Medical Adventures in Europe Part II

 *Please read Part I before proceeding*

 Following our return from our failed medical trip to Vienna, Ben went about his daily life with his heavy uncomfortable, plastered cast.  He went to work, embassy events, school events, church, etc. all while in a lot of pain.  In the meantime, he emailed his x-rays to his cousin Jimmy, who was previously stationed at Landstuhl, Germany as an orthopedic surgeon for the Army, to get a second opinion. Upon reviewing his x-rays, Jimmy recommended he go to Landstuhl to get it treated where he could get more aggressive treatment like surgery that would help his ankle heal more correctly and quickly. 

               

When Ben first proposed a doctor's visit to Landstuhl I thought he was out of his mind.  How would he even get there?  He couldn't drive the nine hours. He'd have to fly. And how would that even be possible given how immobile he was?  But Ben pursued this course undeterred.  He coordinated with the medical center in Landstuhl and made arrangements to stay with his brother who is stationed there.  He bought a ticket for early Monday morning, the Monday before Christmas.  Knowing there was a good chance he would be getting surgery and with his ability to be home in time for Christmas in question, I was feeling quite overwhelmed by the whole ordeal, but these feelings were mitigated by the assurance that he was going to finally get proper medical care. We got up at 4:30 Monday morning and I drove him to the airport.  We were met by a medical attendant at check-in who put him in a wheel chair, and I was able to accompany him as far as security.  Then it was adios, amigo!  

Going through security with his "medical attendant"

On the drive home on that dark December morning I was able to call Ben's parents as well as my mom.  They had all shown so much concern since the whole ordeal started, so it was nice to receive a much needed moral boost from them.  

The silver lining to this whole experience was that his brother Joe and wife Bethany were able to be there  from start to finish while he was in Germany.  After landing in Frankfurt, he took a 1.5 hour shuttle to Landstuhl Medical Center, where he was greeted by Bethany.  She helped him navigate the huge facility thanks to her firsthand knowledge of its layout.  Her son Ryan had several visits to the orthopedist for a broken arm, so she definitely knew where to go!  His appointment was at 9:00 and they did a CT scan on his ankle and leg.  The results revealed a much more complicated injury than initially thought.  First off, he had three different breaks in his ankle, all concentrated in the same area.  He also had a piece of loose bone floating around.  Then the real kicker was that he had a break in both his tibia and fibula in his leg!  The Slovenian doctors did not catch this at all.  They didn't even bother to x-ray his leg.  No wonder he was in so much pain! And how you get such an injury from slipping on ice is beyond me!

Plaster cast comes off, yay!

It was decided he would have surgery first thing Tuesday morning.  He was able to go home with Joe and Bethany and spend the night with their family.  They only live about ten minutes from Landstuhl!  What a huge blessing this was.  I can't imagine how this would have all worked out otherwise.  

I anxiously waited the next morning to hear the results of the surgery and was relieved to hear it was a success later in the afternoon! He got four screws and a plate inserted.  I was able to talk to him before and after the surgery.

Pre-surgery.  He looks totally normal, right?

  On the phone he sounded quite loopy with all the medication and everything.  He was discharged late in the day and was able to go home with Joe and Bethany to recuperate.

He was so happy with his new flexi cast... His leg could breathe. 
And don't you just love his t-shirt??

His surgery took place on Tuesday the 21st, and they would have preferred for him to stick around for another week to make sure there was no infection or complication. But the doctor felt confident enough to let him go on Thursday the 23rd so he could be home in time for Christmas.  What a relief!  

Frankfurt airport, humming "I'll be Home for Christmas."

Two days post-surgery, waiting to board his flight.  

Christmas was great.  Here's a few pics:

 

We even had company both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.  Don't ask me how we pulled that off.  Christmas Eve Phaedra, her mother, and her four year old daughter Marielle came.  We had our traditional simple meal of bread, cheese, hot chocolate, fruit, and nuts. Then we performed the nativity.  The Gywn family seemed to really like it.  Phaedra said it reminded her of sweet memories when her dad used to read to them from the Bible.  And Marielle LOVED being cast as Mary.  We also sang and played carols on the piano, violin, and guitar.  Phaedra loves the violin so it was fun to listen to all the great music.

