Hoisting post op

[lorrie]

Hi,
In the middle of the night (I'm not sleeping a lot at present) another worry suddenly came into my head and I wondered if anyone had any advice. does anyone have experience of using a hoist to lift a teenager postop? We use a hoist all the time with Genevieve - she's just too big for it to be safe to lift her otherwise and I'm just concerned that it might be really painful afterwards.
I'm also worried whether she'll be able to sit in her toilet chair (Chaley toilet chair) as it is kind of curvy and her fusion is going to be so long that I'm not sure she'll be able to bend enough to use it.
There's so much going round in my head and I just wish we had a definite date. We got a letter at the end of January saying op would be in 6-10 weeks - that's four and half weeks ago and still no word. Every time the post comes my stomach turns over.
Lorrie

[Carmell]

Hi Lorrie,

I can only imagine you worries and stresses right now. Hang in there. I hope you find some peace of mind very soon.

About the hoist - does it use straps or a large piece of canvas to lift the patient? If its straps, it could be a problem with causing pressure on the incisions. The incisional pain will be the biggest problem. The fusion and internal surgery issues will be okay, as long as she's not dropped or has a nasty fall... things like that. She'll be sore for a few weeks, especially the incisional part.

Good luck and keep up the good work!

[lorrie]

Thanks Carmell. The sling we use is a big piece of material (not canvas, i think, but that sort of thing. It comes down pretty much to the bottom of G's back and then there are bits which slide undr her thighs - we end up with a sort of bosun's chair arrangement. I think it will mostly be OK except for her lower back where it might put some pressure. We might need to get an extension bit to support her head a bit better.
Genevieve has now produced a chest infection for us - so it's probably just as well we don't have a date. Give her a chance to get over it first. The antibiotics seem to have kicked in and I think she's now on the mend. Youngsters always have brilliant timing, don't they?!
Lorrie