The folks at Emory Scheduled a Pre Op for my Arthroplasty on Wednesday. I've noticed that since the last time I was in a hospital, things have changed. For example, no longer are you expected to swill down lime jello and rubber chicken at 10 30 in the morning. Now, dininig is a room service model..whatever you want and whenever you're hungry. You can even invite up to four people to have a meal with you (not covered by insurance!). Also, the staff are actually glad to have you there, they've even learned "Ritz-speak".
In the pre-op interview, I was told that I'd have two pre-surgery nerve blocks: one for the lower leg that dissipates by midnite and the other that will be maintained longer. Apparently, this helps to navigate the "discomfort" of early rehab. As my buddy JR says "to hell with gritting it out and fighting through then pain, I want to whine and bitch and be taken care of!"
So after getting poked and prodded, I had a series of visitors icluding the anesthesiologist and then a chaplain. I thought inclusion of the chaplain was odd, because when I was asked what religious preference I had, I said "occasional Methodist and aspiring Buddhist". So the chaplain comes in, probably a little uncomfortable, and wants to know if I would like for him to pray for me. Or course I said yes, and then he asked "which knee is it. I like to be specific". I told him it might make sense to do a total body prayer, kind of like a neck massage vs a total body, but he was insistent. I wondered if I would offend celestial benevolence if I goofed with him and gave him the opposite knee, but I didn't.
Stay tuned!
"Which knee is it?" I love the specificity, as in, I'm going to pray for the health of your knee but your soul? No so much.
ReplyDeleteNext time he comes in, tell him that it's nice that he's here now, but you really need him AFTER the surgery to pray for the pain.