5:00-7:00     When I arrived, Dr. Vesper was napping in his recliner.  As always, Stephanie brought me up to speed on the day’s events before leaving.  Doctor woke briefly while I was prepping his dinner salad, so I took his order, chatted for a bit, then began cooking the rest of his meal.  He slept soundly till it was time to eat.  He woke just as I finished and made his way to the table with his walker.  I was unable to get a value on his blood glucose as the monitor displayed the error code “E-9” every time a test strip was inserted.  The display would go blank immediately after.  Bad battery?  I left Mossy a note to this effect.  Doctor ate well initially, but slowed down and completed only about 2/3 of his meal.

7:00-9:00     After dinner, Dr. Vesper returned to the living room while I cleaned the kitchen, washed the dishes, and set out breakfast items and morning medications.  Though quiet, he stayed awake watching TV and appreciated the few minutes I spent watching with him.  It’s sometimes difficult to get him ready for bed when the sun is still out.  At bedtime I gave him his evening medication and assisted him in the bathroom with his night time routine.  He used his walker to this point, but requested a wheelchair ride to the bedroom.  Once there, I helped him into bed, tucked him in, and said good night.

Dinner:     Salad, chicken cordon bleu, wild rice, peas, toaster corn bread round, and diet cherry 7up.

Visitors:     None

5:00-7:00     When I arrived, Dr. Vesper was napping in his recliner.  He woke briefly to say hello.  Stephanie brought me up to speed on the day’s events before she left.  I took Doctor’s dinner order and began cooking.  During this time Mary called and they enjoyed a long conversation.  When dinner was served, he elected to walk to the table and was far more steady on his feet than the night before.  He ate well and was fairly interactive.

7:00-9:00     After dinner, Dr. Vesper returned to the living room to watch TV while I cleaned the kitchen, washed the dishes, set out breakfast items and morning medications, and took out the trash.  At bedtime I gave him his evening medications, then assisted him in the bathroom with his night time routine.  He continued to use his walker rather than the wheelchair, but I stayed close behind him with it.  Once he reached the bedroom and got into bed, I tucked him in and said good night.  He was very gracious and expressed his gratitude for all our help.

Dinner:     Salad, chicken pot pie, and diet 7up.

Visitors:     None

5:00-7:00     When I arrived, Dr. Vesper was relaxing in his recliner.  Michele and I discussed the day’s events before she left.  I chatted briefly with Dr. Vesper, took his dinner order, then began cooking.  When it was time to eat, he was weak and unsteady on his feet, so we used the wheelchair to get to the table.  Once there, he was fairly shaky and had difficulty getting food to his mouth.  He seemed vaguely confused and would not respond to my suggestions or offers to help.  He eventually made it through about 2/3 of his meal when he decided he was full.  Doctor’s blood glucose level prior to eating was 191.  2 units of insulin were given.

7:00-9:00     After dinner, I wheeled Dr. Vesper back to the living room.  He alternated his time between dozing, watching TV, and reading his newspaper.  I cleaned the kitchen, washed the dishes, and set out breakfast items and morning medications.  At bedtime I gave him his evening medications, then took him to the bathroom for his night time routine.  We continued to transport using the wheelchair.  He was still unsteady, but more interactive than earlier in the evening.  After I assisted him there, we went to the bedroom where I helped him into bed, tucked him in, and said good night.

Dinner:     Salad, lemon pepper baked tilapia, roasted asparagus with Hollandaise sauce, wild rice,  garlic bread, and diet cherry 7up.

Visitors:     Sandy and her son (mowing)

5:00-7:00     When I arrived, Dr. Vesper was sleeping in his recliner.  Stephanie spent a few minutes bringing me up to speed on the day’s events.  I was happy to learn there were almost no changes regarding Doctor’s care during our absence.  When he woke, we chatted for several minutes. I took his dinner order, and gave him his newspaper to read while I began cooking.  When it was time to eat, he enjoyed a hearty appetite.  He used his walker to the table and back, but had some difficulty getting into his recliner.

