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Save my Dad!

  • Thank you to all of you from my Mum and Dad

      8 June 2015
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    Thank you so much everybody for supporting my husband, Robin and myself. I was able to buy him the equipment and care that he needed while he was so ill. There is still enough money for the ongoing treatment that he must still have for many months. Without your generous help and caring he wouldn't be as far as he is

    now. And that is ON THE MEND!!!

    May God bless you all.

    Cathy Nord. (Robin's wife)

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  • Thank you to all of you from my Aunty Wendy (Dad's sister in the UK

      8 June 2015
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    A heartfelt thank you to each and every one of you for your help. Robin is a loving, caring and generous person who has been through a very rough time, and would not have survived without your help. We are deeply grateful.

    God bless you.

    " Christ has no body but yours,

    No hands, no feet on earth but yours,

    Yours are the eyes with which he looks

    Compassion on this world,

    Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good,

    Yours are the hands, with which he blesses all the world.

    Yours are the hands, yours are the feet,

    Yours are the eyes, you are his body.

    Christ has no body now but yours,

    No hands, no feet on earth but yours,

    Yours are the eyes with which he looks

    compassion on this world.

    Christ has no body now on earth but yours.

    ?"?

    Teresa of Avila (1515–1582)

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  • Today's update

      27 May 2015

    Dad is being discharged tomorrow. The physiotherapists showed mum how to help him but he does much of the moving himself. They'll have to do a few things to the house, like handrails in the toilet and bathroom and other things that we'll find as we go along. What he does need is another wheelchair as the one he has is not suitable. He needs one with a removable side to enable him to slide into it. I'll use some of the fund money and buy that instead of a bed. He needs a bed that can be adjusted and has wheels and protection for his bed sores but we will try and raise more money to get it later.

    The physio put him in the wheelchair for the first time but it didn't go as well as he had hoped. He is getting very strong antibiotics to keep the infection away and doctor said if it returns he will need to go straight to emergency to have it washed again. Mum is very worried about coping with him at home as the femur he has left is very thin and he has no hip so has to be very very careful. They are all a bit stressed. Also they are not sure how to get him inside the house as they haven’t been able to get a wheelchair ramp installed.

    If it was a private hospital he'd be able to stay longer and recover more before being sent home but we can't do anything about that.

    They are in a panic, please keep praying.

    Thanks for your support

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  • Thank you

      21 May 2015
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    Thanks to everyone's love, support, prayers and generosity my Dad is getting better and better. Still a long road ahead but he will get there.

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  • Awesome angels out there :)

      14 May 2015

    This is a message from a generous person that I haven't met but have spoken to on FB after she saw my Dad's page smile emoticon There are real angels out there! Thanks so much Heidi for you generosity!

    Alison... I got them some groceries, meat, veg and toiletries... Should be enough for a month( yoghurt, custard and chocklate too). I will deliver later today! Xxx

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  • Update this morning :)

      14 May 2015

    God is awesome! My Dad made it through the surgery! Was so stressful as he is so frail. He lost a lot of blood so they are giving him blood but he made it! Now for the recovery.

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  • Update from yesterday :)

      14 May 2015

    I just heard that they will be operating on my dad at 11 pm NZ time tonight (1 pm SA time tomorrow). He will be having a spinal anesthetic and not a general as they are afraid he is too frail for a general. They will be removing the metal work, cleaning out the infection and pumping it with antibiotics. They will flush out the femur as well. He won't be having another prosthesis put in but they will stabilize his leg ( I am not 100% sure what that entails). He will then have a few weeks of recovery and physio in hospital before he can come home. Please pray for him during the operation. Thanks so much for everyone's unwavering support.

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  • Today's update

      11 May 2015

    My Dad is feeling better since they are draining his knee. Just before they did this he went into a coma and the doctor said there was little hope but he has pulled through and is completely lucid now. I spoke to him yesterday and he sounded really positive. The operation will be a few weeks away but at least this time he is staying in the hospital and his knee is draining so the toxins have an escape now. He will need to build his strength for the operation where they will remove all the metal from his leg and clean out his knee. We have to wait for a specialist and operating theater to become available. We don't know what their plans are with his leg once the metal has been removed as the specialist has not given us any more information. It will be a complicated operation with lots of planning involved. I will keep everyone updated smile emoticon

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  • Update from my mum now

      6 May 2015

    Dad has just had some blood taken for cross match. He is going to receive some blood. He appears to have an internal stomach bleed.

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  • Another update today

      6 May 2015

    Dad's knee has been drained right here in the waiting area through a small incision. Over a large cupful of pus came out and its still draining. Dr. Wants to do a debridement of his knee which basically means to clean it out. Should be done tomorrow. Also he vomited some blood so they are doing a gastroscopy tomorrow morning to see if he has any bleeding from his stomach or oesaphagus and treat it. All the necessary disciplines (surgeons, anaethetist, and other specialists will come together to decide what to do further. Doctor explained that he's a high risk patient and may not survive the the anaesthetic because he is so undernourished and weak. Its so sad to see him like this. My heart is breaking.

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  • Update this morning

      6 May 2015

    Hello love, Dad is very very ill. He is totally disorientated and doesn't know what is happening or where he is. An orthopaedic doctor has just seen him and they are talking about taking him to theatre tonight to drain his knee. I hope they do drain his knee as it will give him relief from the pain and reduce the toxicity. We don't know if he will survive the op as he is so frail.

