Starting waaaaaaay back in the early 1970's and running well into the early 1980's, there was an iconic American television show by the name of "*M*A*S*H*" (short for Mobile Army Surgical Hospital). Based on the movie of the same name, the show was set during the deadly Korean War of the early 1950's, although its anti-war sentiments were really a reflection of America's involvement in the even deadlier Vietnam War that ended during the show's third season. Eight seasons later, in 1983, "M*A*S*H*" also ended, but for the past thirty years has lived on as a poignant yet painful reminder of the devastating effects war has on the lives of so many people.
(Okaaaaaay... I admit it... I was one of the series' really BIG fans!)
Sometimes I even wonder if its one of the reasons I went into the frenetic, albeit fulfilling, field of human services, which often leaves its staff members feeling like they've been through a war.
In one very memorable episode of the show, the entire camp, a Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (or the good ole "4077", as it is lovingly remembered by really BIG fans like me) had to pack up and relocate due to an impending enemy attack. The process, referred to as a "Bug Out!!!", was rapid, like gunfire itself, and everything had to be coordinated quickly, yet with the utmost precision and clear communication, so that the process could flow smoothly, without a hitch, to ensure the safety of the human lives that were at risk...
This past week of caring for "V" felt exactly like that episode of "M*A*S*H*." A "Bug Out!!!" Rapid. Quickly coordinated. Precise. Clearly communicated. And thankfully, safely executed, the entire process flowing smoothly.
When I last saw "V" a week ago, she was in the process of cheering up a very dreary late November day with her positive attitude and gentle kindness. Always worrying about other people first, I remember her calling to me, "Be careful driving!" as I walked out the front door of her home. "V"s spirits were upbeat, and her overall health appeared to be pretty darned good for someone her age. As I pulled out of her driveway in my little blue Honda Fit, I had every intention of seeing her again five days later in the exact same spot.
That's why I was so incredibly shocked when I received a phone call from one of the other members of "V"s caregiving team the following day informing me that she had fallen and fractured her left hip... her good hip. A little over a year ago, she had fractured the other one, and had subsequently undergone very intensive physical therapy, especially for a ninety-five year old, so that she could return to living as independently as possible in her own home.
"It's a hairline fracture," the other caregiver explained to me over the phone. "The x-rays didn't even show one at first."
I was stunned, and simply didn't know what to say. And believe me, that rarely happens!
The caregiver continued, "They are going to do another hip replacement as soon as they can get it scheduled. After that, "V" will go to a rehabilitation center again."
Again. That's the word that made me feel so badly for "V". The Thanksgiving holiday is this upcoming week, and a rehabilitation facility is exactly where she was around the same time last year. I know from experience (thanks to "M" and her Senior Sisters) that Thanksgiving spent in such a place can be extremely enjoyable and entertaining. But probably not two years in a row. At least not for someone as self-sufficient as "V".
My own self-centered worry began to get the better of me after I hung up the phone. Caring for "V" on the weekends is my full-time job. As much as I value my time with her, it is also the way I make a living and pay my bills. My mind began racing toward the Christmas Holiday Season (no thanks to the onslaught of advertisement that retailers bombard consumers with as soon as the kids are packed up and back in school!). I would need money to buy gifts for my family. I'm always a thrifty shopper, and like to "discover treasures" at second-hand stores, (like "M"s Piper Cub from last year), but I still need something to start with. And at the current time, I don't have much. Like so many people in today's struggling economy, I live paycheck to paycheck, and have gotten used to surviving on a shoestring budget.
It never once dawned on me that "V"s family members, who had already quite clearly demonstrated their commitment to having her live as independently as possible in her own home, would offer a win-win solution that would benefit every single member of "V"s caregiving team. And even more importantly, it would greatly improve "V"s understandably sagging spirits. I could already imagine how guilty she would be feeling about "being a bother" to everyone else, and I longed to tell her that she was anything but that! In fact, she is exactly the opposite!
And that's how it was decided that "V"s four-person caregiving team would "Bug Out!!!" We were to pack up and relocate! Wherever "V" went, so would we! The traveling caregivers. (Do I have to start an entirely new blog???) I was completely onboard with the idea, as were the other caregivers, and extremely grateful that the option was offered to all of us by "V"s family members.
Throughout the remainder of the week, we all diligently stayed in touch about "V"s hip replacement surgery and recovery, and by the time my shift rolled around again on Friday afternoon, I was completely prepared and entirely willing to go with the flow. The only problem was that I wasn't quite sure in which direction I would be flowing, either the surgical hospital, located thirty miles north of my home, or the Rehabilitation Center, situated forty miles west of my home. Either way was fine with me! I just needed to know in which way to point my little blue Honda Fit!
Shortly before throwing my knapsack into the car, I received the clarifying call from "V"s primary weekday caregiver. The surgery had gone successfully, and "V was currently en route to the Swing Bed Unit in the Physical Therapy Department at the hospital closest to her home. The exact same place she had been a year ago when she fractured her other hip... and the exact same place where hardworking staff members assisted "V" in her recovery. I couldn't help but imagine how happy they would all be to see her again.
So Westward it was! I had absolutely no idea what my duties with "V" would entail as I began my weekly trek across the river and over the foothills to "V"s neck of the woods. Her daughter-in-law, who had contacted me several times earlier in the week, assured me that the family wanted to keep the caregiving team "in tact", but also acknowledged that the job itself would be "different" for a while. I was so relieved for everyone involved, not only for myself, but also for the other caregivers, the family members, and most significantly, for "V", who would now have her own little M*A*S*H* unit tending to her recovery from an untimely, but not insurmountable, setback.
We will all just go with the flow... the new goal being to have "V" living independently in her own home again by the Christmas Holiday.
Wow! Hindsight being twenty-twenty, I am so glad that I chose the frenetic field of human services to work in, even if it does sometimes seem like being on a battlefield. It's the most fulfilling thing I've' ever done, and I am extremely proud to be a member of "V"s caregiving team.
You guessed it... the view from "V"s Rehabilitation Center room! I can still hear Radar O'Reilly's anxious announcement over the M*A*S*H* unit's loudspeaker right now, "Chopper alert! All available personnel report to the O.R. immediately! Incoming Wounded!"
This may be my work attire for the next shift with "V", wherever she may be!
Amazing how it just happened to be sitting right front & center in my drawer of favorite old T-Shirts.
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