11/13/2008 - Fourth Surgery

When I called in the morning, I was told that Terumi was about to be moved to a regular room, and I let Carolyn in my office know that. She passed the word along, and I got a few happy emails.

When I arrived and walked into SICU, there was complete chaos. Terumi was trying to climb out of the bed, and had one leg almost over the railing. I yelled, "What are you doing!! Terumi Tokita, you get back in that bed!!"

The nurse said he sat up or got up, vomited, and broke his dressing. Dr. Blau's version was more plausible. Terumi had pulled out his feeding tube, then he doubled over to throw up, and when he did that, some of the stitching holding his dressing pulled out. I signed the consent for another surgery.

Just then he had to throw up again. The nurse wasn't there, so I grabbed a pan to put under his head and emptied it twice. Finally the nurse pulled him up in the bed, and brought a bigger pan. Dr. Blau was not happy with the vomiting, and said they would pump Terumi's stomach. As they wheeled him past into surgery, I yelled, "Gambatte!!"

While waiting for them to come out of surgery, I had to reply to Carolyn and others at my office, that I spoke too soon about Terumi being moved to a regular room.

Dr. Blau came in afterwards and explained to me what they did and how the wound looked. He said he would try to close the abdomen on Monday. He also said Terumi would have a hernia while he healed, but that they would have to fix it later.

When I went in to see Terumi, he was asleep, again with a breathing tube. Oh, Terumi, why did you do that?? Why didn't they tie you down? My son's friend, Peter, had warned me that you aren't in your right mind. Peter said he himself had decked a nurse (punched her out cold) while in the hospital on a painkiller, and later I found out that it is not at all uncommon for people to pull out their tubes.

Tomorrow at least Taketo is coming to see him. I know he will be tired after surgery. Who wouldn't be . . . and he had quite an active day to boot.