First, I want to thank all who have emailed me, left Facebook or blogger comments or just told me in person how much they have enjoyed my blog. It has been very therapeutic, and hopefully it has informed my readers about what can happen when you’re diagnosed and treated for breast cancer. This brings me to a topic about which I have not previously written related to the horrid little clear plastic drain tubing placed in surgical incisions during the operation. I understand this is common in all kinds of surgeries and if you’ve had this experience, you will totally relate to this story.
I woke up with these pesky medical piping devices after my mastectomy and reconstruction surgery in three locations. As I understand they are placed near the incision sites to prevent blood and other unidentified body fluid (hereafter referred to as “gook”) from building up in the area of the procedures. The “What to Expect” booklet indicated they may be uncomfortable and inconvenient, but worth the trouble. Well, let me just say, these words “uncomfortable and inconvenient” are an UNDERSTATEMENT!
The patient guide should have read, “These little boogers are going to hurt like hell and will probably make you want to throw up anytime someone messes with them. Furthermore if you get a drain site infected, It's NOT good! ” You see, the nurse would come in two or three times a day (and night) to measure the gook that is draining into a plastic flask and would record it in my chart. The way this is done is by sliding several fingers down the tube into something that looks like a small plastic flask (this is called stripping the drain). Then the gook in the flask is poured into separate little Dixie cups to measure output. It’s a very high tech process. The plastic flasks are numbered so when the nurse pours the gook in the associated numbered Dixie cup, it can be documented on the gook sheet. When the drains stop expelling gook greater than a certain amount, they take out the drains and THEN you can take a shower.
But let me back up a bit, and give you some background. In the patient guide it says some patients may have drains two or three weeks. During this period they should not take a shower or bath (OMG!) I believe this part of the instructions was written by some paranoid malpractice attorney because that is ridiculous! No offense to lawyers, but this is a little extreme to minimize the risk of infection, don’t you think? Seriously, can you imagine the stench of someone who did not take a shower for three weeks – talk about infection and bad hair! But the good news was the medical people ignore this rule (and I didn’t remind anyone) and was allowed to take a shower on Day 3 (with my flowing gook and drains in place). Sorry that might have been a little graphic.
As in many hospitals, nursing staff is minimum and never around when you need them. After my doctor allowed me to take a shower, I was Gung HO to get it done pronto! About three or four hours later, two sweet, young, student nurses appear in my room and announce it is bath time! Apparently their instructions were to keep my IV port, drain sites and incisions dry while assisting me in the shower. I quickly discovered they had NO experience or training in showering a patient. Furthermore, no one had given them any instructions than what I mentioned earlier.
The first thing they did was saran wrap my IV port and taped it up with surgical tape (this should have been my first red flag). Next they safety pinned the plastic drain flasks to my gown so when I stood up, the weight of these pesky devises would not jerk out of my tender incisions and cause me to have a heart attack. Actually, this was my idea since it wasn’t my first rodeo getting out of bed. I hope they took note of this tip for future patients.
Then they stood me up and the three of us headed toward the shower. Have I mentioned one of the student nurses was VERY pregnant? Yes, she told me she was due in two or three weeks (Oh great!) Okay, so they placed me in the shower and told me to sit down on the little bench. I was relived they were going to let me rest a bit before I had to stand up to undress. But then Nurse #1 (the non-pregnant one) surprised me when she turns on the water and starts hosing me down (fully clothed). When I asked why they weren't taking off my gown they both looked at me like I just asked something ridiculous. Then I suddenly remembered they must think the hospital gown will keep my drains and incisions dry. It is at this moment I’m mentally debating if I should pull the emergency “help” cord in the shower to get a real nurse to come rescue me. But in the end, I decided to just go with the flow because I’m thankful to get my hair washed even if I might cause a severe infection around my drains (maybe those attorneys weren’t so paranoid) and I might die of pneumonia from being so cold.
This experience has certainly given me new insight as to why dogs uncontrollably shake when they get wet. Do realize how cold it feels to take a shower, in drenched clothing, in an open area with a cold draft rushing in the room? Yes, if I could have shimmied the water off my gown to make it less wet, I would have, for sure! With all of you as my witness, I vow never to scold my little dog Kosmo again when he shakes after his bath because I totally understand what he is feeling.
P.S. I was able to get my drains out in ONE week. Not that I am bragging or anything - I just wasn't very gooky.
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