Unfortunately this was the only photo we took, but isn't it precious??

Christmas Day we had four elders over and Alejandra, a new sister in our branch who is from Dominican Republic and is training for the paralympics!  She has a brittle bone disorder and competes in swimming.  She's a ray of sunshine! I'm lame and don't have any photos from our Christmas meal, which was crock-pot carnitas.  Had to keep it simple, no turkey this year!  We did have pumpkin pie, though, my first stab at making it.  It turned out amazing!

The plan for Ben's post-op care was that he would go to the airbase at Aviano, Italy and be seen by the Orthopedic PA to get stitches removed and transition into a fiberglass cast. Aviano is only a two hour drive as opposed to the nine hour drive to Landstuhl.  But, ironically the orthopedic PA was TDY to Landstuhl for medical training during two weeks following Christmas!  

We tried to figure out if we could get him in before she left, or if there was someone else who could see him, but it became increasingly clear that this wasn't going to be possible.  It was so frustrating!  Friday, New Year's Eve day, I woke up and said, "Well, I guess let's just drive up to Landstuhl with the whole family, make a holiday weekend out of it with Joe and Bethany, and get you seen first thing Monday morning."  We didn't really have other options.  So, that's exactly what we did!  
 
I called Bethany and of course she said, "Sure!  Come on up!"  We spent the morning scrambling and packing and left by 1:45. The kids were sooo excited! The trip was smooth sailing, I was driving and getting us there REALLY fast... at the border of Austria in 50 minutes and at the German border in three hours. We were scheduled to get there around 10:00 but then we hit a snag about two-thirds of the way there when we came upon a really bad accident.  We were at a standstill for over an hour.  

A helicopter even flew right over our van and landed in front of us on the freeway.  Both directions were completely shut down.  It looked like someone careened off the freeway going one direction, flipped their car and landed upside down going in the other direction.  The chances for survival did not look good, which really puts your problems into perspective. 

We finally arrived at 11:30 pm, just in time to ring in the new year.  J&B's kids were all totally surprised because they hadn't told them we were coming.  The kids ran down the street to join neighbors in setting off fireworks.  

We had a wonderful weekend with their family.  The kids just played and played in their gargantuan house.  They even had some rare sunshine and I enjoyed a walk in the fields with Bethany and baby Evan behind their house.  We went to the PX and did some shopping and bowling. I even bought a Persian rug on a whim!  We attended church with them on Sunday. Bethany fed us well through the whole weekend. Then Monday morning Ben had his appointment to get his stitches removed and his new cast put on!

And I got to meet the orthopedist who performed the surgery. 

We had to drive home that day to get the kids back in time for school on Tuesday.  They had already missed Monday!  

J&B's kids pushing off on our car as we say good-bye.  Ryan chased us all the way down the street!

    I'm so glad my kids got to spend the weekend with them.  You just need family during the holidays. We've spent way too many holidays without them so this was a special treat this year!

 This whole thing was such an ordeal.  Ben did eventually get to Aviano to get his cast removed and transitioned to a boot.  And he's currently doing physical therapy here in Slovenia.  So, all told, he's had a trip to the ER in Slovenia, two trips to Germany, a trip to Italy with another pending, and PT here in Slovenia.  It's been a wild ride and we both agree we can't wait to get back to the states to get more accessible healthcare!  It's been a grueling process for this injury.  Let's just hope we all stay healthy and safe the next 18 months until we're out of here!  You can't tell I'm excited, can you??

Medical Adventures in Europe Part I

My life long friend told me recently that I need to write more stories, because I tend to have a lot of good ones.  I'm kind of flattered that she's so amused by my stories, and I confess the past few months, for better or for worse, have given me some great material for the blog.  I'm rusty with my writing though, so I hope it's not too painful of a read!

