Bernie's Bedside Briefing
During the early evening of Wednesday September 21st, severe thunderstorms came into Minnesota and ran in an easterly direction across the northern metropolitan area. Reports stated that these storms included straight line winds of up to 80 MPH and one to two F1 or F2 tornados.
Bernie and Betty's house in Ramsey took a good brunt of the storm and the damage amounted to a very large number of trees knocked down throughout the yard (37 Bernie counted!). Bernie went to work right away to clear trees and debris as best he could.
On the next night, Bernie was on a ladder sawing tree branches and fell from a ladder, approximately 12 feet above the ground. No one is really quite sure how it happened, but as a result, Bernie suffered extensive head injuries and is currently at Hennepin County Medical Center in downtown Minneapolis.
This webpage is an attempt at centralizing the information on how Grandpa Bernie is doing. This way we don't all have to call the hospital to find out how he is doing and having the staff repeat the same information. This will allow the Doctors and Nurses to do their job, which is what we all want.
These first few days have been quite hectic and timely information has been tough to get to everyone. We will try to keep this webpage updated daily or as information comes in to let everyone know how he is doing.
Please keep Bernard in your prayers.
Thursday Night - September 22nd:
Betty called the house to check on Bernie. Bernie managed to answer the phone. He indicated that he was "freezing" and bleeding from his ear. He was confused and was not making any sense according to Betty. He could not tell Betty what had happened to him. With that, Betty called 911 and the ambulance took him to Mercy Hospital in Coon Rapids.
He went to the emergency room for evaluation and a CT Scan revealed blood on his brain and he was airlifted around midnight to HCMC.
Friday - September 23rd:
When he arrived at HCMC, he was again evaluated and then prepped for neurosurgery. He went into surgery about 6:40 AM and did not get out until around 11:15 AM.
The surgery resulted in the repair of two hematomas. One other hematoma inside the brain stopped on its own. The ones that got repaired were the left temporal and right frontal hematomas.
There were two small hairline skull fractures near the back base of his head and a shunt had been placed at Mercy to relieve the pressure there.
Those that were there at the time got to see Bernie in the Surgical ICU.
One to two hours after surgery, Bernard did not wake up. They were told that Bernie was in a level of consciousness that would not respond to verbal command. In other words, he was in a coma of some level. He had a slight response to pain stimulus and was not moving his right side.
Betty was approached with the opportunity of enrolling Bernie in a research study involving Oxygen Therapy. The random selection of the various therapy options resulted in the Hyperbolic Chamber Treatment.
That evening, Bernie had his first treatment (dive) in the Hyperbolic Chamber. They were told that Bernie withstood the treatment well.
Saturday - September 24th:
Bernie was running a slight fever, temp about 100. However, Bernie started to respond more to pain stimuli and was beginning to move his right side. It was evident that he was becoming more uncomfortable with the intubation tube in his mouth. The doctors said this was a good thing as he was becoming more aware.
He was scheduled for the 2nd Hyperbolic Chamber Treatment, but as the procedure began, his heart rate increased and blood pressure dropped, so the chamber therapy was stopped.
He spent the rest of the day in the Surgical ICU with little change but had some bouts with nausea. Towards the end of the night, Nancy and Betty said he slightly opened his eyes. His level of consciousness was improving.
Sunday - September 25th:
Bernie was scheduled for another treatment in the Hyperbolic Chamber, but his condition had improved to the point according to the Doctors that he was no longer a candidate for that therapy.
He was opening his eyes a bit more and beginning to have very minimal responses to verbal stimuli.
By evening, his fever and agitation had increased. His blood pressure has also elevated slightly. Medications to improve his BP were given. As he is becoming more conscious, he is experiencing more pain, so pain medications have also been given to keep him a bit more sedated.
Monday - September 26th:
Bernie showed some minor improvement today. At his 1:00 PM assessment, he slightly lifted his right thumb up on verbal command. His temperature was again slightly elevated at 100. His BP was elevated and is being controlled.
