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| Robert & Allison Allison's Brain |
The most remarkable thing happened today! Allison has been weaned off the IV that's been administering blood thinner and so her mobility is greatly improved. Marya took her Mom to a piano at the Civic which happened to have a piece of sheet music on it. Allison proceeded to sight-read and play the 2nd movement of Beethoven's Sonata Pathetique. None of us expected her to be able to do this. The rest of this update pales in comparison.
Allison has had another good week in the Neuroscience InPatent Unit. She continues to become physically stronger and is often quite talkative. Her comprehension generally seems to be quite high, and in her own words with respect to how things are going on the cognitive front, "it comes and goes." Steady work with elementary iPad games has resulted in good improvement in her results. Marya has also had good success giving her Mom some simple dictées. We are hoping this bodes well for her upcoming work with skilled occupational and speech therapists when she is moved to a rehabilitation center.
In that regard we met today with Jane, the social worker at the Neuroscience InPatient Unit, to discuss the next steps. Dr. Lesiuk is back at work and the first order of business is that he is planning to replace the missing skull piece. When one sees the great concave on the left side of Allison's head and compares it with the large swelling at that point previously, there is no doubting the wisdom of the neurosurgeons in leaving the restoration until now. Following this procedure, which we are told is uncomplicated and can be day surgery for outpatients, Allison will be evaluated again by doctors from the Acquired Brain Injury Clinic. If she is ready for aggressive rehab at that point, she will be re-located to the ABI Clinic. If slower rehab is required initially, an application will be made to Saint Vincent's and the Civic doctors will do a comprehensive neuropsychological evaluation to identify Allison's rehabilitation needs. In either case, this will be a giant leap forward on the rehabilitation efforts front. Jane also tells us that Dr. Lesiuk emphasizes that these are "early days" in Allison's recovery.
Lately a visit with Allison is rarely a dull affair. Alastair Green reports that when he asked Allison what meals the Hospital prepares best her response was "they don't". Then Allison reflected a bit on this and added "no they don't". This was while she was eating. Allison's good humour and positiveness are front and centre although occasionally (this will surprise you) she likes to have her own way. The nurses say that a degree of feistiness, which is sometimes evident, is better for Allison's progress than complacency - which we don't see.
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