Stryker Brigade News

We enjoyed Scott and Dan having fun with each other and took a few pictures of them mugging for the camera. Scott was put on a clear liquid diet this morning and he enjoyed a frozen orange-flavored ice bar (since Popsicle is a registered trademark) like it was some exquisite delicacy. He was allowed to sit up a bit, but was a little dizzy doing so. Eventually, he got up and sat in a wheelchair in order to go to the First Floor for a CT Scan. We got there about 10 a.m. and Dan said goodbye to him, as he had to return home to care for his son. Since I was the ride to the airport, I had to go, too.

When I returned, I learned I had just missed Scott’s Squadron Executive Officer, Major Davidson, author of a very nice letter about Scott written while the unit was still in Iraq. I wanted to see him again, having met him on January 5th when we brought Scott back to his men. Since his original letter was in the form of an e-mail, I thought it might be nice to print out a copy and get him to sign it. A clear case of my failure to complete the evolution from the traditional (get the man’s signature so it looks like somebody really wrote it about him) to the modern (get interesting stuff done quickly through the Internet). Julie told him what I wanted and he said I could come see him Monday.

This reminds me of an interesting conversation I had while here. I learned that Scott never should have remained assigned to his unit, that he should have been assigned to a medical holding company and should have had a medical board by now. Hmm. Wonder how that got screwed up?

Julie and I went to lunch at the hospital dining facility. It’s smaller than Walter Reed’s, but it’s nicer in that they’ve got long white curtains on the windows which open to the view of Mt. Rainier (when you can see it, that is). Pretty much the same pricing schedule, too. You pay for the items you take instead of getting a plate for a certain price like a regular restaurant. The Staff Duty NCO was out front watching the meal card sign in sheets. Julie asked him if he was the guard and got, “No, I’m the Wal-Mart Greeter” as a reply.

After lunch, we went back up to Scott’s room and played Rummy with him. The last hand seemed to last too long and Scott was having a hard time at the end. He took a brief nap while we entertained ourselves with knitting, reading or watching TV with a sleeping Aly. Of course, Aly has been a major source of entertainment, as she smiles easily and is very cute. Again, an objective opinion.

We had an afternoon visit from Dr. Eckart (whose first name is Matt, for those of you keeping score). He checked Scott and then waited for “The Man,” as Dr. Werschkul is referred to around here. The Man arrived and Scott made it a point to shake his hand. He told us this morning’s CT scan was good and that Scott’s drainage tube should be removed tomorrow. His estimate of when Scott could leave the hospital was Sunday morning. I showed Dr. Eckart the photos he took (he didn’t have the chance to look at them after taking them) and he confirmed my guesses about what was going on in them. More about the photos later. He said Scott would look a little cone-headed when the bandages came off. (That’s okay as we like the movie Coneheads) He said it should be temporary.

After The Man left, we bugged Dr. Eckart about how “experienced” The Man really was. He said The Man was drafted during Vietnam after his neurological residency and was recalled for Desert Storm because he never resigned his commission. For some reason, he remained in the Army after that was over and continues to serve us well today. He appears to be a beloved fixture here at Madigan Army Medical Center and we can see why.

Wow! Scott’s had the God of Neurology and The Man working on him. Who says you can’t get quality medical care in the military?

Michael Collins, Scott’s case manager, came down a floor to see how he was doing. I showed him the photos and he told us he had been tracking Scott’s progress from afar through the hospital’s computer system. I told him about our experience with the VA so far, from our observation of brain injured veterans and the administration part of the VA. I told him about one of Scott’s roommates at the Minneapolis VA who was rated 100% only to have the rating drop to 10% a year later. The doctors were outraged over it and immediately sought to get him back up to 100% where he belongs (and he really did belong up there, as he was pretty much dependent on his mother for things like: when to shower). I told Michael that the guys who got rated at 100% didn’t usually take advantage of their vocational rehabilitation opportunity because they believed they didn’t need it, only to find they were reduced to below the 30% threshold later on. Discharged from the military and no vocational rehabilitation eligibility. If you don’t have family and friends to help you, you could starve trying to get what you deserve, assuming you still knew what you were missing, that is. I hope I impressed upon him the need to give Scott all the time he needs to recover. Scott will know if he can’t do it and will make the correct decision if the time comes.

Command Sergeant Major and Mrs. Shover also visited Scott in his room this afternoon. Mrs. Shover brought a plate of cookies (there were a few left as of this writing) and I talked about the future of the unit with the CSM. We discussed Scott’s future with the unit and the Army and the obstacles to both. We agreed that January 2006 would be about as long as Scott had to make sufficient recovery to stay in. After that, it would likely be very difficult for him. If Scott had one or two years to go until retirement, he could be given some kind of useful employment until that date arrived. However, for Scott, that date is fifteen years away. It would be pretty hard to hide him out at some rifle range for fifteen years.

Julie and I left about 3:30 p.m. so Scott and Tiffany could have some time together for her birthday. This is the third straight birthday that’s been somewhat interrupted by the Army. She was in Basic Training, Scott was in Iraq and now he’s been wounded. We arranged for her to call us when she was ready to go to dinner then returned to the Fisher House.

I tried to get this set up I’ve got rigged to transmit Scott’s surgery photos to Dr. Rouse at Walter Reed, but for some reason I seem only able to transmit one per day. The photos are on my laptop, loaded there from my digital camera. Then, I’ve got to re-install the Verizon software to make my cell phone dial up a data connection. Sometime after the first photo is transmitted, I lose the signal and can’t hold it long enough to send the second photo. I type this update in the Word program, I copy and paste it into a Yahoo! Message (once I re-install the software), put your addresses on it and hit “send.” What a drag!

Tiffany called about 5:30 p.m. and we arranged to meet at the Applebys Restaurant in the Lakewood Town Center. Things were going very well and Aly was entertaining everyone in line of sight with her smiles. A boy a little older in the highchair in the next booth wasn’t able to eat dinner because he was looking at her so much. After dinner and before dessert, Julie decided to hold Aly and talk to her a bit. Unfortunately, Aly got within range of a full glass of ice water and it ended up in Julie’s lap. Aly got almost none of it on her, of which we’re very proud.

When we got back to the hospital (after a diversion to the Fisher House for a dry pair of pants for Julie), we learned Scott’s catheter had been removed and he had sat in his chair while we were out. We didn’t stay long as he was sleeping pretty hard. Julie and I left a little after 8 p.m. and returned to the Fisher House. It’s after 10 p.m. now and time to crank up the Rube Goldberg e-mail system…

ST