I'll start with Ben's and mine recent medical debacles.  On Tuesday, December 14, I had an appointment scheduled for an outpatient surgery at a hospital in Vienna, which is a four hour drive away.  I had already had two very unpleasant and fruitless visits to an American OB/GYN at Aviano Air Base, Italy and a local OB/GYN here in Ljubljana; both doctors recommended surgery. However, there are no private hospitals in Slovenia, just public options.  And when it comes to anything more complicated than receiving basic care, embassy families are typically sent to Austria, which has private hospitals and overall better care. 

Traveling to another foreign country to undergo surgery was a stressful prospect in and of itself. I coordinated with Tricare and Zehra, the nurse at the embassy, several weeks in advance to make sure everything was planned and in order.  There was loads of paperwork and organizing to be done.  I was authorized a "medical attendant" to come with me, naturally that was to be Ben.  We would be gone two days and one night, so I arranged for a hotel near the hospital and for the girls' Spanish tutor to babysit.  Unfortunately, she cancelled last minute because her dad had a stroke in Spain and she was returning home. Sadly, he passed away a couple weeks later. So, in desperation, I asked the parents of each of my children's school friends if they could come home from school with them on Monday, spend the night, and go to school with them the next day.  All of the friends' parents were super willing and helpful.  Yay for awesome people! Cozy stayed with Marielle, James with Dante, and Em with Celeste.  Caroline was at a ski trip at Kranjska Gora with her class for the week.  

Despite my anxiety about the procedure, I was looking forward to this trip as a little "getaway" with Ben.  We rarely have time to ourselves to do anything special.  Austria had been locked down since mid-November because of a spike in Covid cases, but the Christmas markets were slated to re-open December 13!  The plan was to leave Monday morning, the 13th, arrive in the afternoon and hit the Christmas markets before my early morning procedure the following morning. 

Before leaving that morning, Ben said he needed to attend an office call with the Slovenian forces commander on a military base not far from Ljubljana.  So in the meantime, I ran a few last minute errands parking the car at the embassy.  As I was returning around 10:00 am, I saw Ben drive up in his work vehicle and he signaled for me to come over.  He was sitting in the driver's seat in his uniform saying I was never going to believe this, but he sprained his ankle slipping on ice as he stepped off a curb into the street on his way to the meeting.  He said he was in a lot of pain, and that he was going to need to get it looked at. I later found out that he limped into that meeting with the general and sat through it for an hour before coming back to the embassy! He hobbled into the embassy, changed his clothes, went down to the med unit, got some crutches, and headed to the ER with a driver from the motor-pool.  I went home to do last minute preparations and waited to hear from him, fearing our carefully planned trip was in jeopardy.  It was a long wait for him to be seen.  They x-rayed his ankle and pronounced it broken.  He called around 2:00 to relate the bad news, and I scrambled to think of our next move. Do I cancel my appointment?  Do I go up by myself?  Do I ask my friend Maliha to come with? Does Ben come up anyway?  I was so disappointed, but I told Ben he didn't need to come, that it made most sense for me to call Maliha. But Ben, being the ever "can-do" guy said, "Let's just go. I'll be fine."  Looking back, man, we were dumb.  I had no idea how much pain he was in or how serious his injury was.  

So, I drove to the ER and picked him up around 3:30... by now we were several hours off target of our departure time.  His leg was wrapped in a big white heavy plaster cast.  It looked awfully uncomfortable.  He sat in the back seat with his leg elevated on the middle consul.  Looking back, I can't believe I allowed for this to happen. It was dark most of the drive and it took us quite awhile to get up there, mostly because my visibility was bad due to winter conditions and a crummy windshield wiper, adding to the irritation of the whole ordeal.

Our "romantic getaway" 
Note the nasty windshield

We got in around 8:15 and drove directly to St. Stephen's Cathedral in the heart of the city.  We easily found street parking.  I had been to this same lively square ten years before with my family, my mom, and my sister Mary.  This time the atmosphere was so much more muted and toned down.  There were just a few people attending the market, the streets were quiet as cafes and restaurants were still closed.  Ben rested in the cathedral, propping his foot up on one of the pews.  He did get to hear a beautiful choir rehearse, so that was cool.  I found a few ornaments to buy, but the stalls closed at 9 pm.  We headed to our hotel near the hospital and got settled in.  Poor Ben was so  uncomfortable.

