Abbott Northwestern

As some of you know from Random Thoughts, mom was hospitalized Thanksgiving night.

At about 1:45 p.m. central time on Thursday afternoon, she complained of suddenly feeling "chilled" and went to her room to wrap herself in blankets and take a nap. One hour later Mavis checked in on her and she was shaking uncontrollably and crying. Nothing we did (more blankets, electric heater) seemed to help warm her. We remembered that in case of emergencies, we should call the Mayo oncologist on-call for instructions. We did. Dr. Moynihan was the doctor on-call and called us back within a few minutes. He recommended that we layer her in clothes and wrap her in blankets and get her to the emergency room.

We sped to the nearest hospital, Abbott Northwestern, arriving at the ER at 3:07 p.m. Her temperature on arrival was 102.3 degrees. The ER physician examined her and found her heart sounds normal and chest x-rays showed her lungs to be clear. She was given intravenous fluids to lower her temperature.

She was admitted at 7:30 p.m. Later in her room, a nurse's aide stopped by to take her temperature and her blood pressure. The IV fluids worked to lower her temperaturee to 98.7 but her blood pressure was very low (82 over 47). This caused some alarm with the nurse, who then paged the on-call doctor of internal medicine. Dr. Harmala, who happens to be Suomilinen (small world), told us she has an infection. The source of the infection is unknown, but he speculated that she has pneumonia.

Until they confirm the source, there is no estimate for a release date. So for the time being, if you want to give her a call to wish her well you can reach her directly at 612-863-2301 in room 3030.