A stomach freezing machine. That eggplant size balloon in the MDs hand was inserted transesophageally and zero Degree F. ethyl alcohol circulated via a double lumen catheter.  Whoever came up with that old medical adage stating if there are 3 or more treatments available for a single ailment, none are effective, was likely talking about duodenal ulcer treatments of the 1960s.Whacky dietary regimens featuring half and half or whole cream as the main ingredient, antacids, and of course tranquilizers because nervous folks suffered from ulcers were medical interventions of the day ..read more

 To all those amazing folks on active duty and veterans, you are deeply appreciated and there is really no way to thank-you for the sacrifices you make. I think of you folks daily ..read more

 Despite the pledge I made to myself to refrain from personal health related complaints, here I go with more foolishness about my recent hospitalization. The nurse-turned-patient phenomenon can be fertile ground for peculiar insights into the illness experience. I've had episodes of atrial fibrillation now for about 13 years. They are usually no big deal, but combined with a Klebsiella sepsis, the last one was tough to shake off and required more intensive intervention. I was minding my own foolishness in the ER holding area, awaiting an inpatient bed to avail itself when all of a sudden ..read more

 Every long time nurse is acutely aware that nursing can be a leading cause of "fun" deficit. After so many hours standing behind or in front of your Mayo Stand nothing seems to bring about that good feeling that unabated fun provides. (Maybe it's just my foolishness, but I never could deduce if I was in front of my Mayo Stand or hiding behind it.) It's sorta like that chicken and egg quandary about what came first, but when the surgeon is bellowing, I think it's best to be rearward of your Mayo Stand. Boundaries can be a real asset. It happened more often than you would think, the on cal ..read more

  ..read more

  Since my native intelligence has been flumoxed by brain numbing complications from my knee replacement surgery, I've turned to artificial intelligence image generators for some foolish amusement. I typed in Old fool RN on "Stable Diffuusion," an open source image generator and my prompts produced this appropriate image. Maybe I should replace that rather dated blog profile photo of me standing under the overhead lights in the OR. Hmmm...I love how that under the overheads lingo sounds. It doesn't take much to amuse a fool. If you have an opportunity check out Stable Diffusion. It's eas ..read more

At the height of the Viet Nam War, Buddhist Monks doused themselves with gasoline and immolated themselves near U.S. facilities to protest America's involvement in the conflict. Two Army nurses rushed to the aid of a monk who set himself ablaze near a remote Army field hospital. A Viet Cong sniper fired on one nurse, killing her instantly. The second nurse, for obscure reasons, was ignored by the sniper and survived. Screaming hysterically and subsequently lapsing into a mute state, the sole survivor eventually found her way to a long-term ward at Downey VA Hospital, a warehouse for the menta ..read more

 I encountered a tsunami of post-op complications following my total knee replacement surgery in August, but am starting to feel a return to my foolish baseline.  I received a fascinating email from Anna Pivoras, Executive Director of the Boone County Museum of History in Belvidere, Ill that got me back to thinking about this much neglected blog. Anna read my posts about Downey VA Hospital because she has an amazing collection of journals from a woman who was a patient at this facility. Janet L. was a college graduate who played the organ for several churches and was very ambitious a ..read more

 I've received several emails recently from folks concerned about my health as a result of the dearth of posts on Oldfoolrn.blogspot.com. It's heart warming to think that you care enough to shoot me an email. When I started this blog, I made myself two promises. no politics and no belly aching about personal health issues. I made the mistake of posting one topic that could be construed as political and learned my lesson; no more politics. My immobility problems have worsened as a result of a combination of osteoarthritis and Crohns disease induced poly-arthropathy. Thankfully the intestin ..read more

  I just love hospital mysteries, so I was delighted when a nurse emailed me these photos of a vintage device found in the ER at a Catholic Hospital, St. Vincents, in Cleveland, Ohio. The folks there were unable to identify it and it didn't ring any bells with me so I was thinking (a rare event for me) that maybe someone from my vast readership could lend a clue. My first guess was that this was some sort of contraption from the hospital laundry. After sheets were dumped from a gigantic steaming cauldron, they were run through rollers to squeeze off excess water. Those rollers were a se ..read more