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| - How I ended up here was bitter, but when I FINALLY left, it was sweet. On October 31, 2011, my OB told me immediately to go to St. Rose, to go in for overnight observation because my BP was too high and it could/would affect my pregnancy. At the time, I was 30 weeks pregnant and even though I started to have complications at 28 week, I never expected to go into the hospital so soon.
As soon as we got there, we went straight to the third floor (Labor and Delivery). I walked through the doors and went to check in. I said, "My doctor just called here and told me to come here." The secretary (or whatever her job title was) said, "Oh, you must be Grace. We're getting your room ready. Once we have your room, you can go right in and we'll bring your paperwork to you." So it literally was less than 5 minutes before I was whisked away to my room, told to change into my lovely blue gown and told to wait for further instructions. Within one hour, I was hooked up to an IV, told my BP was going to be monitored every 15 minutes, my blood sugar was going to be checked every hours, and was going to be given a steroid shot to help my baby's lungs. Everything happened so fast that I still was thinking, "Dang, who's gonna cover my shift tonight at work?!"
The doc making the rounds that night pretty much told me that I was going to be in for overnight observation, but it could lead up to more depending on my condition. Well, one night led to another...and another...and another. Altogether, my lovely stay at St. Rose was 15 days (not including the 2 weeks after because my baby was in the NICU). I was told I needed to be on complete bed rest, watch my diet and told to RELAX (-- which is tough for me to do). The first week I was there was pure torture. I was bored. Wanted to cry. Felt bad for being stuck there and even worse thinking that my hospital bill will be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. But...let me tell you...if it weren't for the nurses, the doctors and all the people that work at St. Rose, I'm sure the tail end of my pregnancy would have been a much worse experience. Every morning the cleaning lady and I would chit chat and it was a breath of fresh air. The nurses were all so nice and sweet (and I had a few favorites). I was loaned a TV with an Xbox and DVD player. I was given a refrigerator for my room. I was given a stack full of magazines to kill the boredom and the daily visits from Shawn (the lady who handles all the food for the patients) was the sweetest lady in the world. I hear horror stories about some women's experiences at the hospital and from the moment I got there, till I left, I was given such good care, I truly felt spoiled once I left. I was not only grateful that my wonderful insurance covered my stay...I was grateful that my memory of this experience was so good I remember it like it was yesterday.
Right after the birth of my daughter, because of her size and condition, she had to stay in the hospital for two more weeks. Those weeks were tough...and made me appreciate what the nurses do, what the doctors do and what the parents go through. I was fortunate that Lilly was just being monitored because of her size and eating habits (which are great now), but what I witnessed made me feel for the parents whose babies were in much more difficult situations. My experiences with the NICU nurses were all over the board. I had some that were so attentive, caring and willing to educate me on the care of a preemie. Some were cold, indifferent and you could tell were tired and overworked. Some were talkative and friendly and others were forceful and treated you like you weren't good enough of a parent. I tried to put myself in their shoes and just made the decision to appreciate what they did for my child. In the end, I learned a lot in the NICU and I think my child being there for a couple of weeks, helped me cope with the stress of having a newborn and healing from a C-section.
If I have another baby...I am sooooo having a child here again. I not only will vouch for their service, but their expertise, care and compassion.
The check in process was probably different for me because of the circumstances I was under, but the check out process was just as smooth. When I had questions about billing, someone immediately came up to my room. On my last day, I was never pressured to leave at a certain time or anything. Even when I was visited by the lady from the billing department, we were able to work out a payment plan that took so much weight off my shoulders.
Kudos to Shawn who gave my baby a blanket (she didn't need to) and helped me have the best food I could, but still fall within the diabetic guidelines!! LOL!!!
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