Journal Entry 4: Taking Precautions

Debbie Kinney
April 24 – May 1, 2009

Kristi, my transplant coordinator, called me on Friday evening and told me that my brain scan came out negative. I was relieved to hear the news. Kristi is so thoughtful about communicating important results to me right away. She is awesome!

On Saturday, Larry and I were invited to my girlfriend's daughter's wedding. I was excited to go to the wedding and looked forward to possibly seeing a few friends from high school. Sure enough, a large group of friends attended that I hadn't seen in years. It was fun bringing up memories from the past. Many of my friends asked me questions about my LVAD and were excited about my upcoming heart transplant. After several hours, Larry and I left. It was nice to get out of the house and be around friends. They can sure lift up your spirit!

On Tuesday, Chris, my home health care nurse, and I talked about the necessary precautions I needed to take regarding the swine flu outbreak. She told me not to panic, but to constantly wash my hands and stay away from people who are sick and large groups.

Friday I met with Chris and told her that my driveline site was bleeding more than usual. She checked it out and was concerned where the blood was coming from. Chris said she would try to get in touch with Suzanne or Marcia regarding the bleeding. Suzanne and Marcia are angels (they're there for you 24 hours a day)! They handle all the questions and problems for the LVAD patients.

Later that day, I received a call from Kristi to go to the hospital and have Marcia look at my driveline site. When I arrived there, Marcia checked it out and concluded the blood was coming from the outside area of the driveline site. Marcia treated the driveline site and said she'd be around for the weekend if I needed her. Hopefully we won't have any problems this weekend. Follow more of Debbie's heart transplant journey.

For More Information
 To learn more about the heart transplant program at Sharp Memorial Hospital, please contact the program directly by calling 858-939-3831, Monday through Friday, 7 am to 3:30 pm.

To learn more or to find a cardiologist affiliated with Sharp, please call 1-800-82-SHARP (1-800-824-4277) or go to Find a Doctor.