Hear ye, Hear ye,

Paying homage to my "olde English" roots with today's title.
I heard back this week from the chief nurse of the renal team on the North Shore that they are now looking at operating later in the evenings on Tuesdays and Thursdays, which would entail changing days to also take in Saturday. Good that I shall be able to work longer and do the weekend dialysis on my time, less impact on my colleagues and disruption to my work (those who know me will be shocked at my Puritan attitude to work, I shall next invest in a hair shirt and a spot of self flagellation).
They are also happy with the idea of becoming what they call "home trained" which basically means that I shall have the machine at home and be able to dialyse at night on my own terms! So no fistula (yuk!) and surrounded by by adoring cats and dogs.I am due in to see them about the length of my tunnel line to see whether it is of a decent length or not. Am pleasantly surprised at the WDHB's new stance over the working patients.

On a completely unrelated and random topic, I joined a discussion forum last week and was asked for my credentials upon attempting to enter, after which I received the following message:

The login was successful!

Please wait while we transfer you...
(Or click here if you do not wish to wait)

Now a couple of observations here..... Why the exclamation mark? Was the attempted login expected to be a catastrophic event, a flight of fancy so detached from reality that we are to be congratulated at the completion of this unattainable goal. Or perhaps this is merely a screen behind which an epic fight between the forces of good and evil rages...To enter this website first you must defeat the massed hordes of Abalonithia, the most vicious and callous slayers of men since the fabled Battle of Nazcarrew. Beware of the snapping jaws of the Forgotten user name, and then perilously stab mercilessly at the password field, relentlessly fighting on to achieve this wondrous result.....

But I digress.

Click here if you do not wish to wait? This isn't Disneyland, or the A&E department on a Saturday evening, this is a website where you will wait a mere nanosecond for the user name and password to be recognised? Are there some people so important and stressed out that they have to bypass the almost instantaneous acknowledgement of their credentials? Perhaps for some people the titanic struggle betwixt their password and the terrible onslaught of the website defence system is too much.....

Update,after a long snooze

I thought i had better get my finger back to the old ipad and do some one fingered typing ( how exactly is the ipad gonna take over from a laptop, i ask myself? It has no keyboard. Thanks Apple

Well no news on the old transplant list,but that is to be expected really. Blood tests all
good so the thrice weekly regime of strapping myself to a machine seems to be doing me good.
No news on the transfer to the Waitemata renal team (pronounced reenall teem, ha ha no its Whytomater, like a tomato) Emailed the head nurse about the proposed times, but have had no reply yet, but I dont suppose they really need to consult patients, after all we do get in the way of a decent system, just look at all those efficient admin staff, managers, PR executives and accountants, why bother with having patients who clutter up the wards?
So no news really but am ever hopeful of hearing one day, perhaps there is an email reply waiting list like the transplant list?
Ho de hum. back to my Apple core....

The Kidney Society Meeting last week.

Well dear readers (both of you anyway), allow me to update you with the latest developments following the meeting organised by the lovely people at Auckland Kidney Society, held in the sumptous surroundings of St John the Baptist church hall in Northcote, North Shore.

With hushed reverential tones the amassed congregation of dialysis patients waited patiently (how else would a patient sit, I ask you?) for the great man to appear. Precisely on the dot at 7pm, Walter made himself known and started to introduce himself and his colleages. It is reassuring to know that punctuality will be an attribute highly prized in the new unit. Walter reinforced the benefits of the move to the North Shore, Rodney and Waitakere residents. 

Atter explaining the history and the benefits of the new unit, he then passed on to some more of the nurse management team, Janice Fitzpatrick and Annette Gohns. Both at the outset set out to reassure the affected transferees that the aim was to minimalise disruption to existing dialysis schedules, and; more importantly, workers will be at the forefront iof their planning. Annette insisted that those of us still in work should be encouraged to continiue with our careers, as it benefits us. Marvellous!

After some more details about the move and following a very brief question and answer session (only 2 of us asked questions), letters were handed out with a date for the move and details of the proposed shisfts.

I was delirious with happiness to discover that my transfer is planned for September, and that no further details were available about the actual session times, but that they were going to work with a variety of options to make it work with me. These options ranged from leaving me to dialyses in Point Chev with no move, extended opening hours, changing dialysis days to Tues, Thurs.and Saturday, or dialysing at home using my catheter line, (NO FISTULA, EVER!!).

Reassured that they are seriously considering the needs of the still employed, I left on a much happier note. One of the points under consideration is a familiarisation day when we call all visit and make ourselves aware of the new unit, a sort of orientation day for the elderly. Great idea

I think that what this has showed is that communication is the most important aspect here!

Latest News on the transfer to the new North Shore dialysis unit.

Ho Hum, moves are afoot in my strange world to move those of us who live on the North Shore and Rodney to transfer over to the new much awaited facility in Shakepeare Road, Milford. This sounds like a good idea, as it will cut down the thrice weekly journey to Carrington Road in Point Chev, which is quite onerous and can be fraught with traffic congestion expecially travelling over the Harbour Bridge.  Applause! Applause! Travel time will be drastically cut! 

But there is a dark side, there will be no late afternon or evening dialysis to accomodate those of us who are still working! Oh Confustication....This would mean having to leave work even earlier then at present. How bizarre? No consideration seems to have been made for the few odf who are still in gainful employment, and paying taxes. Theer is a meeting next Tuesday in which the Medical Specialist of the WDHB, Walter Van Der Merwe will be fileding questions from those affected by the move. I was originally informed that i woudl be staying at Carrington, so I can carry on in Fullt ime emplyment, and they woudl lokk to transfer me later in the year in December. But alas and alck the powers that be have already decided that i am to be moved at their convenience, not mine, now in September. This is not a medical decision, but rather would appear to be cost related.

Ho Hum, Cost seems to be the ruling issue here? To stay at Carrington as guest of the efficient Auckland District Health Board, means that Waitemata incur charges, however to open the new 24 bed unit to early eevening sessions would cost the WDHB more? So cost rules on both counts....

I look forward to meeting with Walter Van Der Merwe and the Waitemata team decision makers next week... 

My first ever post....welcome to my world

Greetings from Andrew's world, a strange place inhabited by a few strange random thoughts, odd people and odder situations. 

I live in beautiful Arkles Bay, on the Whangaparaoa peninsular just north of Auckland, New Zealand largest city. Working in the wonderful of world of HR for a private school, my significant other, who will feature here no doubt often referred to only as The Big G (TBG), and surrounded by a smorgasbord of delectable animals: Bagpuss, Minke, Bluebell and Biggles.

 Their species will become apparent as will their personalities and no doubt wil become  frequent topics of observations and musings here.

About me, I am a youngish diabetic with a terrible secret unknown to most casual observers, but familiar to my family and friens and colleagues... I have end stage renal failure, which means my blasted kidneys no longer work, they are defunct and have ceased to be, in the paraphrased words of John Cleese "they are an ex organ". I patiently await a transplant which will hopefully transform my immensely regulated life and allow me a sense of freedom: freedom from regimes, diets and hospital visits.

This blog will hopefully give you, dear readers, an insight into the world of dialysis, transplant lists and the everyday workings of the health service as I progress slowly, like a Russian Czar on a troika, towards my eventual kidney and pancreas transplant. So join with me on a voyage of discovery.

I hope I make a few friends along the way....