30 August 2021
When Joyce got a call from Byram this morning that her Mediplex order had been approved and would be delivered in one or two business days, alarms went off. That's exactly what we heard Thursday. And today is two business days later. And Vic used the last Mediplex this morning to dress the wound.
Joyce called Byram but couldn't find out what was going on. She was told Byram never received authorization and that the order (which we've been making since February) was unusually large. No one she talked to could confirm when we would again have Mediplex.
Just the kind of stress you need going into surgery, right?
Just the kind of stress you need going into surgery, right?
On a hunch, I logged into the Web site. And there before my very eyes was kind of an explanation.
The Thursday order had been canceled. But the order was resubmitted today. For delivery tomorrow or Wednesday.
In discussing the subject of dressing the wound without Mediplex by email with the physician assistants, I was told we could use a dressing with a wet layer of gauze covered by a dry abdominal pad that was taped to the skin.
Jennifer the Other Physician's Assistant did that recently, in fact, saving the Mediplex we'd brought along. But the dressing didn't make it home intact. The tape came off and the wound leaked.
On Sunday, I experimented with an alternate dressing to see if it would do the job. After the abdominal pad, I covered the entire wound with a large piece of drape. I do that when I put Lidocaine on the wound for a debridement at the clinic an hour later, so we don't waste a couple of Mediplex bandages.
Joyce wore it the whole day, taking a walk and visiting the open house across the street (which had three flights of stairs). She couldn't tell any difference. And there was no leak.
I believe we have 10 drapes left from the Wound VAC white foam kits. That would be good for five days. If anything ever shows up from Byram, that will be enoug to make it to her surgery.
After which it will most likely be back to Apria for Wound VAC supplies.