ER

Thursday marked the end of a 15 year run for the program ER. That's an incredible accomplishment these days, when television programs struggle to last 13 weeks.

It was probably my frequent viewing of the program that made the trip Jane and I made to the ER last night less frightening.

As you know, my sister arrived in DC last Wednesday, and we had a series of things that needed to be accomplished quickly. I'm happy to report that we accomplished our goal, and had hoped to spend a quite weekend with good friends and great movies.

As mentioned earlier, Jane turned 60 on Friday, and we had a quite celebration on Friday. Saturday a few friends came over for a cookout to continue the celebration -- and we must have had too good a time, because Jane ended up in the ER on Saturday night.

She has been coughing a lot at night, and was a little tired after the party so she decided to rest. She did manage to sleep a little before letting me know she was having a hard time catching her breath. She also felt a pressure on her chest, so we decided it would be best to take her to the hospital.

I made my first call to 911, and was a little amazed by the whole process. I thought I was remaining calm, but when the operator answered and asked for the address for a split second I couldn't remember it! Amazing how the mind works.

I quickly pulled myself together and gave her the information. Took Jane's pulse for her, and followed instructions to unlock the door, make sure the pets were secured, and get Jane's medication together to take with us.

One of our neighbors was at the house so she stayed with Jane while I pulled everything together.

The emergency team arrived in a matter of minutes, and two really cute guys came in to attend to Jane. While one asked her questions about how she was feeling the other asked me additional information they needed.

Pretty soon two women came through the door as well, and they started the medical response. Once Jane was secured, we were out the door.

The guys carried Jane, who was strapped to a chair, down the steps and into the ambulance. One of the women got in the back with her, and I was instructed to get in the passenger seat. The other woman then got into the drivers seat and we were off. I couldn't see Jane, but I could hear her talking with the woman in the back. I felt a sense of relief just knowing we were with people who clearly knew what they were doing.

The woman driving was really wonderful. She kept taking to me, I think to keep me calm, and at one point said "what the heck -- let's use the lights and sound!"

I've seen drivers ignore emergency vehicles -- which ticks me off -- but it's particularly annoying when you are sitting in the ambulance. So please pull over and get out of the way when you see emergency lights coming your way.

Once at the hospital the doctors worked quickly to assess the situation, while I was taken to the ER waiting room. I wasn't there long before a nurse came to get me.

The good news is that Jane didn't have a heart attack, but she was clearly still having trouble getting her breath so her doctor ordered a series of tests.

I stayed with her for a few more hours, before it was clear she was going to sleep. At her encouragement I went home and told her I would be back on Sunday.

Her doctored came in to see her while I was there today and it seems she has some sort of infection in her lungs. They are treating it, and want to run a few more tests before sending her home.

Things I learned from this, that I would like to share with others:

1) Have your address written down somewhere next to (or near) the phone. In an emergency it's easier to read than to remember!

2) Make sure your house numbers are clearly visible from the street. Mine are during the day, but at night the porch light shadows them, making it impossible for them to be seen from the street.

3) If you, or someone in your home, is dealing with an on-going health issue keep a list of all the medications they are taking handy, so you can just give it too the medical team.

4) And if, or someone in your home, is dealing with on-going health issues (and if possible), keep medical records handy on a thumb drive so you can take it with you to the hospital.

5) And finally, take a deep breath and try and stay calm.