Last week was a LONG week!
I arrived at the hospital in New York at about 12:45 PM on Tuesday. After a long wait, I was finally wheeled into surgery at about 7PM for surgical debridement (a thorough cleaning of the wound).
Before the procedure, I spoke with Dr. Dayan about a wound vac. He said that if the wound was clear of infection, he would give me a wound vac, but he wouldn’t know until he got into the OR if that was an option.
I came out of the OR at about 8:00 PM with a wound vac.
What Is a Wound Vac?
A wound vac is a medical device that promotes wound healing through negative pressure. The device removes pressure by creating a vacuum over the area of the wound, and then gently pulling fluid out of the wound. This reduces swelling, keeps the wound clean, and removes bacteria. It also helps pull the edges of the wound together and can stimulate growth of new, healthy tissue.
To apply a wound vac, a foam dressing is inserted into the wound and covered with adhesive, sealing both the dressing and the wound itself. A drainage tube attached under the adhesive connects to a vacuum pump. This pump removes the air pressure. There is a canister attached to the tubing where the fluid drains. The wound vac needs to be changed by a medical professional every 2-3 days; it is not something I can do myself or ask a friend or family member to do. It does not hurt, but it can feel a little odd.
The wound vac that was applied in the OR was a large, hospital grade machine. Before I could go home, it needed to be swapped out for a portable vac. Since it takes time to order the portable vac, have it delivered to the hospital, and set up revised visiting nurse orders, my outpatient procedure suddenly became an overnight stay. This was unfortunate as I was not prepared to stay overnight and had not brought anything with me—no change of clothes, no phone charger, no books, no ipad, etc.
Unplanned Hospital Stay
I was moved to a hospital room Tuesday evening. On Wednesday morning I was visited by the usual suspects—nurses taking my blood pressure and giving me IV fluids, someone from the surgical team to check my surgical site, etc. I also spoke with my case manager who was in charge of ordering the portable device and setting up home care for dressing changes. She told me that the device is delivered by an outside company and they have no control over when it arrives—could be in 10 minutes, could be the middle of the night. Ugh.
I spent the day watching reruns on television and coloring in an adult coloring book one of the nurses snagged for me out of the recreation lounge. By 6 PM the wound vac still had not arrived. Abby, who was going to bring me home from the hospital, and I agreed that if the wound vac did not arrive by 9 PM, I would stay another night. The wound vac arrived—I kid you not—at 9:05 PM. Since it would take another hour to hook up the vac and process the discharge, we decided together that I would go home in the morning. Night 2 in the hospital, texting and watching TV. I finally went home on Thursday morning.
After a very busy weekend at home, I saw the surgeon on Monday for a post op visit. He saw a lot of progress in the wound—it had started to close up, and the tissue was clean, clear of infection, and healing nicely. He would not give me an estimate for how long I’d need the wound vac. In addition, the wounds on my abdomen and other breast were healing as well. He changed the wound care regimen for those sites and it is now much easier for me to care for them. In fact, one of the sites has healed completely and no longer needs daily dressings. A real sign of progress!
Life with a wound vac takes some adjustment. I’m including some photos. The portable vac and pouch are the size of a hard cover book. It is attached to me by tubing that is about 4 feet in length. That means that I can never be farther than 4 feet away from it. I can rest it on the table or couch when I’m sitting, but if I’m doing any kind of activity—cleaning the kitchen, preparing a meal, walking the dogs—it comes with me. I’m a bit concerned about shoulder/neck pain so I try to rest it on a table when possible but that really limits my activity. Still, if it heals the wound faster, it will be worth it. The battery needs to be charged overnight, so I plug it in and rest it on the floor while I sleep. I can shower with it, by covering up the wound with a plastic adhesive drape and leaving the wound vac just outside the shower.
In spite of the ordeal and unplanned hospital stay, I’m actually more positive about my healing than I’ve been in a long time. I feel like I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. Best of all, I got approval to return to work next week! I’ll be working from home for a while, but I’m really looking forward to getting some structure back to my days, feeling useful, and reconnecting with my colleagues who have been so supportive throughout this process
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