Today Jude, Blair and the girls went into the hospital at about 9am and Josh awake. Kath said he’s had a good night but had vomited a couple of times which is tricky since his head must remain still. Last night he was fitted with a metal ‘D’ (Gardener Wells tongs) on his head which is held in with screws above his ears. He has a rope and weights behind his head which keep his head on the angle which puts less pressure on his unstable neck.
Josh’s arms are really sore and feel bloated and stiff. They think it is referred pain from his neck but they feel a bit better when they are massaged so Jude and the girls put ice packs on his arms and massaged them. Mase Ramsey showed Blair Josh’s MRI scans and it looks as though his spinal cord has had significant damage. His C5 vertebra has broken and slipped across the spinal cord. There is significant adema and haematoma in and around the cord so it is difficult to predict how much of Josh’s paralysis is caused by cord damage and how much by the swelling. Mase offered a pessimistic prognosis where he suggested Josh will get pincer grip back but anything else will be a bonus.
The people from Burwood rang to say that the plane had left Christchurch and the transport team would be in Dunedin about 11am. Josh continued to have various checks and had a saline drips canula in his hand for drug application. He had a blood pressure monitor and various other checks going on. Around 11:30am the transport team, Andrew and Jodi arrived. They checked everything and then started organising all the equipment to transport Josh, firstly to the airport and then to Christchurch. The rest of the family moved out of the way and Eve and Polly did some colouring in while the hospital staff and transport team organised everything. Two ambulance officers also arrived, one of whom had spent sometime at Burwood with his paraplegic son. Josh was lifted onto a bean bag inside a cocoon which then had the air sucked out of it to make a tight hold around his body to stop him from moving. When everything was ready Josh was wheeled down to the ambulance bay.
While he was in ICU Mick also came into visit in the waiting room and Mary was also around up at NICU, both gave their best wished. Blair ran into Nikki out on the street and Camilla phoned. Everyone said goodbye at the ambulance bay and Jude leapt in after Josh had been clipped into the ambulance. The ride out to the airport went smoothly with Andrew writing up Josh’s note and the checking of all the equipment Josh was hooked up to. Another ambulance officer also sat in the back. As we reached the airport it started to rain heavily but by the time the transfer from the ambulance to plane happened it had stopped raining. The plane had places for Andrew and Jodi facing each other on the left and Josh’s bed was clicked in on the right. Two seats were front facing behind the door opening and Jude sat on one directly behind Josh’s feet. The pilot ran and got a couple of sickie bags just in case Jude was sick and put Josh’s backpack and Jude’s bag in a cavity in the front of the plane. Andrew and Jodi had headphones to talk to each other and it was quite noisy in the plane. We took off around 1:15pm and the flight took just over an hour. It wasn’t too bumpy and Josh’s condition remained stable and the only attention he needed from Andrew and Jodi was to clear lines that blocked.
We landed at Christchurch airport and went to a hanger at the end which belongs to the NZ flying doctor service. Josh was then transferred to another ambulance and we drove to Burwood. It was cold and grey in Christchurch. When we arrived at Burwood Josh was taken into a single room – 11B – which had a woman Jackie in the other half of the room (which has a 3/4 wall splitting the 2 rooms). Lots of doctors, registrars, nurses and staff were in with Josh and a nurse’s assistant showed Jude around the ward, kitchen, coffee room etc. Rick Ackland and the registrar talked about Josh’s MRI’s and apparent sensation and movement. Although his cord has been significantly squashed it has not been severed. The bone damage is extensive Josh having broken the vertebra on throat and back side. This will be fixed on Friday with a bone graft from his hip and an H plate. Pulling the vertebrae up will then help the broken vertebrae to slip back into its correct position
Rick Ackland said they are reluctant to make any predictions at all but it is serious damage. The positives are some feeling in his legs (intermittent) and wrist extension. The social worker, Gabrielle, came and talked to Jude and talked about accommodation – tonight Jude and Adrian will stay at the hostel and hopefully after that can move to Milner lodge which is closer to the spinal unit and more independent like a motel unit. Gabrielle gave Jude a book with an orientation guide to Burwood. She talked about what Josh has been doing for money and how that’ll be arranged with WINZ etc. ACC will kick in when Josh goes on to rehab. Some accommodation support and living costs support is available. Blair and the girls rung and Jude rang them a few times. Adrian arrived around 9ish and came in to see Josh before Jude and he left for the evening. Josh seemed surprisingly positive but really wanted to drink. He is only allowed to suck ice blocks at the moment.