.) The doctor said to keep the cat indoors for six weeks while the hole closed.
He said if he sewed it shut, another infection would form and not have anywhere to drain. Leaving the wound open was the only way it was going to heal.
Six weeks later, the cat's neck was healed up completely, and he went on to have a strong recovery, which had been in doubt at first. The doctor said he'd never seen such a bad abcess.
So take heart about the way Sara's body is being allowed to heal, and know that with all our prayers, God is working for your precious little girl.
I don't know about your state, but in AZ people with state insurance don't get inferior care. If Sara has a wound infection, it seems to me she should be on IV antibiotics.
If she isn't, consult another physician.
You are all in my prayers.
Prayers for your daughter. She is better off at home than in hospital! And it's much easier on the family.
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