You are here: Home > 2007 - February 8th - Thursday   Go Back

2007 - February 8th - Thursday

JH WENT TO THE RLH FOR FINAL CROSS-MATCHING, AND CONSULTATION WITH TRANSPLANT SURGEON  JH woke up at the Lawn Guest House - www.thelawnguesthouse.co.uk - [to which she had travelled on the previous afternoon] to observe a pall of snow, about an inch deep, all over Maidenhead!  However, JH was able to wheel her small wheeled rucksack, and walk very carefully to the Railway Station, to catch the first available train on which a travel card could be used.  Train services to and from the West Country (and from elsewhere) had been disrupted, and also on the surface lines of the Underground.  JH thought better of changing to the Underground at Ealing Broadway, and so changed at Paddington.  To save walking all the way through Paddington to catch a Hammersmith & City Line train, JH caught a Circle Line Train – planning to change at Edgware Road; however, JH decided to travel on to either Liverpool Street, or Tower Hill – to change to a train to Whitechapel; but . . . just before the train arrived at Liverpool Street, an announcement was made to the effect that the train would not be stopping there (several of the main line terminuses had services disrupted) so a vast crowd of disgruntled passengers alighted at Moorgate; JH travelled on to Tower Hill, and successfully caught a District Line train to Whitechapel. 


 

Walking over Whitechapel Road was an interesting experience – slipping around in the slushy snow; JH arrived at the Renal Unit in the Basement at 11.40ish, and the Skinners arrived about 5 minutes later – having set out from Hadleigh at 9.30am – and taking 40 minutes to extract themselves therefrom, whereas this bit of the journey usually takes them about 10 minutes!  Kathy had her bloods taken first – which took ages because she does not bleed quickly; JH was called in to have her bloods taken by the Staff Nurse and, much to JH’s surprise – on reading the Nurse’s name badge – JH noted that her name was Caroline Rolfe – but a generation younger than the Carole Rolfe JH knows in the West Country.  The Skinners had stopped somewhere, on their way to the Hospital, to have a late breakfast but had developed a bit of an appetite by the time we all went over to the Good Samaritan; JH was treated to lasagne and salad and a Kaliber. 

We all returned to the Renal Outpatients – where Ray Trevitt had come on duty.  JH did not recognise him at first – and then recollected that, last time they had met, Ray had had a black eye!   JH gave her Derriford notes to Ray, together with the DVD of her angiogram; Ray took copies of all the relevant documents in JH’s notes, and JH particularly asked him to photocopy the documents in her Living Will Chapter – so that these copies could be placed in the RLH’s notes.  [JH made a note of her RLH number: eventually all patients will be identified throughout the UK by their new NHS numbers - when all the NHS computers speak to each other coherently!]   Kathy had her usual appointment with regards to her being on the Transplant List (query identity of Clinician) and then saw Mr Chawdhery, the Transplant Surgeon; Ralph accompanied her.  JH was then called in to the consulting room; JH had a brief relevant medical history taken; Mr C noted that JH’s weight was unacceptable (he had the first letter, sent to the Hospital by Dr Denton, on his VDU) but JH assured him that she had lost weight; JH had a brief abdominal examination – done by one of the registrars (a lady) present; Mr Chawdhery remarked that ‘Hipsey’ was an unusual name to which JH replied that Kathy’s Maiden Name was Hipsey – but JH’s would not have been - had her (JH's) great great grandmother not had an illegitimate baby; JH observed that there were lots of Chawdherys {actually, in Plymouth, with an ‘o’ not an ‘a’} about in Hospitals to which Mr C replied that his was, indeed, a very common name in Pakistan – Kathy remarked that it was a bit like ‘Smith’ in England!  Unfortunately, Mr Chawdhery said that, in actual fact, he, would not perform a kidney transplant, unless the donor had had a conventional angiogram with dye – as he thought that a blood vessel might be missed when the imaging of the renal vessels was demonstrated by a ‘marker’ (JH’s word) only.  In any event, the general consensus of opinion was that beds might be available any time between May and July - for JH to donate a kidney to Kathy.

After the appointment we all went to the Hospital Restaurant - which is housed in a temporary building, whilst a large block of the Hospital is being rebuilt.  {Ray had told JH that, in the normal course of things, it would have been possible to offer JH accommodation the previous night, but there was no space available whilst the rebuilding was going on.}  We had a cup of something and a biscuit.  The Skinners and JH parted company at about 5.00pm – the Skinners to visit Kathy’s elder daughter Lorraine and her family, and JH to Paddington.  JH arrived at Paddington in time to have a substantial sandwich and drink at the Mad Bishop and Bear in the Station and JH subsequently caught the 7.45pm train to Plymouth.  {JH had been informed that her supersaver return ticket was not valid on an earlier train.}

[JH was given a security chain - to attach her purse to her bag - by Kathy, who is very security conscious and so street-wise whilst walking about in London.  Outside Whitechapel Underground Station there are many notices warning of the presence of pickpockets.]


 
 
Print Print