May 24, 2026 – May 27, 2026
Sunday, May 24, 2026
Louis Pasteur Hospital Colmar
Well, this is an adventure I never expected to have. I have
been admitted to the Hôpital Louis Pasteur in Colmar. My asthma has been acting
up for a week and doesn’t seem to be getting better. So, Dave drove me to the
ER. Initial triage was quick and easy – the receptionist made a copy of my
driver’s license and had me fill out a form. Then a woman at a second window
triaged my situation and sent us to waiting room 2 next to her booth and after
only a few minutes, I was taken to an exam room. Several staff members came in
– taking vitals, drawing blood. An intern came in to take details of my
complaint. Really just like I’ve experienced in the US. Dave remained in the
waiting room.
The afternoon contained more tests and the start of meds:
Ventolin nebulizer, intravenous corticosteroids and antibiotic. But, by now,
I’ve noticed a difference between France and US. By late afternoon, I still
haven’t seen a doctor. When I asked nurses about test results, they told me
results are being sent to the doctor. Time between tests and treatments seemed
to have become longer. I really needed them to give me antibiotic and
corticosteroid prescriptions, like I do at home, but that’s not how France works.
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| Selfie getting Ventolin inhaler in ER |
While I was in the ER and Dave was waiting, Mad, Ron, Chris, and Judy had lunch in Colmar and did some wandering around the old town.
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| Ron & Judy and tarte flambée - kinda like pizza but with a thinner crust, creme fraiche base and added toppings. very yummy |
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| Hoping Ron and Chris are toasting me! |
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| Judy, Mad, and drinks (jealous) |
At 6 pm, I was finally told by a nurse that they will keep
me overnight for observation without telling me why. I was transferred to the
Pulmonology building via an underground network of tunnels and a crazy
contraption where the hospital bed is loaded onto a motorized cart with high
sides and driven through the tunnels to the appropriate elevator. I felt like I
was in a 007 spy operation.
Next was a fiasco of our own making. Dave’s and my phones have
not worked right over the past couple of days. I can’t reach Dave at any of his
numbers, and he can’t reach me. I have no clue where Dave is, and the hospital
does not communicate with those who brought you to the ER. They don’t even know
that someone is with you. I expected Dave to wait in the waiting area for a
couple of hours and then collect Chris, Ron, Mad, and Judy, bringing them back
to the house. Dave
did collect everyone, but, unbeknownst to me, he returned to wait at the
hospital. And he had no way to know I had been moved. So far:
·
The good: care & testing;
·
The bad: lack of communication with
family and patient;
·
The ugly: patient seems to be outside the
decision process.
The nurse who checked me into my room lives in Logelheim,
just a few houses from us. She called our hosts, Dominique and Rene, whom she
knows; Dominique & Rene knocked on our door to explain what was happening, and
eventually my new location made its way around to all. Ron was able to call
Dave from his phone. Dave (who it turns out was still at the hospital) found my
room and we chatted for a time before he left at 8:45. Lesson learned: get
better phones.
My room has a balcony but is otherwise hospital functional. Today
was really hot and it’s stifling in here - no air conditioning. However, by
opening my doors to the balcony and the hall, whose windows were also open, I
was able to get a lovely cross breeze from the hall window for the night.
Monday May 25, 2006
Day 2 in the Pulmonary Hospital building: As is usual for
hospitals, the night is short, and treatments begin early in the morning. I
slept poorly, woke sweaty several times, and was hooked to a Ventolin nebulizer
very early. But good news: a nurse appeared with a fan which made the room
quite bearable. Today is also a holiday – I forget which – so I figure a backup will be covering for my doctor. And I get no more information from her.
They are keeping me for observation and to continue antibiotic, corticosteroid
and Ventolin treatments. Perhaps for several days. Sigh. At home they
would have thrown me out of the hospital
(insurance doesn’t like to pay hospital bills) with prescriptions for the
needed meds.
Dave and friends visited Haut Koenigsburg
Dave and friends spent the day in Haut Koenigsburg, a restored castle near us.
Dave stopped by after dinner and brought some clothes and my
computer and toothbrush. I’m supposed to write
blog posts – but there’s no wi-fi at the hospital. There’s also no TV
available without subscriptions which you can pay for. There’s one station called
“LCP – Public Senat” which as you might guess shows lots of political stuff.
Some’s interesting, some not, some are hard to understand. When these shows
aren’t on, LCP plays documentaries about WWII – the “Hitlerizing” of German
Youth; Hitler’s women; the Nuremburg trials. Pretty sobering stuff. Well worth
watching, although difficult. The clips were undoubtedly from the war and after
and I suspect the documentaries themselves are quite old. I wonder if they’re
being shown now because of the world disorder caused by the US. Americans
should be watching these. They are eerily familiar.
And did you know, Hitler had quite advanced
Parkinson’s by the end of the war?
Tuesday May 26, 2026
Day 3: I’m getting frustrated by the lack of information
about my hospitalization. Treatments continue, the service and nursing staff
are kind, responsive, and caring. But no one has any information for me. The
doctor making rounds yesterday told me my lungs were clear but no other
information. It’s late morning, another hot day. My fan is on, the blinds are
closed on my balcony, and my door is open. I’ll admit to feeling a bit like a
prisoner and certainly have had no part in decisions concerning my care. I hope
to change that today.
The doctor and an intern arrived during lunch (of course),
but provided time and information. On one of the scans, the doctor found a
nodule that concerned him. But it doesn’t seem to need any immediate
intervention. There was an infection, likely induced by allergy, which seems
pretty much cleared up. (Which is what I suspected.) My lungs are clear. I will
be released tomorrow with prescriptions for corticosteroids, antibiotic, and
perhaps Symbicort, if he finds my dosage needs to be adjusted.
Of course, I got a phone call on the room phone from the
hospital admission services providing instructions on where and how to pay. To date, we have not been asked for any form
of payment. Our bill for 3 hospital days should be 3732 Euros and some
miscellaneous small amounts.
Otherwise, nothing has changed. I missed saying good-bye to
Judy as she left early this morning by train for Paris. I encouraged Dave and
friends to have an adventure this morning and check in with me later.
Tuesday May 26, 2026
Dave & friends: Eguisheim
We've seen lots of storks in Eguisheim, so it is irresistable to take lots of stork photos.
After a wander through town, Dave & friends stopped at Charles Bauer winery for some tasting. (And a few bottles to bring home.)
I’ve been able to work on photos a bit, but with no
internet, can only put blog posts in Word documents. It’s been interesting to
see how French hospitals work, but I’m ready to be done.
Wednesday, May 27 2026
Home Again in Logelheim
I was released from the hospital by late morning with prescriptions to continue the treatments I had been having in the hospital. It was rather an easy process. Dave was to go to the registration area to pay the bill while I got dressed. When he came back, we just walked out. We stopped by the nurses station to show them proof of payment, but they weren't the least bit interested. (I'm assuming that having national health insurance makes such issues a moot point under normal circumstances.)
Still not feeling very well and having some side effects from the meds, I stayed home while Ron, Mad, Chris, & Dave went for a walk along the river in Logelheim. It is again fiercely hot - in the 90s somewhere - so they're not gone too long.
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| First cutting of hay in a field along the River Ill |
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| It was even hot in the woods |
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| Logelheim |
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| Along the river |
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| Mad, Chris, Ron - glad to be heading back to town |
But it's good to be "home" again and back to our usual routine - like apéros.
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| Cheers! (Don't worry, I'm drinking water) |
