University of California, San Diego-Hillcrest(UPDATE)

[SpinnerBait_Nut]

Anyone around this area?
Reason I ask is I just found out my ex-son-in-law was in a bad wreck Tuesday and suffered a severed spinal cord and he is in the hospital there.
I was wanting to see if anyone was around there that might be able to help me out getting some flowers to him, that is if they will allow it.
That I am trying to find out now.
He is in ICU of course and still in a induced coma till the swelling goes down, but MRI confirmed severed with broke neck at the #5 vertebra.
If you are and think you might be able to help, shout out.
Thanks.
Keep him in your thoughts and prayers.
His name is Chris.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Spinner you have the worst luck. sorry to hear about this, even if he is an ex.

 

[SgtMaj]

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Spinner, sorry to hear that. The good news is they can do amazing things today to heal spinal cord injuries that they couldn't just 10 years ago. I'll bet he'll be fully recovered in 6mo. I'm on the other side of the country, so I don't think I can help you out too much. I don't think though, that they allow flowers in ICU. I might be wrong though.

 

[Kenneth Brown]

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Gang Les thats rough. We'll keep Chris in our prayers.

 

[Don S]

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Really sorry to hear this news Lester, we'll all pray that everything works out ok.
Not sure how much info you have for the hospital or anything. Here is a site for the hospital that he is at.
http://health.ucsd.edu/locations/hillcrest.htm

As far as flowers, ftd can deliver to the hospital, but not the ICU as mentioned above, but they can and do deliver to hospitals.
http://www.ftd.com/custserv/undeliverable.epl

You can order flowers online or call the local ftd in San Deigo.
http://www.ftd.com/?int=1

 

[SpinnerBait_Nut]

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Yea, that is what I found out.
They were suppose to remove his breathing tube today and have not heard anything yet.
He's a good kid.
Lost small intestines when a kid from a shotgun blast.
People said he would not be much.
He pulled a stint in the marines at Camp Lejune(sp).
He had just flew out there for his job with a company out of PA and was on the way to the hotel, sitting in backseat a sleep.
The driver just fell of into the median and over corrected and barrel rolled 5 times.
The rest were ok, but not Chris.
Thanks everyone.

 

[SpinnerBait_Nut]

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Just an update.
They unhooked him from the breathing machine and found he could not breathe on his own.
His 02 level went to 0 and they lost him once but brought him back with a shot of Nitrous Oxide.
Got his 02 level back to 80%.
Now they don't know what if any damage has been done to the brain because of the 02 level drop.
He has not made any movement since then.
He was making facial movements before when someone would talk to him, but not now so they just don't know.
More test I'm sure to find out.

 

[oops!]

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

sorry to hear that les.....

my cuz is on missions to africa or i would send him

ill put in a call to the big guy up stairs...

oops

 

[SpinnerBait_Nut]

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Thanks oops!
Have made a few myself.
His body was without 02 for twenty minutes before they could get it back and he has lost all facial expressions now which is not a good sign for sure.
Won't get another update till tonight late.

 

[Kenneth Brown]

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Any word yet Les?

 

[aspeck]

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Prayers are going up from here, Les.

 

[SpinnerBait_Nut]

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Any word yet Les?

Nothing yet KB.
It will be somewhere around 1 or 2 my time before they contact me and I will be out on the road at that time.

 

[SpinnerBait_Nut]

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Prayers are going up from here, Les.

As I knew they would be Art.
Thanks

 

[SpinnerBait_Nut]

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Well, really nothing more to add.
They will be putting a halo on him today.
His 02 level has stabilized.
They will start cutting the medicine back that has him in a coma today also to wake him up to see how much if any damage was done to his brain when it was without the 02 for 20 minutes.
The nurse said she saw him open his eyes for just a second and then closed them back.
Also, they confirmed his 4th and 5th vertebra are shattered into pieces.

