Emergency Room Visit

As some of you have read in my previous post, Don had injured his big toe in the shower. According to him -- he'd now rather have a dirty shower. The cleaning gadget inside the shower that landed on his left foot and caused him, doctor's term, subungual hematoma (bruised nail). The injury was getting more painful each day causing him much discomfort when walking around, especially with shoes on. Last night, we decided that he should wear a post-op shoe or something with open toes. I thought his Keen sandals should do the trick, but when he tried to put it on, it was an "OUCH!, OUCH! OUCH!...." experience. I went to RiteAid to see what they had and after talking to the pharmacist I was told that the special shoe is only available at a medical supply store. I called Don to tell him the bad news. I offered to check Rack Room shoes for other options - he told me to just head on home. When I got home I did some Google search for medical supply store in the area and I couldn't find one. I proceeded to call Target pharmacy and did not have any luck there either. Both of the pharmacy reps could not tell me the name of the medical store, only that there's one in Leesburg or Ashburn, and one in Alexandria.

I had suggested to Don that we might have better luck at a hospital pharmacy, but he decided that it would be best to have it checked instead. It must have been very very painful, because Don does not like seeing a doctor, let alone waiting in the emergency room. He has no patience for waiting and for doctors telling him what to do. His motto is "You have your rules, I have mine". Anyway, it was a good decision. We went to INOVA Hospital in Lansdowne. After waiting at the emergency room for several hours (got to watch "Hanna Montana" and "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody" at the pediatrics waiting room), and after the x-ray to make sure there was no bone fracture, they drilled a hole through the nail to let the blood out. Don told me to look away. Last thing they need is to add additional patient to the already busy facility. See, when Don got his Lasik surgery I went with him in the operating room, and I blacked out! So anyway, the procedure made a world of difference. Don immediately felt relief. They also gave him the special shoe. We got back home around 10 p.m. and I finally was able to eat my dinner.