Operation

We settled into our room and I sat with Dave as he waited to know what was to happen to him.

The surgeon came in, he spoke very good English. He explained that at this point he wanted Dave’s temperature and blood count to return to normal before operating if possible. He said that Dave’s gall bladder was in trouble and that it would need surgery at some point, either tonight or tomorrow depending on the results of a blood test. He smiled at Dave and tapped my arm and said see you later and disappeared. A little later a nurse came and gave Dave a morphine injection (in his tummy) and took some blood. Dave was still on drips (three of them).

Dave was in a great deal of pain and kept saying the morphine wasn’t working. After about one hour the surgeon came back. He said to Dave “Your temperature is going up..up..up and your jaundice count is also going up..up..up we have to operate now!”

He disappeared to get ready and a nurse came in with his hospital gowns

I felt so sorry for him, he must have felt so nervous, it is his first proper operation (apart from the emergency surgery on his lung and he did not know much about that!)

A little later two young nurses came in; they were very sweet but could not speak English. They had an incontinent pad in their hands and a small towel, they trying to tell us something, eventually we understood that Dave was to lift his bum as they put the pad under, then from the towel dropped about ten razors into the bed!! All at once we both new what was to happen to Dave. I said I shall wait outside (I thought it may embarrass Dave with me there) but the nurses said “No you stay” I asked Dave and he said stay.

Well I have never seen the likes of it before nor will you ever!

They stripped the bed sheet up along with his gown and a nurse stood each side of him, they each placed a razor in the middle of his tummy just under his ribs, they each drew it towards themselves and flicked the hair of onto the pad and met again in the middle. They worked together and very fast! They worked there way down in the same way. It was all over very quickly and cleanly. They lifted his but and whipped the pad out with all the fuzz and the razors, rolled it up and threw it in his bin. Done! They removed all his rings (including his wedding ring) Dave tried very hard to keep it on, saying “tape on it” but she said not possible. The nurse started to take it off for him and he said “No, my wife put that on 43 years ago and she will take it off” Sweet, he handed me his hand. I was nearly in tears. They then asked about teeth, poor Dave had to take his teeth out to!

At this point Liz and Tony arrived for a visit

a few moments later Ernie arrived from Mary's room to see how things were going.

Upon all the visitors arriving Dave quickly asked for his teeth again lol. I got them out and he discreetly put them in. It was now getting on for 9.40pm.

I think the visitors helped take David’s mind of what was about to happen, I think I felt more worried then he did.

Just before ten the door opened and the nurse and the porter arrived to take Dave down. The visitors all went out side and Dave suddenly got out of bed stark naked! The nurses had removed all his clothes! He said sorry and rushed to the toilet. The nurse gave me his operation gown and asked me to put it on him. I slipped into the bathroom with him and dressed him, He told me he was dyeing to go to pee pee but as he had no clothes on and had visitors he could not get out of bed. Poor Dave.

The nurse painted his entire tummy with the pad you see in the photo of his op clothes and then they got his hat and bootees on and into the bed he slipped

They wheeled him out and past the visitors, I was so sad because I would have followed him down if we had not had visitors. I suddenly remembered his teeth and had to run after them. I think the Nurse thought I wanted to kiss him goodbye when I bent close and whispered “Teeth” :O) he slipped them out and gave them to me. I did kiss him goodbye then: O (

The visitor said goodbye outside the room, they left me to go into the empty bedroom with just a pair of slippers left of Dave

I felt so lonely and sad. Thank goodness I did not know how ill he was and what was about to happen to him.

The specialist had told me he would be gone about two hours so I waited for his return at about midnight. I sat there and sat there, at 2am I went to see a nurse, I eventually got her to understand what I was asking and she said that there had been an emergency and David was waiting. I thought she meant he was waiting for his op at the time but she meant Dave was the emergency and he was in ICU on a dialysis machine!

I felt so sorry for him. As the surgeon had told me three hours I thought if he hasn’t even had the op yet he won’t be up before about 4.30 – 5am. I started to make my bed up when the door opened and the surgeon came in, he sat on the wheelchair and explained to me that Dave was very seriously ill; I thought he said he may go to ICU but I have since been told he did go there. He explained that his gall bladder had burst and all the puss and poison had evaded his blood and organs. He had removed the gall bladder and cleaned his inside; he was at this point just coming off dialysis. He told me that Dave would be in the hospital for many, many days perhaps weeks as he was very ill. I just felt numb and scared to death and very alone at that moment. I had no way of contacting the children or family.

Dave was wheeled back within 15 minutes of the surgeon leaving the room; he looked so ill and had so many drips and tubes. I was far too distressed to take any photos: O (

He was sleeping but moaning and groaning all the time. I went to see a nurse and she gave him morphine which settled him down. He woke about 30 minutes later asking to be sick, he wasn’t. He was in a bad state of pain. He said could I take him to pee pee, I explained that he had a catheter in, at first he did not understand and then he said “How do I use it? I am not sure, do I just wee in the bed? “Poor little thing, I explained that he did not need to go to pee pee it would just empty into the tube as it went in the bladder.

I was so worried about the children and whether they had been told. I could not get in touch with Jeanette via her mobile or Brian’s.

I had managed to let Jeanette know both the Leeta’s telephone numbers when she took the dogs and asked her to tell them that Dave had gone into hospital possible to have his gall bladder removed. That was all I knew at that moment.

It is all a bit of a haze now but I think Sandie phoned at about 10.30 and I was able to say Dave had just gone down, I am not sure.

This will continues tomorrow.