St. Stephen's Cathedral.  Isn't it beautiful?  Do you see Ben on his crutches?

Quiet Streets

The next morning we headed to the hospital that was just down the street.  I went to registration, and they told me they had not received the guarantee of payment from Tricare, so that was a bit of an ordeal to straighten out. Then finally I went in to see the doctor that was to perform the procedure.  I expected everything to be prepared and ready to go.  On the contrary, she asked me why I was there and what she could do for me. She had no idea that I needed a surgical procedure. I was baffled.  Tricare and Zehra had assured me everything was communicated and arranged.  The doctor was also flummoxed and scrambled to accommodate me.  Luckily she was able to schedule the OR for that afternoon.  She told me to come back at noon for all the pre-op paperwork.  She also asked me if I had a PCR Test. In that moment I thought she asked if I had a PCT test, which despite the acronym being very similar, is quite different. PCT in Slovenia means proof of recovery, vaccine, or a negative test.  I'm vaccinted. I'm asked for my PCT certificate several times a day, including twice already at the hospital.  PCR, on the other hand, is a specific kind of covid test that can take hours to receive a result.  The hospital protocol was that a negative PCR test was mandatory in order to enter the OR.  My proof of vaccination, or PCT, was not adequate. I did not understand this at the time, and it would come back to bite me big time that afternoon.

We had a couple of hours to kill before being due back at the hospital, so we drove down to the Rathaus, (which was an adventure in and of itself) where there was supposed to be a wonderful Christmas market. We met up with Ben's Swiss counterpart who is posted in Vienna, Urs, and his wife Nadine.  They were so nice and pleasant to spend an hour with. Ben rested on a bench with Urs while I shopped with Nadine.  She showed me the stalls and the variety of handcraft goods that are made in Austria.  The countless stalls were amazingly decorated and overflowing with wonderful food and beautiful hand-crafted goods. Unfortunately, I was fasting because of my procedure, but I scooped up some great ornaments. I vowed to come back after the surgery to spend more time shopping.

The atmosphere and markets were just magical. And crowds very small.

Upon our return to the hospital around noon, I went back to registration to fill out more forms, and they asked me for my PCR test.  Understanding PCT I showed them my vaccine certificate that I show multiple times a day everywhere I go. No, they clarified, PCR, not PCT.  PCR?  I don't have a PCR test!  I have a proof of vaccination.  What would I need a PCR test for?  They explained it was mandatory to enter the OR and that they would have to cancel my appointment without one.  I couldn't believe what I was hearing.  My eyes were hot with tears as I explained all the hassle we had gone through to get up there, including my husband with a broken ankle.  I asked if I could get a PCR test right then at the hospital, and they said it takes a day to get the results.  A rapid antigen test wouldn't do.  I asked to speak to the doctor, she came over and reiterated what the nurse had told me.  She said, "I thought you had a PCR test.  That's what you said this morning!"  I thought you meant PCT, not PCR!  I called Tricare, so irate with the whole experience and how they had set me up for failure. All they could do was apologize profusely. I was borderline angry with the doctor as I asked her how I wasn't notified of these requirements and how she was unaware of my procedure I thought was planned.  I was confused as to where the blame should fall... the doctor, Zehra, or Tricare.  After sifting through it all, the blame was ultimately to be placed at Tricare's feet. They took over the case from Zehra and then didn't communicate properly with the doctor what kind of procedure I needed done, and since the doctor didn't know I needed surgery, she hadn't told Tricare about the PCR requirement.  We talked to the doctor about rescheduling for the following day, but I was concerned about getting back to our kids plus Ben was so uncomfortable.  It turned out the OR was booked the rest of the week anyway, it wasn't an option.  