At 7:00 PM his BP is still elevated, but now the nurses have been able to have him lift both his right and left thumbs up. He has also wiggled his toes on verbal command. He has lifted his legs in response to pain stimulus. However, all these movement are still very weak at this point.
His feeding tube was placed and he will begin to get nutrition via the tube. With his elevated temp, it was determined he has some type of respiratory infection, so he was started on antibiotics.
Tuesday - September 27th:
At 2:00 AM this morning, Bernie had a spike in his temperature to 102. Again, they continued his antibiotics.
Bernie was less responsive today, especially in moving his upper extremities. His ICP - the inter cranial pressures are looking really good according to the nurse, which indicates the level of swelling in the brain.
He is now on scheduled medication to control his blood pressure. So far he is tolerating his feeding tube and the nutrition given to this point.
We found out that vertebrae #10 is fractured. He also has a problem with one of his TMJs (Temporo-Mandibular Joint) on the right side, which means he is having trouble with the right side of his jaw.
An artery in the back of the neck is torn and the pain is being controlled with aspirin. They said that this will take a good six months to heal.
Considerations are being made for a trach tube and PEG tube. The trach tube will be for breathing, as the intubation tube cant be in for more than a week. The PEG tube is for feeding directly into the stomach.
All in all, Bernard's vitals are stable.
Wednesday - September 28th:
Bernie's temperature continues to be elevated which is being controlled with Tylenol. His vital signs are stable. ICP - inter cranial pressures, remain low. He is also being given some low doses of pain medication.
Again today he was not responsive to verbal commands but did open his eyes slightly to pain stimulus.
He is being fitted for a brace for the vertebrae fracture. Bernie also had a CT scan today, but the results were not available at this time.
The paperwork has been arranged for his trach and PEG tube placement. The trach tube procedure is scheduled for tomorrow. The PEG tube procedure will happen as well if there is time, otherwise it may be delayed until the next day.
Thursday - September 29th:
Bernie had his trach and PEG tube procedures today. The nurse indicated that he took this very well. Antibiotics are starting to help with his upper respiratory infection.
Temps were still slightly elevated. His ICP was up a bit today, so medication was given to help control the pressure. Bernie's CT scan from yesterday showed increased swelling in his frontal lobe which correlates with his elevated ICP. Vital signs are still stable. No response to verbal stimuli, but he is pretty sedated due to the trach and PEG procedures.
Friday - September 30th:
Bernie was running a pretty high fever all day. It is being controlled with Tylenol. Ice packs are being put on his sides to help keep his temperature in check. The upper respiratory infection is pneumonia. The nurses indicated that this is a pretty normal result for someone in his condition, where they cant be moved and cough on their own.
His ICPs are doing fine. Bernie was fitted for a back brace and it is now in place. He is responding to pain stimuli and responding to his mouth being suctioned. Its hard to say if he is responding to verbal stimuli, but talking to him resulted in his eyes moving and squinting below the eyelids, but he did not open his eyes.
Bernie had the hiccups today, and one could tell that he did not really like that.
The nurses said that when one in this condition gets pneumonia and a fever, they are like anyone else, they don't respond well and seem more lethargic. When the fever breaks and the pneumonia is gone, hopefully we will be able to access how he is doing more accurately.
Saturday - October 1st:
Not much change in Bernie's condition today except that his temps were down and they were starting to get his pneumonia under control. He is responding to pain stimuli, but nothing verbal today.
Now that his back brace is in place, we are told they are going to start turning Bernie in his bed in order to move him around a bit.
Sunday - October 2nd:
Bernie had the tubes removed from his head today that were being used to test for inter cranial pressures. The peak of the swelling is apparently over and these are not needed any more due to his ICPs being steady and on target.
