Just logged on for the first time in a while and saw this. So glad to hear it wasn't worse. Best wishes to both of you.

(Edited for typo.)

We arrived back home late Saturday evening to a house that the pet/house sitter left in better shape than we'd ever dreamed of - absolutely wonderful. Richie spent the next day sleeping. On Monday he was walking around, did some cooking, but was still really sore all over.

Tuesday we saw his orthopaedic doctor who reviewed his Utah medical file in details and had X-rays taken (again) of his shoulders and neck. He said:
- Acromion process fracture - will heal by itself
- Fractured nose - will heal by itself
- Fractured rib - will heal by itself
- Knee - for the MCL tear, he ordered physical therapy for now, in the hope to avoid surgery
- Neck - he ordered to see a neck specialist in two weeks about the C6 spinous process fracture and to keep wearing the neck brace until then.

We'll see the orthopaedic doctor again in two weeks for a follow-up on his knee. Hopefully, he can avoid surgery with physical therapy.

On Wed. we saw the physical therapist who gave him some exercises to do at home. We'll see him again a couple of times next week.

Today we saw his regular MD for a swollen elbow that didn't look too good and he now has to take antibiotics for ten days... The doctor ordered to "keep it easy and keep a low profile", to which I replied, "can you prescribe some Valium with that?"

Every morning, the first thing out of Richie's mouth is, "Boy, I feel much better than yesterday." He has been an exemplary patient, taken his meds, resting, wearing his brace, doing his exercises, etc... However, given Richie's personality, I suspect the lion-in-a-cage syndrome will start imminently... He is not allowed to drive (or work) for at least another couple of weeks.

Some of you have asked what you can do to help. If we need anything, we won't be shy to ask. However, if any of you feel compelled to give back, there are no rescue funds to speak of at City of Rocks, but I encourage you to donate something to any of your favored rock climbing rescue fund, SAR, etc. as they are the first responders in any rock climbing accident. The rangers at City of Rocks helped make his transition from the accident to the ER a mere 2 hours. They also helped by retrieving his gear, helped me packed our camping gear, offered support, directions to the hospital, etc... they were amazing.

In addition, the McKay-Dee Hospital where he went in Ogden, UT, has a foundation that helps people like me, family of the patients from out of state, by providing a low-cost ($20/night) guest house right across the street from the hospital. I cannot begin to tell you how MUCH this made a difference to me - I only had to walk a mere 5 mins and go visit Rich, and then when he needed to rest, I would just have to walk back to the mini-hotel. They had free laundry & computers, a home-like setting with a big living room and large hotel-like rooms with kitchenettes... brand new as they just opened this donation-run facility less than a month ago. When he got discharged late Thursday night, I wheeled him across the street right into the room and the next morning I wheeled him back to the hospital for the 7 AM MRI of the knee and then wheeled him back to the room where he was able to take a nice nap before we started inching our way back home, driving to the Salt Lake City airport... it made our lives very smooth, given the circumstances. Moreover, the staff at the hospital - and we mean EVERYONE at the hospital - was absolutely phenomenal and amazing...

To start, after the accident, I had to drive 2.5 hrs from City of Rocks to the hospital and they had a social worker call me from the Emergency Room every 40-60 mins to give me an update ("He was just admitted, he is now going to get a CAT scan of his brain and neck - will let you know the results." An hour later I received another call "the CAT scans of his brain and neck all came back negative, so now they are going to stitch and clean his head wounds and I'll call you later" etc...) By the time I got to the hospital, I knew exactly what they had done to him, what the results were, and the worries were this much lessened as a result.

When he got transferred to ICU, another social worker spent more than an hour with me, (we had paperwork to fill out, of course, but that was secondary), who made sure I had friends/family to call, and made sure that I was okay... I could go on and on about the great care he received during his three-day stint there.... This was a HUMANE hospital experience. If they could only be all like this...

If you can, please donate to their Foundation by clicking on their Make a Donation Online button found here

As a suggestion, I would recommend their Endowment Fund that supports the Guest House Campaign.

Again, thank you for your amazing support.

Great to hear that you guys made it home an that Rich is doing well. Hope you both heal and recover quickly.

Also sorry to hear of your circumstances. Its so easy to become complacent, and its so hard to go back...

Heal up!

A major recovery "milestone" is returning to work. Please let us know when that happens.

Mim, that certainly is a classy operation that you were so fortunate to "fall into"! Sorry, couldn't resist. I work in several hospitals and you were certainly treated extreamely well. Thanks for the update. Rich would not know me but tell him I look forward to hearing yell ACTION! again while climbing, as he did when I first met him many years ago.

How are Mim and Rich doing?

Tuesday was the 8th week since the accident...

Knee is still in recovery, but gentle hikes are somewhat okay right now.
Shoulder is okay, but stiff.
Neck still hurts... he just got out of the neck brace this week, so there is a lot of stiffness.
Head injury: he got the okay to drive yesterday, but the neurologist recommended he waits another two weeks before returning to work. He still has some short-term memory issues.
Mood - hard to be jolly when you miss your favorite season of the year and you are on house arrest... but he is making the most of his recovery, as much as he can. He started scanning old photos this week, bringing back some good ol' memories to life.

Some things we've learned since then (not in order):

Have proper medical insurance. Luckily, he had a basic emergency care insurance, but all the post ER visits (drs., PT, etc...) were not covered. We still don't know the financial liability of the whole ordeal yet, but once the dust settles, it will still be a fair amount (but not the $50K from the original hospital/evac bill).

Get injury/sickness insurance. This is different from health care coverage. It gives you a lump sum per event (ER, ICU, etc....) which helps cover loss of income, additional health care expenses, etc. Rich luckily has such insurance with Combined Life and it will help not completely deplete his savings account.

Make sure you have an emergency fund. Not everyone thinks ahead (or can't), but it adds not to have to recover from financial ruin after such an ordeal.

Call the HR department as soon as you can. Rich called his supervisors and staffing as soon as we got back, but lo and behold, nobody told the HR department. He got a call this week that if he is not back to work by Monday, he loses his position.

Brace yourself with patience with dealing with bureaucracies and be organized. In fact, designate someone who is not in recovery to do these tasks (disability insurance, medical insurance, injury insurance, HR issues... everyone wants different forms filled out...)

Get all the support you can. Friends, neighbors, relatives, therapist... you will need it.

Mim

P.S. After receiving PTSD-specific therapy, I am almost done with the nightmares and flashbacks, which I tried to ignore the first five weeks as something that "will pass". It didn't.

That's quite a sobering post, Mim. It seems as if funds drainage is a strong second blow after the physically traumatic one. I, for one, hate to think about how unprepared I am, especially in the get-all-the-support-you-can department. I feel for both of you and wish you the best and hope Rich can get back to work soon and you can put much behind you.

Thanks for the update. Anyone who climbs, especially, but in fact anyone alive needs to be mindful of the impact an accident can have on ourselves and loved ones. Wishing you both a continued speedy recovery.