J’s traction was adjusted at Washington Regional before he was placed on St. John’s helicopter. Upon arrival at St. John’s, he started their assessment process of x-rays, blood work, family history, etc. Cara and J’s parents met nurses, the orthopedic surgeon and the chief of the trauma unit. While the family found the St. John’s ICU much busier than that of Washington Regional, they still described it as family-friendly.
Around 4 in the afternoon, J started experiencing some difficulty breathing and some disorientation. He seemed to have some lung congestion. While he was wearing an oxygen cannula, his oxygen levels were dropping. Plus, J was trying to remove the cannula.
The disorientation and confusion could have been attributed to several things including the pain medications, the recent surgery, the helicopter flight, the trauma of the accident, the difficulty breathing, the combination of all this or something else entirely.
During the confusion, J argued about ever owning a motorcycle, much less having an accident. He didn’t believe that he was in Tulsa. He wanted to leave St. John’s, and he certainly didn’t believe that he had broken legs. The entire scene scared Cara and his mom.
The ICU staff and doctors decided to place a ventilation tube to stabilize his oxygen levels. Once the oxygen levels are stabilized, they will be better able to fine tune his pain medications.
His parents and Cara were talking to the nurse about how well J had been doing up to now and how this really surprised them. One of the factors could have been the pain and a delay in the pain medication. When he first arrived at St. John’s, he didn’t receive any medication, because he didn’t have any doctor’s orders for it.
The transfer between hospitals was very difficult, and the wait for a treatment plan was very difficult. BUT, since he’s been placed on the ventilation tube, he’s resting peacefully. The anesthesiologist used a scope for placing the tube. Since J had just had a tube so recently, using the scope made it easier to place the tube. One of the doctors also told Cara that placing him on the ventilator now would make it easier to take him off later. Hopefully, we’ll have some more information on that soon.
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Treatments at Washington Regional
TUESDAY, 7/29
The first and most pressing injury was a tear to the aorta. The heart surgeon was able to repair the tear without placing J on bypass and without having to crack the chest. Following the heart surgery, J had a ventilation tube overnight.
Once in ICU, pins were placed in the lower legs for traction to stabilize his upper legs and to prevent further damage to legs and possibly pelvic/hip region. Also, once stabilized, it was time for the x-rays.
WEDNESDAY, 7/30
The cardiologist decided to place filters to catch/prevent blood clots from traveling to the heart/lungs. The first attempt was made in ICU, but was not satisfactory for the cardiologist. He decided he would rather take J back to the surgery suite and use a scope to verify the placement of the filters. This second attempt went much better. When the cardiologist made a report the family, he actually smiled when talking about J and his progress. The doctor requested that Cara make reports to his office because he doubted that J would need his services in the future — what a wonderful report to receive from a heart surgeon!
Mid-to-late afternoon, the ICU staff started weaning J off the ventilator tube and talking about preparing him for the trip to Tulsa. With his successful response to the aorta repair, the treatment timelines were starting to accelerate. Around 4:30 p.m., J came off the ventilation tube completely and talked to family members including his sons. At 8:30 p.m., J asked for Gatorade, Coke or tea to drink. He was very thirsty and would have probably settled for lots of ice water as long as someone brought as much as he wanted. The ICU nurses told family and friends they could bring him something with flavor; they just didn’t have it on the unit.
THURSDAY, 7/31
Most activities at Washington Regional on Thursday were to prepare J for his helicopter flight to St. John’s in Tulsa. St. John’s sent their helicopter to pick him up for his next step in the treatment process.
The first and most pressing injury was a tear to the aorta. The heart surgeon was able to repair the tear without placing J on bypass and without having to crack the chest. Following the heart surgery, J had a ventilation tube overnight.
Once in ICU, pins were placed in the lower legs for traction to stabilize his upper legs and to prevent further damage to legs and possibly pelvic/hip region. Also, once stabilized, it was time for the x-rays.
WEDNESDAY, 7/30
The cardiologist decided to place filters to catch/prevent blood clots from traveling to the heart/lungs. The first attempt was made in ICU, but was not satisfactory for the cardiologist. He decided he would rather take J back to the surgery suite and use a scope to verify the placement of the filters. This second attempt went much better. When the cardiologist made a report the family, he actually smiled when talking about J and his progress. The doctor requested that Cara make reports to his office because he doubted that J would need his services in the future — what a wonderful report to receive from a heart surgeon!
Mid-to-late afternoon, the ICU staff started weaning J off the ventilator tube and talking about preparing him for the trip to Tulsa. With his successful response to the aorta repair, the treatment timelines were starting to accelerate. Around 4:30 p.m., J came off the ventilation tube completely and talked to family members including his sons. At 8:30 p.m., J asked for Gatorade, Coke or tea to drink. He was very thirsty and would have probably settled for lots of ice water as long as someone brought as much as he wanted. The ICU nurses told family and friends they could bring him something with flavor; they just didn’t have it on the unit.
THURSDAY, 7/31
Most activities at Washington Regional on Thursday were to prepare J for his helicopter flight to St. John’s in Tulsa. St. John’s sent their helicopter to pick him up for his next step in the treatment process.
The injuries
This may become a running list that requires frequent updates, but here goes:
1. A tear to the aorta -- repaired 7/29
2. Broken bones in the left hand
3. Left femur -- Ball for the hip joint is broken off, plus several more breaks in the upper bone
4. Right femur -- A break in the bone plus where the break occured the lower half of the bone is pushed up beside the upper half of the bone -- surgery 8/1
5. Shattered left kneecap -- surgery 8/1
1. A tear to the aorta -- repaired 7/29
2. Broken bones in the left hand
3. Left femur -- Ball for the hip joint is broken off, plus several more breaks in the upper bone
4. Right femur -- A break in the bone plus where the break occured the lower half of the bone is pushed up beside the upper half of the bone -- surgery 8/1
5. Shattered left kneecap -- surgery 8/1
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
The accident
Tuesday, July 29, J (Jerry III) Hartfield was involved in a horrific motorcycle accident. J was heading back to work after lunch with Cara and friends. While wearing his very important helmet, another driver swerved across the center line and hit J head-on. J was thrown approximately 40 feet and landed beside the road missing the pavement and the railroad tracks.
An unidentified woman, surely a guardian angel, stayed with J and kept him calm until emergency help arrived.
An unidentified woman, surely a guardian angel, stayed with J and kept him calm until emergency help arrived.
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