He had a spike in temperature again today and is still being treated with Tylenol for fever reduction. We are waiting on cultures to come back from lab analysis to see if there are other infections taking place. However the pneumonia is still present.
He continues to respond to pain stimulus and briefly opened his eyes, but this was not an indication of his level of consciousness improving.
Monday - October 3rd:
They performed a CT Scan this morning but we are still waiting on the report. Bernie's temp continues to be an issue. Another round of antibiotic treatment was started to help with any other possible infections.
He was also give 2 pints of blood today, apparently a low hemoglobin count was the reason. He was less responsive to pain stimuli today, which has everyone concerned.
Tuesday - October 4th:
Bernie's CT scan from yesterday revealed that there is still a bit of swelling in the brain and a little blood still present. The doctors are hopeful that the swelling will resolve on its own and the body will absorb the blood. Another CT scan will be done tomorrow to follow the progress.
Very slow improvement is taking place, the body just needs time to heal itself. Bernie had no fever today, yet the antibiotic treatment continues to help fight and control any infections. He continues to respond to pain stimulus but does not follow verbal commands.
He has a special mattress for reducing the incidence of pressure sores. So far his skin has been intact and the incision on his head is healing, along with his hair growing back. The nurses put on his back brace again and sat him up in bed. It was a bit painful for him so they give him some morphine to control the pain. Bernie needs to sit up to help resolve the pneumonia and keep his skin healthy.
Wednesday - October 5th:
Not many changes since yesterday.
They are taking Bernie off of the breathing apparatus during the day and putting him back on at night.
No changes in his level of responsiveness as of late. No fever today, but he is being continued on antibiotics. He had another CT Scan today, but the results are not in yet.
Thursday - October 6th:
Bernie's temps have been stable. 99 was the highest today. There is little change in his level of responsiveness,
He has been opening his eyes slightly on his own, but not due to any prompting.
The most recent CT Scan report indicated an increase in swelling is taking place. Hopefully the swelling is peaking, another CT Scan will be done Monday to check it again.
His chest X-ray is showing that the pneumonia is getting under control. There are going to take X-rays of his skull fractures on Friday to see if they can remove the C-Collar. If they are able to remove that, it will be more comfortable for Bernie.
Friday - October 7th:
Bernie's fever does not appear to be coming back for now. His pneumonia is staying under control as well. Vital signs are stable.
X-rays were taken today, but no report was issued by the Radiologist.
Mid-day he was wide awake with his eyes wide open. His BP was up a bit due to being so awake and aware of the pain, so he was given some pain medication. (Clarification - He was not "awake" as you and I know it, but his level of consciousness was such that his eyes were open for a long time during the early afternoon..."wide awake" were the words the nurse used to describe it at that time...)
The mid-day nurse wrote in her report that he opened his eyes to verbal commands. We also noticed this later this evening, he would open his eye when we talked to him, but it was hard to tell he actually knew who was talking to him. His pupils appeared to try and follow where voices were coming from when people on each side of the bed were speaking.
Saturday - October 8th:
No major changes today except that he is now off the ventilator day and night. However, he does have a "trach dome" over his tracheal opening, which apparently gives a bit more oxygen. No fever and the pneumonia is getting under control. Bernie continues to open his eyes from time to time.
Sunday - October 9th:
Sorry, we were unavailable to do an update this day. However what happened that day was that Bernie received two units of blood due to a low hemoglobin. No fever and was not responsive to verbal stimuli. They also took X-rays of the C-spine / neck area.
Monday - October 10th:
Bernie was running a slight temperature today, so he was started on a new round of antibiotics. They removed his C-collar which makes it much more comfortable for him.
His respirations increased today, so they were unable to wean him from the ventilator.
The afternoon nurse felt he was tracking a little bit with his eye movement.
There is a care conference scheduled for tomorrow morning. The discussion may involve a possible transfer to Bethesda Hospital in downtown St. Paul.
