Many of you may not know that Dorothy broke her hip on Sunday, March 28 while she was home alone at her place in Juanita Bay. She is currently recovering at the Life Care Center in Kirkland where it is our hope that she can regain enough mobility to return to her place at The Gardens at Juanita Bay.
Apparently, she fell sometime in the morning and was able to get to the phone to contact the nurse’s station. She was taken over to Evergreen Medical Center in Kirkland. They diagnosed her with a fracture of her left hip. There was no displacement, the fracture only went part way through. Francie went over as soon as she heard about it and the doctors decided that the best thing to do was to put in a plate and screws so that it could heal. However, in doing the work-up for the relatively minor surgery, they decided that her heart and lungs may not be strong enough. After more consultations with both orthopedic surgeons and eldercare specialists, it was then decided to try to see if she could recover enough to be able to get around with a walker.
She had to stay a couple more days at the hospital after they found that she also had a touch of pneumonia, but then was moved to where she is now. For the first few days after the accident, and due to the pain medication, she drifted in and out of awareness so it was difficult to communicate with her, but she became much more vibrant and communicative after the pain medication was discontinued. She currently has limited mobility but is able to sit up in bed and in a wheelchair, and is undergoing Occupational Therapy which is helping her adjust to her new limitations. The staff feel that if she continues to progress and regain upper body strength, she will be able to use a walker, but the Physical Therapist thinks that it might take 2-3 months before we know if the hip is healed.
Colleen and I flew up on Saturday, April 3, and Evelyn arrived on Easter Sunday. Bob and Elaine drove over from Sequim so she had a full house for a couple of days. Colleen and I returned home on the 12th and Evelyn stayed a few days longer. Francie and Per continue to look in on her several times daily, and she appears to have adjusted to her situation, but more importantly, understands that she can return home if she continues to work to regain her strength.
She loves cards and letters, so if you would like to send her a note, the address is:
Life Care Center
Dorothy Caldwell, Room 41
10101 NE 120th St.
Kirkland 98034