Day 23 - Post #14 - One week since Devin's last surgery

After spending a week in the intensive care unit and two weeks in the acute care unit of Harborview medical center, the doctors are now starting to discuss the next steps... Devin still needs professional care around the clock. With the severity and locations of the injuries, Devin is unable to do anything for himself. He is not able to even sit, let alone stand up or walk, infact it takes 3-4 people to help him change positions in bed (Try laying on one position, and see how long before you want to move). The doctors are still trying to determine what is wrong with his eyes, as he is unable to open his eyes without pain... When you are in the hospital, time seems to go by very,very slowly... and with the trouble with his eyes he cannot do things to help the time go by like watching TV or playing any type of video games or even read... Either Mom or Dad have been with Devin around the clock since he has been in the hospital - mostly Mom who has only left the hospital once in the past three weeks while Dad goes between home and the hospital trying to take care of things at home including three other children, and spending as much time at the hospital as possible to give Mom a chance to get out for fresh air, eat, catch up on some much needed sleep (both Mom and Dad have been surviving on 3-4 hours a night the past three weeks). Mom and Dad have spent a considerable amount of time ensuring that Devin does not suffer from a mistake made by any of the hospital staff, and as good as they are mistakes do happen on a daily basis and having someone here who understands all of the various complexities of what is going on has helped tremendously. They have also been able to read to Devin (He cannot yet read due to his injuries) which has helped the time pass and hopefully lower his anxiety.

Because of the eye problems that Devin has, when he first opens his eyes after having been asleep, everything is a total dark blur. This is very unnerving, as you can imagine. Initially he was also seeing double, but this problem has slowly subsided as the swelling in his face began to come down, after about two and a half weeks this problem went away.

The doctors are currently discussing the next steps for Devin as it will be several months before he is able to start rehab. Mom and Dad would love to bring him home as soon as possible, however the house is no where near ready for someone with his level of care needs and getting him to and from the hospital for the various doctor appointments that he will need will require the equivalent of an ambulance ride to and from the hospital (which cost $12,000 per round trip which make a $2,000 per day stay at the hospital seem cheap). There are a lot of unknowns, and not too many answers... The doctors are currently saying that they think he will be ready to be moved from the acute care unit by this weekend - but to where?