Captain's blog, stardate blah, blah, blah...The Code-Name/Working-Title "The Alien" is retired; he's now "Crash"--he made an early, exigent "hard landing" 03:13 EDT (07:13Z) 26 JUL 10--seven (7) weeks early.
So, Sunday (25 JUL 10) Mein Liebchen wasn't feeling well and we took a nap o/a 15:00 EDT. O/a 15:30 EDT "The Storm" rolled in and took out the power.
O/a 18:00 EDT bored, without power (or A/C) and the apartment getting hot and stuffy we decided to go out-n-about for a bit. At 18:30 EDT as we neared Pierce Mill "Pull over now--I need to stand up..."
Skipping a bunch of minutia, later when we got back to The Lair Mein Liebchen noticed blood when she went to the bathroom (in the dark, still no power--"thanks" PEPCO)...
Petal-to-the-metal and punching-lights we hit the doors of Sibley Labor & Delivery at 01:30 EDT...
Dr. Sartawi, who was on call for Drs. Reiter, Hill, Johnson & Nevin (Dr. Engel is our primary OB/GYN), at Sibley decided he wasn't moving enough and that she didn't like what she was seeing and delivered him by crash Caesarean section due to placental abruption. He had a low heart beat, 40, which disappeared--he was down for 11 minutes.
"Crash":
Male
03:13 EDT (07:13Z) 26 SEP 10
4 lbs 5.8 oz (1,979 grams)
18 inches (45.72 cm)
So Dr. Sartawi comes and tells me that Mein Liebchen is fine and that "Crash" made a "hard landing" and is on ventilator.
Dr. Sartawi: Blah, blah, blah
Me: "So, what I'm hearing is everyone's alive and breathing--correct?"
Dr. Sartawi: "Yes"
Me: "Kewl beans, then keep me informed."
Skipping forward a bit: about an hour later he was doing much better and though on a ventilator it was set to the lowest setting--meaning "Crash" was doing most of the work.
O/a 20:00 EDT the decision was taken to transfer "Crash" from Sibley, which is a Level II NICU*, to Georgetown NICU, which is a Level III NICU, to evaluate him for seizures and treat as required/appropriate. Georgetown NICU's Neonatal Transport Team arrived in short order to transfer "Crash" to his new digs. (Sibley and Georgetown are 3.2 miles apart).
[*: Neonatal Intensive Care Unit]
Talked to Dr. Mehta at Georgetown NICU this morning regarding "Crash" and the "global" and specific effects and possible effects of the placental abruption. They're going to, by now (14:50 EDT) probably have, give "Crash" an EEG.
Mein Liebchen is "climbing the walls" here at Sibley--she wants to be with "Crash". So after chin-wags with Dr. Sartawi, Dr. Mehta and Dr. Abraham (the attending on duty at Sibley)--and calls between the three of them--the decision has been taken to transfer her to Georgetown as well.
Gotta shout out to the teams in Sibley's Labor & Delivery, Special Care Nursery and 5-West units particularly and the staff in general.
BTW, Sibley has one of the best implementations of tech I've seen in the healthcare sector. Pictured at right is one of Mein Liebchen's nurses using a wireless tablet this morning to update her chart and records. Tia Aida says, "Max... it's called Nursing Informatics, and it's the wave of the future in maintaining & documenting care on electronic health records that are real time and more accurate. The goal is to prevent medical errors!"
Well, gotta distract Mein Liebchen 'til they get here to transfer her--she threatened to get dressed and go for a walk...
My son, Astin, was born at 28 weeks with a whopping 2 pounds 12 ounces birth weight. Today, he is an almost 22-year-old brainy, athletic, musically-gifted smart-ass with a charm streak a mile wide. He's never displayed any side-effects what-so-ever of his shockingly early arrival, despite dire predictions -- especially dire at that time in neonatal history at the height of the crack-baby epidemic with resources stretched to the breaking point.
ReplyDeleteWhat I am trying to say is... Mighty Mini Max is going to rock this town, mark my words! Congratulations again!
All my best,
Kirsten
PS To see the ugliest baby on record featuring zero body fat and attached to every wire the neonatal could attach, check out the album on my FB called "Astin Through the Years".
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/album.php?aid=14214&id=502794389
Tia Aida says: Mini Max is a blessed gift to all of us, and a testament to how resilient babies are to the birthing process whether is occurs early, later, or on time. Our Mini Max is TINY BUT MIGHTY....and when he hits those terrible two's, he is going to make a fool out of his aging parents, tia, and everyone else who will be chasing him up and down as we watch him run and grow. As for Daddy Max.....this is just the beginning.....Love ya, Tia Aida
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