Tuesday - October 11th:
The care conference held today discussed moving Bernie to Bethesda Hospital on the 12th if he stable and a room is available.
No major changes today, as his vital signs are all ok. Slight temp today as well.
Blood sugars were up, so some insulin was given.
Bernie continues to open his eyes and stronger movements are being noted on the left extremities.
Wednesday - October 12th:
Bernie was running a fever today, so the transfer to Bethesda Hospital did not take place.
They had him sitting upright in a cardiac chair for about 6 hours today, this helped him to cough and clear his lungs.
No real changes to his responsiveness, still moving to pain stimuli.
His eyes were open on and off again today, but not to verbal commands.
The staff continue to try to wean him off the ventilator by using the "trach dome" during the night.
Thursday - October 13th:
Bernie was transferred to Bethesda Hospital today in downtown St. Paul.
He has been running some temps today, as high as 102 degrees. Tylenol was given.
He continues to open and move his eyes and moving his left arm, but nothing to verbal ques.
They took a chest X-ray to review the status of his pneumonia. The X-ray wont get read until tomorrow.
They are starting him on a different regiment of antibiotics. He is off the ventilator today but is still receiving oxygen through his trach.
Blood sugars were good today, but the blood pressure was up a bit, so that's being medicated as well.
OT and PT will evaluate Bernie the next few days to set up his therapy schedule.
Friday - October 14th:
Bernie has remained off the ventilator and seems to be tolerating this well. He still receives O2 thru the trach. He seems to be settling into his new hospital well. His window overlooks the therapeutic and healing gardens. Therapy assessments were completed today and he will start the workouts soon. He opens his eyes to voices but does not follow verbal commands.
Sunday - October 16th:
Bernie's temps have been running 99 today. His level of responsiveness continues to be the same. He did lift up his left arm to touch the bridge of his nose but not on command. His edema seems to be resolving and he is wearing special stockings to help with circulation. He had a couple of vomiting episodes, not sure if it was related to medication changes or intolerance to his feeding. Tomorrow he starts his 1/2 hr therapy sessions with occupational therapy (OT), Physical therapy (PT), and speech therapy (ST).
Monday - October 17th:
Bernie's vitals were all good today, no high temperatures today.
They did a chest X-ray again to check on the pneumonia, but the results will be back later.
A blue die test was also done today to test his swallowing. The blue dye came out the trach, so that means his swallow function is not quite right yet.
Tuesday - October 18th:
Bernie's chest X-ray showed he still has some pneumonia and continues on antibiotic treatment for this. His blood pressure was a bit high today. He continues with his PT and OT sessions. His responsiveness still remains the same.
Bernie has been lifting up his left leg and will move his left arm to his nose. However, he still shows weakness on the right side of his body in his extremities. Hopefully the therapy will correct this. Bernie continues to wear his back brace.
Wednesday - October 19th:
Bernie had a rough day today. He had alot of vomiting and stooling. They took a CT of his stomach today, the results are not back yet. His tube feeding is on hold till he is feeling better. Again his blood pressure was up a bit and continues on medication to control it.
He has been coughing alot and getting the junk out of his lungs which is a good thing. He continues on antibiotics to help control the pneumonia. He had no fever today. His therapy sessions were put on hold as he wasn't feeling so well today.
Thursday - October 20th:
Bernie had a CT scan of his abdomen, it revealed that is was "impacted". This means that he had bowel blockage. So enema treatments were given to relieve the situation.
His vitals were fairly stable, but was sleepy throughout the day.
Friday - October 21st:
Bernie received a procedure to move the feeding tube from his stomach to the upper intestine. This was done to see if it will relieve some vomiting he has been having. However, he is running a slight fever and still experiencing some vomiting.
Saturday - October 22nd:
Note that updates for Bernie are now being done on another website. This site has the ability for all the kids to update Bernie's condition. Click on the following link...
Then use berniewurm as the "site name" and click the "visit" button.