Adventures in Healthcareland, Part 1

Yep, I had an adventure in healthcareland last week and I had to take a couple days to recuperate.
I got the flu on Wednesday. Came home from work at noon and gradually felt more miserable as the afternoon wore on. I've had this flu before, one where my stomach is in active revolt and has pulled the switch on accepting any new donations. Phil took me to the emergency room soon after he came home around 7:30. I didn't think I'd be able to get up and around, but I did and made it to the hospital OK. Thanksfully the emergency room wasn't too busy. I have a trump card that I can play in the situations that gets me seen quicker than most folks. I let them know I'm a kidney transplant patient (which I am). Of course that wouldn't trump any true emergencies like heart attacks and stabbings.

Phil was upset that when I was asked about next of kin, I said him but was corrected that it had to be a family member. I gave my father's name and was asked what the phone number is and I said I don't know (and I don't). Maybe that got through. Anyway, stuff like that really rattles Phil's chain. Then later when the doctor came in he asked Phil if he were the father. Obviously we weren't giving an overt enough picture of a gay couple.

So they admitted me and I was wheeled up to a semi-private room on the third floor. My roommate was recovering from knee surgery and seemed to be in a lot of pain from all the moaning he did. By the time Phil left for the night I was still fighting a fever and nausea and now had an IV stuck in my arm. I soon found that a few things were wrong with my room. The call bell didn't work. The TV and phone had to be rented per day and the phone didn't even have a cord to the wall outlet. And that my IV was controlled by electricity, thus I was tethered to my bed pretty much, unable to go the the bathroom. Luckily, one of the nurses gave me a portable urinal, because I was getting saline in my IV, and a lot of it, and it was going through me without a problem. More later...