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  • Dad in state hospital as he has sepsis

      6 May 2015

    Hello Ali, its not good news. I've just spoken to an orthopaedic surgeon. He explained that Dad's leg is in a terrible mess. He said too, in his own words, that the operation would be fraught with difficulties and due to Dad's frailty, he might not make it. He said too, that the top specialists at TBH would discuss it together and make an informed decision. He said that sepsis in Dad's leg is very dangerous and is not responding to antibiotics which will make it even more dangerous. Dad is less confused today but still isn't quite sure where he is at times. On the other hand, let's be positive and believe with God's help he will recover. Love Mum

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  • Car is fixed!

      6 May 2015

    Mum's car is fixed thanks to a generous friend who paid R2000 ($200) for the mechanic. So glad she has transport now. God is good.

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  • Dad going back to a state hospital

      4 May 2015

    This is an update from my mum this morning.....

    The money for the medical insurance will only come through at the end of the week and then we still need to get it started. My mum has called for an ambulance again and my Dad is on his way to a state hospital. We have to pray they will actually put him on a drip and not ignore him again...

    Hi Ali,

    Dad is completely confused. He's plucking at the air and his bed covers. He's disorientated as to time and place and doesn't know what food is on his plate that he fancied. Then he doesn't want it. He drinks very little. I encourage him every hour to drink half a glass of some fluids. He only seems to like sugar water with lemon juice. He is eating a few grapes at the moment but can only manage about

    six. At times he doesn't know who we are. He forgets everything in a few minutes. He needs to go into hospital to rehydrate and nourish him with a drip.

    He's not the Robin I know. I have always loved him and always will and will look after him with all the love and energy that I possess. You have to know these thing Ali. I need you so much even if it is long distance.. Please Lord let him live.

    Love Mum

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  • Today's update from my mum

      28 April 2015

    Hi Ali, Dad is okay. He doesn't want to eat but at the moment I've made some nice mealie pap with jam, sugar and milk. Its a problem too to get him to drink anything. We have to persevere. I have to work hard on his sacrum as he's got no flesh there. I'm using Fissan which is very good. Its also almost impossible to get him to the toilet as he can't walk. What I plan to do is to get him up in the wheelchair for a while to change his position as he's lying in the bed in the same position all the time.

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  • My Dad 3 years ago

      27 April 2015
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    This is a picture of my Dad before he became so ill. It is shocking the way he has deteriorated.

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  • Dad, mum and grandchildren

      27 April 2015
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    Thanks to my dear friend I got this picture of the family.

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  • Photo taken 26/04/15

      27 April 2015
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    My dear friend went to visit my family today and took some photo's. I was also able to have a Skype chat as my friend took her phone with for this purpose. My Dad was very weak and not able to really talk to me.

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  • Generous donations of groceries and toiletries from Cape Town friends

      26 April 2015
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    Thanks so much Mel from getting these donations together. Thanks to all the generous people who have given so openly. Cannot thank you all enough.

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  • Update from my mum

      26 April 2015

    Yes, it was awful. They didn't even order a municipal ambulance. They would have left him there all night. He was panicking as there was nothing he could do about. At least he had his cell phone to keep in touch with him. So we had no option but to get a pvt. ambulance because he cannot possibly get into a car as he's just helpless. Did I mention that the clinic sister who discharged him told him to get up and get dressed. They are so stupid at these state hospitals.

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  • Message from my mum

      26 April 2015

    I forgot to tell you that we had to get a private ambulance to bring Dad home. He was told to make his own arrangements home. Then he was pushed to a cubicle with no one around, no bedside bell and left on a stretcher. No one checked on him. As far as they were concerned he was discharged from the hospital.

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  • Correction to the first update

      26 April 2015

    Sorry everyone, with being do far away I got the message wrong. My Dad didn't get his knee drained. Praying for him to be able to get to a private hospital as two weeks wait for the state hospital is a long wait when you're in pain.

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  • Message from my mum

      26 April 2015

    Hi Ali, Dad's knee wasn't drained as there was no bed available for him as he would require pre and post operative care and have to be in hospital. So the doctor sent him home for two weeks. Another appointment hAs been made for him to see the specialist in 2 weeks' time. It's a very slow process to get anything done. I guess its slow, slow, stop for the patients and fast forward for the doctors and staff as they are so overloaded with work because of the sheer volume of work.

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  • Thanks for your help Mel and everyone who donated money to the private ambulance.

      25 April 2015

    Update: My dad went the state hospital again to have his knee drained and x-rayed. They sent him back home even though they say he should be staying in hospital as they have no bed space. This time my wonderful friend arranged for a private ambulance to transport him and they took wonderful care of him. They gave him some morphine before they moved him so that he would not be in such agony. Thanks for arranging that Mel.

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    • 25/04/2015 by Alison Pye

      Hi Ali, Dad's knee wasn't drained as there was no bed available for him as he would require pre and post operative care and have to be in hospital. So the doctor sent him home for two weeks. Another appointment hAs been made for him to see the specialist in 2 weeks' time. It's a very slow process to get anything done. I guess its slow, slow, stop for the patients and fast forward for the doctors and staff as they are so overloaded with work because of the sheer volume of work.

    • 25/04/2015 by Alison Pye

      Sorry everyone, with being do far away I got the message wrong. My Dad didn't get his knee drained. Praying for him to be able to get to a private hospital as two weeks wait for the state hospital is a long wait when you're in pain.

    • 25/04/2015 by Alison Pye

      Message from my mum - forgot to tell you that we had to get a private ambulance to bring Dad home. He was told to make his own arrangements home. Then he was pushed to a cubicle with no one around, no bedside bell and left on a stretcher. No one checked on him. As far as they were concerned he was discharged from the hospital.