Finally Jordon had tubes put in his ears today. Hopefully they will not only end these recurrent ear infections but make a difference in his irritability and improve his sleeping as well. Good thing I took the day off from work- what was to be a 10-15 min. procedure turned into us being at the hospital for over 4 hours. Apparently the ENT doc didn't realize she had surgery this am because it's not her usual surgery day, so we waited for 2 and 1/2 hrs. trying to entertain a 14 month old. Thank God for the nurse who brought him the toys to play with-- including the car that he took turns riding in and pushing in circles through the hospital hallways (that got a lot of smiles and giggles). Then we went by the ENT office to get some earplugs, which sounded like no big deal at a cost of about $10-- it ended up being another screamfest with having to allow 10 minutes of dry time for molds to be made of Jordon's ears at an actual cost of $70. Have I mentioned I hate hospitals? And our healthcare system, for that matter. The fragmentation and lack of communication that leads to misinformation, waiting, and expense is so frustrating. We would still be waiting on the surgery to be scheduled (as the scheduler did not return our calls) if it weren't for Don going down there and addressing the issue in person. The delay in getting surgery scheduled led to Jordon getting yet another ear infection, vommitting at night, and another round of abx. I sure hope that this routine is a done deal! Everyone that we talk to who has had tubes for their kids says what a difference it makes- everything we hear from others has been positive following this procedure so we'll be excited to see how he improves!
