I have come to an educated decision. A little more background. My husband was taken the last 2 times to the hospital in our small town. The first of the 2 times he was having trouble breathing and asked to go to the hospital. He was in a regular private room on a heart monitor. While I was visiting, he started gasping for air and and changing color. I got the nurse and the doctor came in and put him in ICU. He was put on a ventilator. The hospital system we have here and in Montgomery, Baptist, have a new procedure. A group of doctors are with the hospital and are under contract. To be able to care for patients, a doctor outside the group must have a contract for consultations. They called in a pulmonologist and it just happened to be the one our cardiologist called in for a consult previously in a Montgomery hospitalization. The doctor had never treated my husband before and only had him as a patient as he was admitted through ER and read what was written and on the Baptist records. The computers are linked where they can look up a name for the medical history. She suggested Hospice while he was in their ICU. In talking to the pulmonagist, I told him they had told me he couldn't be moved as I wanted his cardiologist to care for him. He told me he could be moved and so everything was arranged and off we went to Montgoery. They immediately took him off the medicine that kept him asleep all the time. He started improving and his oxygen level went up where he came off the ventilator. One more day and he was taken off oxygen. Two more days and he went home. The next time just less than a week later, he was having chest pains, nitro didn't help so he asked me to take him to the hospital. He was in a regular room, had a nitro patch, morphine and oxygen. Not sure what else. Stayed 3 days and went home. While there, the nurse and socialworker talked to me about Hospice. It was my understanding all of them, including the doctor that signed the papers had consulted with our cardiologist in Montgomery. A couple of days after he got home, Hospice came to the house and talked to me. This and when I talked to their office is when I was told, they will provide him with all kinds of needs, and stated them, but no heroic measures. They have their own doctor on staff, nurses, and assistants. To go to the hospital, I would have to request it and revoke the contract with hospice. Then when he came home, reinstate hospice. If done more than once, medicare would question it. Unknown as to that outcome until it was done. I had questions I needed answered. I had called the cardiologist office to talk to the nuring assistant that had seen Phil last and said, I thought, we agree to Hospice. What had changed that they had not discussed this with me previously yet agreed now? In a 2 week time frame, she returned none of my calls. I finally called again and cancelled my husband's protime test. They asked if I had an in home service that would do it or a lab that would do it. I said no. I was asked to wait and I did. A nurse at the office got on the line and told me she had talked to "D" and she said she only got my messages for this week. I told "T" I hadn't called this week as I gave up trying to talk to "D". "T" stated "D" was confused and didn't know what I wanted as she thought she had explained everything. DUH if you don't know then talk to the person and find out instead of not returning calls. "T" kept asking questions and I told her what had transpired and I had questions and could not get that help. She kept wanting me to talk to "D" and I said no, I have no reason to. "T" asked me if I was angry and I told her I was very angry, frustrated, and felt abandoned by them. She asked if I was going to bring my husband in for the tests and I said no. She said I'd have to stop the coumadin then if not monitored and would have to report it to Dr. "W". I told her fine but I hoped she'd give him ALL the facts that brought us to this point. She stated she would. Later that day I got a call from Dr. "W". He has cared for my husband for years and is highly respected in his field nationwide. Result from the conversation. He was just told about the calls not returned, NO he had not been consulted at all about Hospice. WE discussed my husband's health of what I understod and nothing was incorrect or incomplete. His opinion was that medically Hospice was an option but psychologically no. He felt it best we wait. I agreed. If I had been told all the facts and that his cardiologist had not been consulted, I would not have talked to Hospice till I had talked to Dr. "W". When I called Hospice, he was very surprised that those 2 doctors had not consulted Dr. "W". He had treated him for years and both of them had only seen him once during the 2 hospital stays. I beleve those 2 doctors overstepped their authority and I was misled. I am not going to use Hospice. I am checking into sitter services recommended by Hospice and they are certified. My daughter is helping that if I can get my doctor appointments on a Monday, she will spend her day off with her daddy and I'll be able to see how much my kidney disease has progressed, find out if the ventricular in my brain is letting spinal fluid seep out into the brain yet, what to do about the bulged discs as the pain is much worse and getting more difficult to walk - I'm getting tired of falling down. HELP I can't get up!! I feel I have all the facts and the load I carry is much lighter with this decision. I prayed soooo hard for a sign or something to make the right decision. This has been VERY hard with a lot of tears, anger, feeling alone, and pure frustration. You all have been wonderful, patient and so kind to me. I'll keep checking this forum as perhaps someday I can help someone as you have helped me. THANK YOU Lynn