On a sidenote, something I can't figure out is when he was in this wreck while waiting on the emergency people to get to him, he was breathing just fine and made 2 phone calls, 1 to his mom and 1 to his preacher friend and told them he knew he was hurt bad cause he could not feel anything and was not having any trouble breathing then, but after they got him in the hospital and put the tube in, that he could not breathe on his own.

 

[QC]

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Geez Les, I totally missed this. Thoughts and prayers out, and if you need any local help I'll do what I can. DJ has nailed it down correctly as it is University of California San Diego as opposed to USC . . . I actually worked for a Quadriplegic when I was a kid on weekends. If he does recover and is paralyzed, I can tell you he can have a very full life. The guy I knew had girlfriends, many friends, attended college courses etc.

 

[SpinnerBait_Nut]

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Thanks QC. I changed the subject name.
It's all a waiting game right now.

 

[Plainsman]

Re: University of California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Re: University of California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Sorry to hear the bad news spinner. Prayers have been said for Chris and all.

Eric

 

[treedancer]

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Well, really nothing more to add.
They will be putting a halo on him today.
His 02 level has stabilized.
They will start cutting the medicine back that has him in a coma today also to wake him up to see how much if any damage was done to his brain when it was without the 02 for 20 minutes.
The nurse said she saw him open his eyes for just a second and then closed them back.
Also, they confirmed his 4th and 5th vertebra are shattered into pieces.

On a sidenote, something I can't figure out is when he was in this wreck while waiting on the emergency people to get to him, he was breathing just fine and made 2 phone calls, 1 to his mom and 1 to his preacher friend and told them he knew he was hurt bad cause he could not feel anything and was not having any trouble breathing then, but after they got him in the hospital and put the tube in, that he could not breathe on his own.

On your side note Les, when I was in the Marines I was in artillery (11th Marines) we had to change positions at night-lights out. Our Battery was going along this
Winding road, our section was in the back of this duce and a half. Our battery was the last one in the convoy…we thought. Ill shorten this up a bit, the other two trucks in front of us made the left turn and stayed on the road, our driver went straight. Most of us went flying out thru the tarp that covered the top of the truck, good thing too, that’s where the 155 Howitzer that we were pulling landed. Our section chief wasn’t so lucky, he was in the shotgun seat next too the driver. Got mashed up pretty bad, but he managed to crawl out, and somehow managed to get to the road, flag down the jeep that was following the convoy. If he hadn’t done that we would have been screwed, because we were all unconscious. They called in choppers, managed to get us out, our section chief did this with a broken back. I was in the hospital with him; they had him stuck in between what looked like two ironing boards so he wouldn’t get bedsores, he couldn’t move. Nobody could figure out how he managed to get up on that road, flag down a jeep that wasn’t supposed to be there, I’m sure glad he managed to do it though.

In other words there is always hope

 

[SpinnerBait_Nut]

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Yea I know tree. They have got all the sedation out of him now and they say due to his weight, about 130#, it might take a day or 2 for him to come around and then they will be able to tell more about him.
The nurse assured us that he suffered no brain damage from lack of 02 but I don't see how she would know for sure.
They did get the halo on and will after he wakes up, put what they are calling a cage around his spinal cord so that when he does move his head it won't cause anymore damage to it.

 

[SpinnerBait_Nut]

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Re: University of Southern California, San Diego-Hillcrest

Well, I guess you could call it good news seeing everything he has been through.
He woke up overnight and just got off the phone from his mom and she said that he opened his eyes and smiled.
The nurse told him to blink once for yes and twice for no and she ask him some questions as in if he knew who his mom was, who his dad was, and who his 1/2 brother was, which were all there and he acknowledged that he did.
She then ask if he was in pain and he blinked a strong once, so maybe that's a good thing also.
Thanks for all the good vibes people, maybe be better than I am thinking.
But they did say that his neck is shattered and they don't know yet whet they will do.
I think they want to see if they can get him breathing on his own first.