Halloween update

Well some of you may have noticed that Roger has accessed his own blog from his mobile phone, though it was a single line "Still in hospita".  Rather than paraphrase I will paste in Lis' Facebook posting today.

"This has been a very busy and enjoyable week with sons and grandchildren being here with me in Burwell so I am behind with the update. 
Rog has been undergoing intensive speech and occupational therapy since being in J2. He is getting used to his speaker valve and Tim and Chris have been able to talk to him for the first time in nearly 7 weeks. 
I took his mobile phone in and since then have received a few text messages. So, as you can see, things are moving in the right direction.
Roger's swallow is slightly better - fingers crossed this continues to improve. However, his double vision is still making him feel giddy especially when he walks.
The therapists are wonderful, firm, encouraging and kind. We are lucky to have such a good hospital in Cambridge with its own severe trauma ward for patients with brain injuries.
Our delightful little grandchildren have really cheered him up and, although Rog is totally knackered after all his daily therapy, just knowing they are there stroking his hands has been lovely."

Feeling better...

Five days since I last posted an update and Lis has made 2 in that time.  On Monday nothing seemed to have changed very much and the only good news was that a deaf friend had visited who was able to understand Roger by being able to lip read which had give a bit of a boost.  

This morning (Wednesday) Lis wrote :

"Roger has been much brighter these last couple of days. Tim, Jo and the children visited on Monday and this cheered him up, especially when Lucien and Amandine climbed on the bed to give him a cuddle. Jo, who sees him less frequently, saw a big improvement.
Yesterday he indicated that his eyes were a tiny bit better. He had them open for much longer than usual. Before I left he wrote down that he wanted me to bring in lots of radio magazines as he is getting bored. Good sign.
Today our nephew, Nick, is travelling from the south west for a meeting in London and making a special detour to see Rog. So what with Chris and family arriving tomorrow it's been a nice family week."

So perhaps this craving for his magazines is a sign of "normality" slowly returning. But he still has the tracheotomy tube.

Friday Update

Progress seems slow and Lis has not been making daily updates as she did for the first five weeks, so there is little to report.

The double vision is still causing Roger problems with balance and it feels like "sea-sickness". Rog is wearing an eye-patch to relieve the problems. (Jokes about pirate radio now expected!) The physiotherapist has been making Rog exercise hard, as a month in bed takes its toll.  This together with the double vision and balance issues makes walking very difficult.

  Lis noted that Roger has now spent longer in hospital than he had in their new home! Relatives have been visiting and supporting Lis, and yesterday he enjoyed a visit from his 2 year old grand-daughter.  Roger has written notes for Lis but all she can clearly read is "Get me Home".  Unfortunately that sounds likely to be some time away, as does any radio related activity.

One month on

Hard to believe that it has been a whole 4 weeks since Roger was admitted with a splitting headache.  Lis has just said that the physiotherapist has had Roger standing up for a short time this weekend. He still suffers from double vision and the promised eye-patch has finally arrived to give some short term relief.  Though still unable to talk because of the tracheotomy he has written some messages and has a sense of humour in expressing mock fear at the prospect of having to be driven by Lis for some months to come.  The transfer from the ICU to a standard ward is unfortunately showing the issues the Health Service has in providing a weekend service due to staffing levels.

It has surprised myself and Lis just how many people have read this blog to see how Roger is progressing. So far it has 100 hits a day. While that interest continues I will keep summarising the information which Lis provides daily.

G3XBM Health Status

This was prepared for publication on 4th October but Rog's blog was locked :

"Roger's wife Lis was amazed at the number of messages of support that have come through this blog and asked me to thank you and give you an update.

Well it is now three weeks since the onset of "the headache" and Rog is still in intensive care at Addenbrookes in Cambridge, It sounds as if the initial problem was exacerbated by a subsequent chest infection which led to the breathing difficulty and the need for intubation.

Rog had a tracheotomy about a week ago, which is better than being intubated,but he still cannot speak without a special valve being attached. He has had an angiogram to help the doctors identify the root cause. He has been very tired as the ICU has little sense of night and day and he doesn't get meals yet!

Yesterday for the first time he was hoisted into a chair for 45 minutes and is hoping to be transferred to the High Dependency ward when a bed is available.

A stressful time for Rog and all his family but slow improvements are being made."

Since then Roger has been transferred to the High Dependency unit, but he still has no gag reflex so keeps the tracheotomy and is unable to speak without a special valve attached and he is being  woken hourly to have his throat cleared.  But it was confirmed to Lis that even when this hurdle is cleared Roger will remain in hospital for several months and will not be out for Christmas.

This morning 11th October  Lis posted the following on Rogers Facebook Wall :

"In answer to Pat's question: Rog cannot speak at all with the trachy in his throat and, of course, this is the most frustrating aspect of his injury. How long will it take for the gag reflex to return? Well, how long is a piece of string?

The reason for his sleepiness is because every hour of the day and night the mucus in his throat is removed by a suction tube. This means that he never has a continuous sleep. Bit like torture.

However, he is much more alert. Yesterday I told him that Lauren had sold something for us on eBay and he mouthed, "How much did it go for?" Also, when friends visited, he wrote on the paper I'd brought in, " Thanks for coming." So there are chinks of light appearing."

The reason for this blog

Roger Lapthorn G3XBM is a popular amateur radio blogger and frequent contributor to radio magazines. We worked together at Pye Telecomm in the early seventies and have kept in touch since our retirement. It was Roger who persuaded me to get my licence back after 35 years lapsed.

 Last month he had a severe "headache" and was admitted to hospital with a bleed on the brain. He blogged about how good the treatment was in Addenbrookes Hospital but very shortly afterwards things went from bad to worse and he was intubated for about 2 weeks before having a tracheotomy. I tried to post updates on his blog but it now needs moderation due I believe to the elapsed time.

It is now apparent that Roger will be in hospital for several months. His wife Lis has asked for ideas to keep his mind active.  My first thoughts were that the only possibility would be Echolink but feared the suggestion would be bad for his blood pressure!  Then I thought of WebSDR. But what else can be done from a hospital ward?  So I decided to start this blog and try to attract Rogers followers to come up with suggestions. Maybe we can now see some point in setting up  an RTL dongle and a Raspberry Pi as an SDR server.  Perhaps that web controlled WSPR app I played with last summer might have a real use instead of just saving me from having to climb the stairs.

So  what ideas has anyone got?? Please brainstorm ideas without argument or evaluation, and I will start a new thread for every suggestion, where it can then be argued and evaluated.

If you know someone who reads Rogers blog please send them this link.  I will update his health status from time to time subject to Lis agreeing.  Lis had asked me to update on his blog but it appears to have locked itself.