25Feb08 - Portimao Day 13

I arrived in Portugal yesterday not really knowing what to expect but Lucy is finally showing good signs of improvement. The hospital looks a bit like a prison(but then don't they all!) but actually it is OK.The nurses and doctors are mostly very firendly and very helpful. Lucy is only being fed orally now and she is taking food pretty well. Her appetite is certainly not back to normal but she is having regular feeds mainly of yoghurt and pureed fruit. She has been maintaining her oxygen saturation levels unaided and now no longer relies on additional oxygen which is a major step forward. In fact last night the nurses were confident enough to disconnect her from the saturation monitor. Lucy's body clock is a bit back to front but when she is awake she is happy to sit upright in her chair although as always she is much happier sitting on my knee.She had a decent night last night only waking a couple of times. I also managed a few hours sleep but I will need to catch up on a few zeds before I go back for the next shift tonight. We have been waiting until today for an assessment by the Doctor of Lucy's prospects of returning home. The Doctor was very pleased with Lucy's progress and said that all the signs are good, there is nothing showing in the blood tests and that it must be the latest course of antibiotics that have done the trick. Unfortunately for us there is no orally delivered form of this antibiotic and it is important that Lucy finishes the 10 day course of treatment. This means that Lucy will definitely have to stay in hospital until Thursday. This does mean though that all being well, fingers crossed, touch wood, etc, etc, that I will be able to bring Lucy home on Friday. For poor Lucy it means that she still has another 4 days of cannula's failing and having to be put in again somewhere else. Her poor little arms and legs have been stuck just about everywhere. She had two new cannulas put in last night after the previous ones failed. Her arms particularly look very sore and she whinces every time she has to move them. I guess we are going to have to do some physio on her to get them moving again. For the next 4 days it will be important to get as much food and liquid into her as possible to give her every chance to be as strong as possible by the end of the week. We will find out over the next couple of days if the insurance company can arrange flights for Friday and I will delay my celebrations until I am sitting on the plane with Lucy.