7:00-9:00     After dinner, Dr. Vesper returned to the living room to watch TV while I cleaned the kitchen and microwave, washed the dishes, and set out breakfast items and morning medications.  I sat with him for a few minutes watching TV and talking about current events.  Though his short term memory is poor, his wit and humor were as lively as ever and made for great conversation!  I had a somewhat difficult time getting him to go to bed as he was not tired and the sun had not set.  At bedtime I gave him his night time medication and assisted him in the bathroom with his evening routine.  He ambulated to the bathroom, but took a wheel chair ride to the bedroom.  Once in bed, he asked me to turn on the TV and leave him the remote.  I tucked him in and said good night.

Dinner:     Salad, meatloaf, mashed potatoes, peas, toaster corn bread round, and diet cherry 7up.

Visitors:     None

5:00-7:00     When I arrived, Dr. Vesper was relaxing in his recliner watching TV.  While he perused his mail, Stephanie filled me in on the day’s events.  After she left, I took Dr. Vesper’s dinner order and began cooking.  When it was time to eat, he was briefly confused as to the time of day, telling me he just got out of bed.  Fortunately, his appetite was much improved and he ate well.  Along with feeling better, he was also much more conversant and I truly enjoyed his old sense of wry humor.   His blood glucose level prior to eating was 165, which required 2 units of insulin.

7:00-9:00     The remainder of my shift ran in quiet, routine fashion.  Dr. Vesper returned to the living room while I cleaned the kitchen, washed the dishes, and set out breakfast items and morning medications.  At bedtime I gave him his evening medications and assisted him in the bathroom with his night time routine.  He was highly fatigued, but very comfortable once he was in bed.  I tucked him in and said good night.  He used his walker the entire evening (with me hovering close behind with the wheelchair).

Dinner:     Salad, sweet and sour chicken, wild rice, garlic bread, and diet cherry 7up.  No dessert.

Visitors:     None

5:00-7:00     When I arrived, Dr. Vesper was relaxing in his recliner watching TV.  Stephanie brought me up to date before she left.  Dr. Vesper complained several times of being cold, but said he felt ok otherwise.  He wondered if he might have a fever, so I took his temperature.  The thermometer registered 97.1.  I turned up the thermostat, gave him an extra blanket which was warmed in the dryer, and a cup of hot chocolate.  He finally felt comfortable.  I later learned after speaking with Mossy that the recliner has a heat function.  When it was time for dinner, Dr. Vesper ate fairly well, but did not complete his meal.  He coughed occasionally, but had no complaints of stomach pain.  Several times he expressed concern as to whether his illness is contagious.

7:00-9:00     After dinner,  Dr. Vesper returned to the living room while I cleaned the kitchen, washed the dishes, set out breakfast items and morning medications, and took out the trash.  At bedtime I gave him his evening medications, then assisted him in the bathroom with his night time toilette.  Once in bed, I tucked him in and said good night.

Dinner:     Salad, meatloaf, mashed potatoes, green beans, dinner roll, and diet cherry 7up

Visitors:     None

Note:     I was unable to locate Dr. Vesper’s lower orthodontic retainer.  Only the upper one was in the container.  If Stephanie doesn’t find it tomorrow, I will continue to look when I arrive.

5:00-7:00     When I arrived, Dr. Vesper was relaxing in his chair watching TV.  Michele filled me in on the day’s events before she left.  The house was in good shape leaving me an easy, quiet start to my shift.  Dr. Vesper and I chatted till it was time to start cooking.  He stated he was hungry and ate well at the beginning of his meal.  About half way through he complained of some mild nausea and said he was no longer hungry.  He otherwise felt well and did not want to take anything for it.  After sitting at the table another 15 minutes, he elected to return to his recliner.  His blood glucose level prior to eating was 146.

7:00-9:00     I kept very close tabs on Dr. Vesper the rest of the evening.  The nausea dissipated rapidly and he ultimately had no recall of it.  It was perhaps a side effect of the antibiotic.  He sipped his cup of Pedialyte (which he enjoyed) and had a phone conversation with Mary.  While they chatted, I cleaned the kitchen and microwave, washed the dishes, and set out breakfast items and morning medications.  At bedtime I gave him his evening medication, then assisted him to the bathroom for his night time routine.  When he was finished, I helped him into bed and said good night.  He was fatigued, but able to ambulate the entire evening.

Dinner:     Salad, chicken pot pie (half), and diet cherry 7up.

Visitors:     None