Friday, 30th October

And just like that there was a turn for the worst....

So much for Jimmy feeling so much better on Wednesday.  On Thursday morning he woke up saying he was feeling even worse.  I took his temperature and it was 38.  Prior to remission he had to be taken straight to high care if his temperature reached 37 so I wasn't too sure of what to do.  I phoned Sister Olivia at the chemo clinic to ask for her advice and she said she would speak to his Dr (at UCTPAH) and Prof Novitzky and come back to me.

We had to go through to the chemo clinic for a 2:30pm appointment so he could be assessed and advised what to do.  By the time we got to the car park Jimmy was too weak to walk so he went in, in a wheelchair.  His temperature was just under 40 degrees and his blood pressure was 87/50.  They admitted him straight into high care and did chest x-rays and took some bloods.  Prof was going to see him later and his diagnoses was a suspected pneumonia.

By 8:30pm we still didn't have x-ray results back or the blood results but Prof had been to see him.  He was put on a drip as well as antibiotics to bring his temp down which was still high and put on adrenaline to try and bring his blood pressure up which was dangerously low.

This morning at 3am the sister from high care phoned to tell me that they had moved Jimmy to ICU because his temp had gone up further, blood pressure was still dropping and he was having difficulty breathing.  Prof was with him and he saw Jimmy again before 8am this morning and later in the morning again.

I was shocked to see what Jimmy looked like when I got to ICU.  He was not in a good space.  His platelets were 16, white blood cell count was 0,24 and his haemoglobin was 6,5. His temperature was 40 and blood pressure still low.  They ordered two blood transfusions for him and when I left the first bag was going in.  They were still keeping him nil per mouth as he was having difficulty breathing and were standing by to intubate him (put a pipe down his throat to help him breath).  There was a sister assigned to sit next to him all the time to monitor his vitals on the screen and take his temperature every 15 minutes.  They had already put a Hickman line in his neck as his veins are stuffed from all the needles he has had over the last 18months and they had automatic blow up cuffs on his legs for circulation because his blood pressure is so low.  He was absolutely exhausted but could not sleep and talking a lot and asking a lot of questions but not really making sense and mumbling to himself all the time.

At 13:30pm the doctor in charge of ICU came to see me.  He explained that the x-rays had shown up a small dark patch on Jimmy's lung/s and although there was still no actual diagnoses, as they were waiting for blood cultures, they suspect that his bronchitis infection got into his blood and caused Septicemia.  He also said "that there are a couple of things going on here" but I haven't seen Prof myself yet to get a clearer picture.  By this time Jimmy's temperature had come down to 37,2 and at long last he had fallen asleep.  The doctor said that Jimmy is a very sick man and we were by no means out of the woods yet but he was a lot better than he had been at 3am this morning.  His breathing was also holding up on his own but they are still keeping him nil per mouth until they know for 100% he won't need to be intubated.

Seeing him this morning brought back all the horrible memories of when he was fighting for his life in F4 and I have to say walking down the hospital passage and smelling the hospital food being prepared made my stomach turn.  Although not a nice place for me anymore (and I am sure Jimmy too) I do know it's the best place for Jimmy to be and as always he is in very good hands.  The staff at UCTPAH always go beyond the call of duty.

I phoned ICU just after 6pm to see how Jimmy is and his temperature has come down to 36,2. 

A big thank you to you all for all your positive messages and prayers, its amazing how quickly the news spread.  This is just another dirt road trip on our journey and we will overcome this one too.

Wednesday, 28th October

Just a quick update as I have had a few calls from concerned colleagues...

Jimmy has had a chesty cough on and off for the last month and on Monday he went to the doctor.  He has bronchitis and also had chest x-rays done on Tuesday but these are clear so no pneumonia.

He is feeling a little better today after being man down since Sunday evening with no energy and should be back at work tomorrow.  It is good to know that his body is strong enough to fight the onset on pneumonia.