I am copying & pasting GREAT NEWS from Lynne's hubby, Tom that he posted on Facebook today! Keep those prayers coming, Holiday-ers! Jeanne S. Update 1/11/13 ~LYNNE IS HOME!!!~ Finally, after 24 long, arduous days for both of us, in our own different ways, this hospital ordeal is over! We have to thank Lee and Daniel for the use of their car today so that Lynne could have a more comfortable ride home than our car would have allowed. Lee drove me up this morning, in the fog, mist and rain. As always seems to happen, nothing happens fast in the hospital setting. The pump equipment for the wound vac that Lynne was sent home with was supposed to be at the hospital around 9. At 10:15, they called me to say they were on the way to the hospital with it. Turns out what they delivered was the exact same unit as what she had in the hospital. Definitely not lightweight and portable. More like large and bulky. We'll learn to make due for now, while they decide if the large unit is what we'll be using for the next couple/few months. The pump that runs the TPN nutritional bag is much smaller and more portable, but thankfully, with the feedings for just 12 hours overnight, we won't bee too concerned about mobility except for an occasional bathroom break. We got to the hospital around 11:30 this morning, and were back home around around 4. Meanwhile, our niece Tracey had come over to the house mid-afternoon, not knowing what time the home supplies would be delivered. She had no problem catching up on some recorded episodes of House Hunters while waiting for us to get home. Our daughter Dawn showed up a little after 5 to welcome her Mom home and add to the merriment. Lynne did surprisingly well getting up the few steps into the house, and was just happy to walk into OUR house and straight to the recliner in the family room - the chair she has decided will be her main 'nest' (for now). That's also where she feels she will be most comfortable sleeping at night for the time being. The home health nurse got here around 5:20, and spent a good deal of time going over a lot of paperwork with Lynne, then quite a bit of time checking everything out with Lynne. The supplies arrived right at 6:00 and the Home health nurse then spent a lot of time explaining all the 'stuff' that was in the 2 boxes. Pretty much everything Lynne will need for the next several days. Antibiotics, the nutritional feed, saline and heparin, bandages and tape and batteries and swabs and wipes. We watched as the new smaller pump was hooked up and packed away in it's tote bag, and tonight's feeding had begun. The antibiotics that she gets each night is self infusing, and only has to be attached to her PIC line. I had my first test a short while ago, without anyone here. That was simply to disconnect the antibiotic line, then flush and give the line some heparin. Tomorrow evening will be the real test, though. The home health nurse will be here around 6 again, but I will be the one doing all the work while she watches. I hope I remember most of what she showed me tonight, and do it right :) We have 2 different appointments up in Chapel Hill next week; one on Wednesday and another on Friday. Lynne is hoping that by then she'll be more mobile and stronger, and we can make those trips in our own car...which gives us more charge of our own lives. Until then, we'll slowly, very slowly adjust to this new beginning of another journey. For Lynne, she's so thrilled just to be sitting in her own recliner, in her house, currently with one cat curled up next to her. For me, for the first time in 24 nights, I won't have to go to bed with 2 phones laying beside me, hoping and praying that neither one of them ring during the overnight hours. For us, once again, we're "Celebrating the Day". Thank you once again for all your support, care and concern. As we venture out into this new unknown, we're so happy to know so many have been with us the whole time. It is appreciated, more than you'll ever know.

Maire cate: that is so funny! This guy has done a hilarious job imagining what they might be thinking. Thank you! Annie: have watched the Russian flash mob clip - wonderful! That bride was so cute, too. Also have seen several of the "Simon's Cat" clips. Funny! Love, love, love the "Mailman vs The Cat" Hysterical! OK, I've got to go back and watch it yet again!

Thanks for the heads up about rentals! Good idea. Lynn, we experienced this lack of parts support with our Samsung induction. We've only had it 7 years and when the burners died, we could not get the parts because those models are no longer supported. The tech was on the phone for almost two hours trying to find the parts, which apparently the last were sold a few months back. That coupled with that they no longer make this particular freestanding range model meant we had to get another range. We cook pretty much every day. Frustrating because the oven and everything worked great, so we had to cook without using burners. Our neighbor asked us if he could take it and haul it for scrap, so we said sure. There are not a whole lot of places that keep induction in stock. At Lowe's they would all have to be ordered and take 4-6 weeks! Sears actually does keep a variety of induction in stock (Kenmore, Electrolux, and KA), and I was able to find an Electrolux floor model from Sears for a great price and get it delivered in a couple of days. I'ts great, but it's way more tech than the Samsung, so even we've had a bit of a learning curve on it.