Thursday, January 22, 2009

Things have been going fairly well for Mark now that he's alone. Jess returned to Australia safely last week and is diligently working on getting a new visa that will allow her to stay longer and be able to work and study. We are keeping our fingers crossed!!

Some new patients have finally joined Mark in the Transitional program. He called today and was a bit frustrated over the fact that the clothes washer for their unit does not work. Seems it was dropped when it was delivered weeks and weeks ago and has not been repaired. I guess from what Mark tells me there is sub-contractor involved that doesn't respond to phone calls and has not been there to repair or replace the unit. Now they have a washer and dryer on the 5 North unit, but Mark cannot get up the hill to the main hospital and carry a laundry basket at the same time. Getting help hasn't been easy and he is frustrated. While Jess was there, they were able to do the laundry at the Fisher House, and after she left last week, the girls at the house invited Mark over and helped him with his laundry. They have been told he cannot come to use the machines there. Needless to say he was a bit frustrated and vented to me.

All in all, he is doing very well on his own, which is wonderful. He continues to improve, although he has been having some back pain lately. He did get a new brace and says it is somewhat more comfortable but wearing for long periods of time have made him sore, so they have cut down on his time in it for now. Meanwhile, he bought himself a mandolin and is attempting to learn how to play it. He hopes to get help from his speech pathologist who plays and got him interested in the first place.

Rich is doing fabulous in the shoulder department. He has rehab twice a week and does exercises every day. The doctor was very pleased with his recovery so far. He has much more range of movement and much less pain than he had before the surgery. We are very encouraged. We will be visiting Mark when his round of therapy is done and are looking forward to seeing him and enjoying warmer weather.