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Headed for Stanford - Printable Version

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- Jackie - 02-07-2001

Hi Everyone,

Just wanted to let the moderators know that I'm headed to Stanford Medical Center in Palo Alto for surgery tomorrow. I've been putting this off for years & it's time to bite the proverbial bullet...

It may be 3 or 4 weeks before I can work online again. In the meantime, I'd just like to say THANKS to our great moderators and all the board members who contribute to keep things running so smoothly.

Til soon. Enjoy a nice glass of wine for me!!

Your webmaster,
Jackie

(The surgery is a colectomy to fix diverticulosis... A fixable problem, I'm glad to say. I'll be back before you miss me.)

[This message has been edited by Jackie (edited 02-07-2001).]


- winoweenie - 02-08-2001

Good Luck, Godspeed , and we already miss you WW


- hotwine - 02-08-2001

Godspeed, Jackie!
Gil


- Drew - 02-08-2001

You'll be in my prayers, hurry back.

Drew


- Thomas - 02-08-2001

Jackie, be safe and be back soon.


- mrdutton - 02-09-2001

Toasted to your good health last night. Come back soon.


- Wallace - 02-19-2001

Just hung up the phone with Jackie. She was in the hospital for 9 days, got home Friday. Her surgery was extremely difficult, lasted 5 1/2 hours, all kinds of problems but she's a strong girl and is pulling through nicely, actually ate solid food last night.

Says she is looking at at least five weeks recovery time.

She asks that I thank all of you for your concern and extends the hope you will drink at least one really good bottle of wine to her good health.


- Innkeeper - 02-19-2001

She's been in our prayers and in our toasts every night since the 7th.


- winoweenie - 02-19-2001

Jackie, You can bet your bippie I'll drink at least a bottle a nite. Thanks Jim for giving us the info on this sweet person. WW


- Bucko - 02-19-2001

Dang, go away for two weeks and everyone falls apart. Thanks for the update, Jim, and best to Jackie if you are reading this.

Bucko


- hotwine - 02-19-2001

Aha! The Buckfin is back from terrorizing the natives of the South Pacific. Welcome!


- Bucko - 02-19-2001

}:>

Man, what a time! Ate anything and everything, including fruit bat soup..... that is not a repeat. Nice diving, lovely sights, lots of good memories.

Bucko


- winoweenie - 02-20-2001

Buckie-poo, velchum back! I dint' know the natives had taken up baseball. WW


- Bucko - 02-20-2001

No tops either -- would have caused an old wino like you to buy new glasses. ;-)

It is shameful to let your thighs be seen in public, but breasts were open for viewing like a corpse in a funeral home....

Bucko


- winoweenie - 02-21-2001

" Thighs be seen in Public". My CB took down the mirrors in the bathrooms so mine can't be seen PERIOD! WW


- winophite - 03-06-2008

I hope this had a good outcome. I recently spoke casually to a doctor acquantance who mentioned a surgical intervention was a possibility. Only been managed through slightly modified diet for several years only one itis in the last 8 mos. I just came across this and wondered. WP


- Jackie - 03-18-2008

Well, it's a very long story. The 2001 surgery for the colon was successful; HOWEVER, I developed a fever/infection in post-op. The incision was re-opened and I was housebound for over two months with an open wound that wouldn't heal.

Finally, they did a scan and found a surgical sponge had been left inside me. Dr. Pamela Foster (the surgeon) called me to give me the news. She said they had found a sponge on the scan. She admitted that the sponge count at the time of surgery came up wrong (one sponge was missing) but she claimed they did an x-ray and she didn't see it inside me at the time. SO SHE HAD SAID NOTHING TO ME AND MADE NO NOTATION IN THE RECORD OF A SPONGE BEING MISSING... The X-ray (if there was one) was also missing and could not be found.

Long story short, when they discovered the sponge was inside me, of course, they had to re-operate to remove the sponge. They removed it and found it was infected. In addition to receiving tons of antibiotics, the two major abdominal surgeries had now weakened my abdominal wall so much that within 4 months I developed a hernia where the incisions had been made. The hernia was painful and ultimately grew to the size of a large cantaloupe. I had to have 4 more surgeries to fix the hernia. It took over four years to resolve all this, during which time I was in constant pain. I now have a mesh in place of my abdominal wall and still suffer from back pain.

In the malpractice suit, Dr. Foster and Stanford Hospital claimed that there was "no harm" done, even though they had to admit to the retained sponge. They claimed all the complications had nothing to do with them leaving the sponge inside me. Sure!!!

I'm sure this will not happen to you. But the part that is scary is this... I trusted my surgeon to be competent and, even if a mistake is made, to be honest about it and take responsibility for her actions. The fact that she did not mention the missing sponge to me right after the surgery & did not make any mention of it in my medical records AT ALL proves she was not up front with me all along. In my opinion, this is unethical and indefensible. Stanford Medical Center apparently backed her story without really questioning her unethical behavior as far as I could see.

There was a law suit and, after 3 long years, a settlement was made. But it was very limited by the malpractice laws in California, which set a maximum award of $250K to patients (protecting insurance companies) and not nearly sufficient to compensate me for the attorneys, multiple surgeries, and four years of pain and suffering.

Well you asked, so there it is. The surgery turned into a real horror story. The only good news is that my colon (they removed only about 4 inches) now works like it used to. I can eat seeds and nuts which I had to avoid for years prior to the surgery. So, in one way, it was a success. But the recovery should have taken only four weeks instead of four long, painful years. I hope your surgery, if you have it, goes better than mine. All I can say is be very, very careful who your surgeon is...




[This message has been edited by Jackie (edited 03-18-2008).]


- winophite - 03-18-2008

Thanks Jackie for this info. I'm sorry to bring up this old memory. I am an xray tech and my "specialty" (while not an official designation) is surgery. Our small 250+ bed hospital has recieved national aclaim in several areas. I have done several films for off counts, from needles to sponges only once finding one left inside, (they immediatly went in to get it). Most often they are found through searching floors and trash bags which are not mopped or disposed of until counts are right. Maybe smaller is better in hospitals.

I'm leary of posting an address but I'm already spammed like crazy so what the heck...I just delete them unopened. If your willing to answer any other questions privately, please drop a note to: xrayscott@sbcglobal.net If not I completely understand. Thanks again. WP


- winoweenie - 03-18-2008

What an absolute bummer Jackie Love. I've heard so many hospital horror stories that I've decided that when I get sick I'm going holistic. Hope all is going to be better in the future. WW


- TheEngineer - 03-18-2008

Ouch, that is a horrible story. And to limit the lawsuit to $250K???? I would be awfully tempted to then take matters into my own hands and make sure that "no harm" was really done to them...... I'm glad that you made it through that okay in the end and hope that the remainder of the pain goes away.