I apologize for the lack of updates this weekend. A lot has happened and it’s been very busy. I am happy to be able to write about Jenny again.

As Day Forty-Six ends, Jenny is beginning to follow normal conversations a bit more. She continues to respond in broken thoughts but you are at least able to have short conversations. Her memory of certain events within the last decade are coming back with varied accuracy. Physiotherapy came in once more to assess Jenny. Doctor [Redacted] who heads the Physiotherapy team assigned to Jenny at Health Sciences Center also runs an entire department at Riverview Health Center and she has determined that Jenny is ready to begin rehabilitation. Doctor [Redacted] had one last room available at her rehabilitation unit and had already reserved it for Jenny some time prior. The moment Doctor [Redacted] gave the green light for transfer, everything picked up triple speed and it was a whirlwind of many moving parts operating at once. Jenny was immediately brought down for an X-Ray and they determined her arm fractures are healing properly which was the final pre-requisite before being transferred. The H.S.C. floor team coordinated a transport operation immediately and I was told to begin packing all her things. I felt lucky to have randomly brought an extra duffle bag today in addition to my backpack as Jenny’s belongings in the room had accumulated quite a bit over her stay here.

As I began packing her belongings the news that Jenny was suddenly being transferred traveled the hospital wing. Over the next few hours many of the nurses and health care aides dropped by to say their goodbyes to the now sleeping Jenny and a few to me as well. Surprisingly, a couple of people from other floors visited as they were once assigned to her and they told me Jenny was one of their most adored patients in recent memory. I was present for all of her infamous escapades which earned Jenny her moniker “The Trouble-Maker”. At last I could confirm it was a title bestowed to Jenny in an affectionate way. As more people from different floors and wings came to visit and say goodbye to Jenny that truly was not something I expected. After some thought, I surmised that it could be due to the fact that Jenny was a health care employee herself for many years. Even with her brain in a severely damaged state it had not forgotten the respect, the admiration and the comradery she shared over years with her fellow health care workers. Mixed with her naturally selfless and caring nature she must have tried her best to be as courteous as possible while being a patient. It truly meant a lot to see how many people visited her on such short notice after she was approved for the transfer.

I was told if the transport team did not arrive by 9:00pm they would delay until the next morning. Once I packed up all her things I anxiously waited as each minute went by. Once 9:01pm passed I actually felt a sense of relief as Jenny was already asleep and that’s when the brain does all of it’s repairing so I always try to avoid having her sleep disturbed in any way. I started unpacking my things but at 9:05pm I heard some unfamiliar noises outside her door and as I got up to check what it was, the door swung open and I saw her nurse and two people dressed in high-visibility vests with a stretcher. Jenny is still being transported tonight.

Today when I walked to H.S.C. I expected a routine day but in the span of just one evening, Jenny has officially left Health Sciences Center and is now taking a huge step forward on her journey to recovery as she has been accepted into the rehabilitation program at her new home, Riverview.

I am prohibited to write any names of those I’ve had the pleasure and honor of meeting during Jenny’s time at Health Sciences Center but I kept note of 32 health care aides and 22 nurses that were ever assigned to Jenny. I hope that one day in the future when we come back to visit as normal civilians she will have a chance to thank each of you properly. I hope you will remember her then because I will always remember all of you.

Goodbye Health Sciences Center, thank you for everything.

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As Day Forty-Seven ends, Jenny wraps up her first day at her new home in Riverview Health Center. She has been assigned her own room in the last part of a unit and this will remain her room until she is discharged. This will be the longest trek in her journey to recovery by an exponentially large margin but it is also the final step. Her main focus at rehab revolves around three different areas: Physiotherapy, Occupational Therapy and Speech & Language Pathology. No matter how long it takes, once Jenny shows she is ready both mentally and physically she will be able to resume her life and her work. Whatever changes occur before that day will only be known in time, but I will be there to keep track every step of the way.

As Jenny was brought late in the night, her first full day occurs on Friday, November 17 which means Jenny only had one day before the weekend. She only had time to meet and greet the entire collaborative rehab team but no actual therapy work was involved today. It will all begin the following Monday. A key difference at this facility is that the handful of people assigned to Jenny will be the same people assigned to her until the day she is discharged. They will be with her every step of the way on her journey to recovery.

Throughout her first day, Jenny noticeably did not enjoy her time here and kept on requesting to go home. Though I tried to reassure and explain over and over again the purpose as to why she was transferred and why she was here she would not budge and kept requesting to go home.

At least Jenny was able to do something she could not over the past 47 days and that is being able to have a full shower and not just a pseudo-shower. Since she cannot stand up on her own, let alone walk, she must use a special made wheelchair to shower. As her assigned health care aides attempted to help shower her they had an increasingly difficult time as Jenny ended up not wanting their assistance and eventually kicked them out and began trying to shower herself. She is not even close to being able to shower on her own yet and as I was waiting outside the shower area during all this commotion I knew when all options were exhausted it was my time to step up. And so, I told them I was fine doing this for her and I was given a full body cover and special slip-ons for my feet and off I went.

I will never be able to properly convey the experience in emotions I felt during this. Though I was more than happy to help, knowing Jenny was going to have her first full shower in over 47 days was the only happy moment I felt. I will not go into much detail because I don’t think I could muster myself to but I can go through the beginning.

Imagine your loved one in life – the one you share everything with.

Now imagine them sitting in front of you.

But they are strapped into a wheelchair.

Their head is hunched to it’s side.

They are staring silently towards the ground.

Their body is lifeless and leaning into the straps.

They are too weak to hold their own body up.

Their hair is damaged and frayed from weeks of minimal care.

Just a few weeks ago your loved one was in the prime of their life.

Now you have to wash their body for them because they cannot do so themselves anymore.

This was reality today and it’s a painful memory I must cherish for the rest of my life.