Ron and his foot

We saw Ron's foot doctor on Wednesday and got the news we were dreading... he is having surgery again on his foot. It’s next Wednesday (8/27) at 8:15 in the morning at St. Joseph.

We both saw it coming but we’re still not thrilled about it. If it’s the key to new healing taking place, then OK. I’m sure it will be fine but it is discouraging for him. He is afraid that he’s really going to lose his foot before it’s all over. The doctor said there’s still some necrotic tissue that he’s concerned about so it’s better to clean it out again. I could see it when the nurse took off the bandage so I know he’s not rushing Ron into surgery. He’s talked about the possibility for weeks and was trying to hold off to see how things went. The foot has gotten better but not good enough to continue healing. The doctor said he can see a big improvement since the pacemaker went in so maybe this is the kick it needs.

Ron thinks the problem is that he's mainly unable to keep the foot off the floor when transferring and it ends up on the bed during his sleep. I prop it up over and over again, but it still falls off the pillow. He thought he'd do better if we could get a knee walker, which is a contraption on four wheels and has a padded area to rest your lower leg as you walk with the other leg. It's safer than crutches, has a hand brake, and is generally fairly easy to get around with.

Ron used one in 2006 when he had his other foot surgery (we rented it for $125 per month) but the place where we got it from no longer handles them. We went to another location but the one they had doesn't have fixed front wheels. Turning wheels makes it easier to maneuver corners and around things, but if you don't have really good balance and control it's very easy to have a disaster. Ron would be a disaster waiting to happen, especially since he only has 1/2 of his left foot to deal with. It was scary watching him try the thing out.

I found one on eBay but I've been outbid on it. I'm watching a couple more of them but not sure any of them will be within our price range once it's all said and done.

The physical therapist came out today to do an evaluation on Ron, his strength, and the house. He's got some recommendations and thinks he should come out three times a week. I don't think we need that often (we have a co-pay for each visit) but I do think twice a week for a while and then maybe once a week for a while. Ron is very weak and his muscles have atrophied considerably. We shall see...