"There's a myth that anyone who has a liver problem has brought it on themselves" This quote is from a Crohn's disease patient living with a blocked portal vein hoping for a liver transplant (Independent 31st Oct 2010)

Sunday 7 October 2012

New job


After 3 years at my last job I've decided it was time to move on.
The lovely Human Resources lady who saw me through my sickness absence, and coaxed me gently back into work, has left.  Also the lovely scheduler who understood when I declined too many shifts/ evening work, has left.  None of the present office staff know me, and any form of training or development seems to have dried up.  So despite missing my lovely clients, I've moved away from a privately owned business to a corporate one. 

Pictured above is one of the 'Belong' homes.  They offer elderly care via a mix of 'household' living with 24/7 specialist care, 'apartment' living in self-contained flats joined to the supporting home, and 'home' living which is what I have been doing before - homecare for the elderly out in the wider community.

I'm going to be working with a small team of 10 (there were around 40 where I was before) looking after people in the apartments and in their own homes.

I've had a week of induction training and on Tuesday I start a week of 'shadowing' the senior care team round the mix of clients, before being launched on my own! 

Monday 1 October 2012

Ultrasound

Ultrasound today.  The only u/s I've had, ordered by Dr S my gastro.  Not sure why.  Neither was the radiographer, who noted it had been requested as part of my HCC surveillance and, like me, was of the view that 6-monthly MRI scans will be monitoring me far better.

Anyway she reassured me that I had no ascites (tick), my liver is a bit lumpy and bumpy not smooth and shiny (tick), my spleen is fine (tick), and the blood flow through the portal vein is normal (tick).  She also reassured me that ultrasounds are very quick and therefore relatively cheap for the NHS and not to feel extravagant about unnecessary procedures!