Russel Gets Re-Admitted Into Hinduja Hospital

Monday, June 10, 2019
Bombay

Russel Gets Re-Admitted Into Hinduja Hospital

     Namaste from Bombay!
     I spent all of today getting ready for Russel's admission into Hinduja Hospital on the nearby Bandra-Khar border. As I type this (at the end of the day), he is in his hospital bed, thankfully very calm, with Dad doing night duty besides him on the attendant's couch that has been provided.
     I fell asleep last night after 2.00 am, but awoke only at 9.15 am today. Dad wanted me to accompany him to his bank before the two of us make a 'reccky' visit to the hospital to suss out the place and find out what the admissions procedure was before we actually brought Russel into the place in the evening.
     I did not waste much time having my breakfast of muesli and coffee (and watching a new TV crime show called Murder City with the inimitable Kris Marshall in a serious role!). I also had a quick shower and shampoo and then left for Dad's. En route, I stopped off at our family doctor's dispensary to show him my eye--which still feels sore and heavy (despite using the chloramycitin ointment I bought yesterday). I was afraid it was pink eye or conjunctivitis.
     Dr. Abbas examined it carefully and told me that it was just an allergy probably caused by my face cream getting into my eye. He told me that it was definitely not pink eye and definitely not contagious and that I ought to do nothing but wait as it would heal in a day or two. Great relief, of course, as I walked to Dad's and gave him the news,
     Dad was sorting through Russel's medical reports and papers and before long, we left and got our work done at the bank. It did not take too long and with that job accomplished, we hoped into a rickshaw and sped off to Hinduja Hospital in Khar where Russel will be admitted in the evening.
     We found out the lie of the land as well as the fact that they needed the entire amount of several thousand dollars (paid in rupees, of course) in full upon admission! I was very impressed with the service we received and the manner in which the reception staff dealt with us--with extreme efficiency and professionalism. Of course, the huge estimated expenses meant that Dad and I had to put our heads together to find out how best to make payment. When we had that sorted, we got back to Dad's and finally broke the news to Russel that he would have to be admitted to hospital in the evening. He was not too happy, but, in the end, he took it bravely. I helped Dad with a couple of other little things that needed his attention and then I left and returned to my studio.
     Valerie had delivered a new meal to my door and I sat down to enjoy her chicken curry, mince and beans with a chapati. It did feel good to eat Indian food again after two weeks--and Valerie's food is always delicious. That done, I called Llew as I needed to discuss a couple of urgent matters with him. He was a huge help, as always, and a terrific support to me even though he is so far away once again.
     I then tried to get 40 winks, but did not quite succeed as I had so much on my mind. At 3.45 pm, I left for Dad's place as the ambulance was expected at 4.30 to take Russel to the hospital. I had called them in the morning to order their services. They came on time and Dad and I accompanied Russel as he made the short drive to the hospital.
     Admission formalities were carried out super quickly--again, I was much impressed by the reception staff who were nothing but courteous and very helpful in guiding us through the process. By the end of the evening, after Russel had been installed in his ward (in a premium twin-sharing room with two attendant's couches, one for each patient), I was convinced that I was in a hospital in the USA--so spiffy and luxurious is everything. Indeed, if I did not see all the Indian faces around me, I could have sworn I was in a hospital in Connecticut--and I know, as I have spent time at the Smilow Clinic in the Yale Medical Center at New Haven and in Bridgeport Hospital in Connecticut.
     With payment made by credit card, Russel was allowed a bed in a ward and we were taken upstairs to the eighth floor in the lift that accommodated his stretcher. His nurse (Sr. Sunanda) turned out to be the sweetest person and his ward boy (Sunil) was also wonderful.  With both Dad and me around, Russel was fully at ease. His surgeon's assistant, Dr. Devendra, met with Russel and did a preliminary examination. The person in the next ward (whom I have yet to meet) seemed to be nice and quite accommodating of Russel's condition.
     I stayed there till 8.30 pm during which time Russel was provided with soup, tea with snacks and then a full dinner (vegetarian). He was not too happy to be on a veg diet, but he seemed to accept it all and take it in his stride. We are hoping very much that all will be well and that he will adjust to his new environment and will leave the hospital in a far better shape than he is right now as remedial surgery is carried out on his fractured leg to clean up a possible infection that has developed.
      I walked back home from the hospital (it took me 20 minutes) but I stopped at Holly and Huber, a new ice-cream parlor and bought some Belgian Chocolate Ice-cream as I felt the urgent need for comfort food when I got home. I was extremely nervous all day today and so was Dad. It is a stressful experience, I can tell you, and I miss Llew dreadfully. However, I did find that the situation in the hospital is wonderfully comfortable and that there is wifi and several plug points at which I can charge my laptop. So I can see myself gainfully employed doing the long day time hours I will spend there. Now all I can ask for is the courage to be able to face all the challenges that lie ahead for me as I support Dad and Russel through this phase of his treatment. And I do continue to ask for your prayers.
     I had my dinner when I got back home, finished watching the first episode of Murder City, ate my delicious ice-cream and then was stunned by the crashing sound of the first really severe downpour that heralded the arrival of the monsoon in Bombay! And not a moment too soon! The rain poured in great bucketsfull for almost twenty minutes--after which it stopped just as suddenly. Hopefully, it will cool the place down soon.
     I texted Llew and my brother in Connecticut to inform them about Russel's hospitalization as well as my many cousins here in Bandra. Then I decided to complete my blog posts (on which I had fallen behind) before I switched the light off and called it a night.
     Until tomorrow...