Happy Christmas!

Merry Christmas to all of you! I hope that you have found time to eat, drink and enjoy the company of loved ones and develop new memories to cherish forever! I am on call and treading the delicate balance of ensuring that any patient well enough can get home if they wish, especially if it is likely to be their last Christmas.

It is always a difficult time of year. We try to get patients home but sometimes home is not the cheery warm house with the open fire, a Christmas tree and presents all around. Sometimes it is a bleak place that is lonely and cold and patients choose to present to accident and emergency to be admitted and enjoy company and good food in hospital. Others would love to go home but are hampered by the need for social care which is a scarce resource. They may need mobility aids or food delivered to home or sometimes, just someone to pop in and check they are okay.

As cuts have hit, many convalescent homes have closed, which used to offer respite for patients, allowing an interim between an acute episode of care and home. The wider social network has also diminished as the societal norm of the extended family has changed with smaller family units and a desire to move to independent family homes. It seems simple that a family member could come and stay or that the patient could stay with a close relative but the interconnectivity between NHS Trusts, community and social care are so poor that it takes an age just to set up dressing changes in a different postcode location. There are therefore, patients who are desperate to go home who end up in hospital over the Christmas period despite best intentions.

The desire to get home does seem to add a miracle into the medical mix as patients summon inhumane energies to get better. I wish I could bottle this up as an everyday get well potion! There is great evidence to show that a positive attitude reduces the length of stay of patients in hospital. This seems to drive the same positive gains as the #EndPJParalysis campaign. This global social movement emphasises that having patients in their day clothes while in hospital, rather than in pyjamas (PJs) or gowns, enhances dignity, autonomy and get them home quicker!

The lead up to Christmas has been a busy one. We have celebrated the 60th wedding anniversary of  my in laws with a surprise party as well as attending the wedding of a dear friend. The 60th celebration cake was unbelievable!

It has been busy at work and we have tried to say thank you to the people we work with everyday. We wrapped up 250 Christmas socks, with chocolate coins and Christmas pens! This was a small gift to say thank you but we enjoyed spreading good cheer in the Directorate!

As we all start to celebrate, we have to ask what is Christmas? A holiday, a religious time or just a state of mind, where we all enjoy goodwill and mercy to each other? This year more than ever, has demonstrated the undercurrent present in our society, which engenders distrust, chaos and division. As we drive through the streets festooned with lights and holiday spirit in the air, society seems to be conjoined in ensuring a good time for all. And then there are glimpses into the alternative reality with the homeless on the streets and BREXIT looming.

I write today on Boxing Day. My father passed away three years ago on this day. He died peacefully at 92 having led a hard but successful life.  I am glad he is not here to see the divide that is developing in this country. He arrived in 1955 on the RMS Strathnaver and then married my Mum. Together they brought up three children and encouraged us to work and play hard! The ethos of working to improve the lives of others is embedded into all of us and we have worked hard to honour Mummy and Daddy. Daddy himself played a important role in North Wales, where as the first Asian Labour Councillor, he advocated for an investment into the fabric of Penmaenen. He has left a legacy not only in us but in Penmaenmawr. It is now hard to imagine an alternative scenario where Daddy had been refused UK entry and the three careers which add to society as well as the hopes and dreams of our children rendered null and void.

This Christmas has been quiet, with only four of us celebrating, especially with my week on call. Christmas in North Wales was full of laughter and presents and was the one time when we were all at home! To the kids dismay, I am looking forward to the time when they have families and we have young children running around again!

I hope that you all have had time to spend with family and friends and wish you good cheer!

This is a series of blogs starting from the day I was diagnosed with an acoustic neuroma. If you want to start at the beginning then please follow this link: 

https://stellavig.blog/me-and-my-acoustic-neuroma/