July 27 (Friday) - 11pm

Today the Anchorage news for Jeannette is positive, a group of small things that together add to the hope things are improving.  They have reduced the steroids she was getting, and the antibiotics, and all of the "numbers" they can measure are where they should be.   There were no crises; a gentle day of rest and nothing bad to report.  It was a good day, and to make it better her grandson, Matt, flew in to visit.  

The nurses also moved her bed into a more upright position for much of the day, which will help to keep her lungs clear, which they are.   And there is still talk of removing the metal contraption that is stabilizing her left leg, so that the all important MRI photos can be made.   There are a lot of things they want to do, but it's clear they are being careful and attacking those that need doing now, and waiting on those that can be postponed.   All in all it was a quiet day for Jeannette.

As for Rich, his setback from last night and earlier today seems to this layman to have stabilized.   The numbers associated with the infection have improved, and his elevated temperature is down now.   Perhaps not totally "normal" but it's in the ballpark.    He was out of it today, drugged to sleep and resting comfortable, breathing with the help of a ventilator.  But the machine wasn't doing the breathing, Rich was triggering the machine with his own breath and the respiratory therapist was pleased with his numbers and volume he was seeing.  He said Rich might have a "touch of pneumonia" but they were treating it.     I could tell things were much better than last night; for one thing his O2 blood saturation was 98%, and that's a good number to see.   I asked the doctor "How's he doing?" and his reply was he is "hemostatically stable."  

There are still concerns with his kidney output, a urinary infection, and the possible blockage of the bowel, but they are giving him strong antibodies and running further tests to define the details of the situation.   I get the feeling that those challenges do not seem all that unusual for the ICU team.    There is talk of removing the respirator, possibly tomorrow or the next day, but they have some tubes in his stomach and they might wait until those too are "ready to come out."   They have run a lot of tests, done lots of lab work, and I am guessing it will take some time to analyze those results and make decisions based on what they learn.  -- John