Long-suffering Ben waiting for me to be admitted to the OR

So, very deflated we made our way back home, but not without stopping first at the Rathaus Christmas for some seriously needed retail therapy.  Ben stayed in the car and I returned to all the stalls I had eyed earlier and unleashed with a fury, finding some great Christmas treasures.  We drove home again in the dark, again with crappy vision because of the damn windshield wiper.  I was tired from doing all the driving too.  Ben ended up driving for about an hour.  

The next week we plugged along with all of our normal day-to-day routines.  Ben went to work. He attended the embassy Christmas party, James' and Cosette's school Christmas concert, and Emily's violin recital.  He went to church.  But he was REALLY uncomfortable all week and in a lot of pain. Sensing something was wrong, he sent his x-rays to his cousin Jimmy, who is an orthopedic surgeon and had previously been assigned at the Army medical facility in Landstuhl, Germany.  Jimmy recommended he get his ankle looked at more carefully with a CT scan and that he could possibly need surgery.  It turns out the injury was much worse than we realized.  DUH, DUH, DUH...  Stay tuned for the gripping sequel coming soon!
 

Girl Scout Family Campout

Left to Right:  Alena Braman, Caroline Shaha, Avery Hart, Emily Shaha, Sam Marolf, Evenlyn Denyer

We had such a great weekend at the Girl Scout Campout at Šobec, next to Bled.  Being out in nature with friends and family while somebody else has planned it all, what's not to love?

Our wonderful leaders Carrie Braman and Amanda Hart planned and organized everything.  So so grateful for all their hard work and dedication!

Hiking to the Sava River... Max Marolf, Ethan Hart, James Shaha

Girl Scouts has been a saving grace for my girls.  With the American school closing and then having to start over at an international school as the only Americans in their classes, combined with the pains of Covid restrictions this past year, GSA has been a haven for them. Every two weeks they can let down their guard, relax, and be themselves around other like-minded anglophones. This pictured group of Americans go to four different schools, but they all come together every two weeks for GSA. (I know you're thinking, "But there's boys in this picture!"  Siblings and parents were invited to the campout, but they don't attend the meetings.) 

For several months they had to meet on zoom, but the past couple months with restrictions lifted, they have been meeting in the spacious backyard of the ambassador's residence which is currently unoccupied. They've been having a blast. 

Group effort setting up the beast of a tent

It was a very cool and mild weekend, and constantly threatened rain.  The rain didn't come until Saturday night, and the girls got drenched in their fair-weather tent. Luckily for the parents, we were warm and dry in our "bungalows."  That's the secret to happy camping... kids in tents, parents in bungalows. 

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Saturday morning they rotated to different stations at the bungalows.  The Harts are teaching knot tying. 

 

The Bramans taught tie-dying

Kyle helped them make trail mix.  

Hi Kyle!

The Denyers led jar painting to make little lanterns

And the Shahas led rock painting.

That afternoon JB led us on a long hike.  We found frogs, tadpoles, cows, snails, and dead mice. 

Why hasn't somebody told me to burn those pants?  You have all failed me. 

Could anything be cuter???

 Cosette just ran around  the whole weekend like she was one of the scouts. 

The infamous Girl Scout fair-weather tent.

Euorpean campground rules are weird.  No open fires!  The grill was the extent of our outdoor fire.  

Someone even brought sparklers!

Another weird aspect of European campgrounds:  they come with fancy restaurants.  Saturday night we enjoyed a lovely dinner, and they had a wonderful outdoor playground just outside from where we were eating.  

Sunday morning, pancake breakfast and closing circle.  We had to leave before 9:00 to make it back in time for our first day back at church in 11 months!  We had to go because Ben was being called as branch president! Couldn't really skip out ;)

I think this weekend felt especially wonderful because we were able to participate in things we haven't been able to do for so long... gather with friends, eat at a restaurant, visit and socialize in person!  I grew up going to church camps and youth activities all the time.  I love the sense of community that I grew up with living in a small town, going to the same school and church with my friends and neighbors.  I have missed this aspect sooooo much in our military life.  So it was nice to have a taste of that this weekend.  There are six families participating in GSA this year... three will leave this summer!  And as far as we know, there are no new girls moving in this summer. Hopefully next year something can work out!