Jim Morris - updates

We wentback to Bascom Palmer on June 4th for an assessment and to determine what next. After discussionand consultation with the doctor who did the surgery in January as well aswith another in the plastic surgery department. The recommendation was to do nothing further. The surgery to fix the orbital blowout and the eyelids is felt to be too complex,difficult and not worth the trauma as he does not have any useful vision and this is not likely to improve. We have come back and will now concentrate on getting his teeth and jaw fixed so that speaking and eating will be easier and getting him the skills that he needs to make life easier such as the keyboard skills to enable him to use the software available for non-sighted persons. The bright spot of the Miami visit was the visit of our grandson whom we saw (and felt in Jim’s case) for the first time and it was really lovely though too short.

Appointment for assessment is scheduled for June 4th  in Miami - they’ll determine what are the next steps and what improvement may happen.

More later …

Daddy got the OK from the eye docs to go ahead with the bone reconstruction and eyelid surgeries. So we will keep you updated on the dates for those. In the meantime, he’s doing well at home, starting to learn to use his computer without seeing.

Since we returned from Miami I have not been updating on a regular basis as there really was no major change. However people have been asking so here goes.Since Jim’s return we have been seeing Dr Hosein on a weekly basis. Dr Flynn sent down his report on what was done in Miami.On our initial visit to Dr Hosein there was a problem with the cornea which was getting dried out as the eye is not producing enough lubrication so he was put on a regime of Bion tears 8 times a day in addition to the other drops (three sets) and there was improvement in a few days. As for his sight he is still unable to see any more than movement as for example when the doctor waves a hand he knows that something is moving and faint flickers of light. The surgery has allowed them to see the extent of the damage which is a lot and there is a distinct possibility that he may never regain any useful vision so as to read etc. However we are hanging in there and once the eye has settled down and Dr Hosein gives the ok we will go back to deal with the orbital fractures and the ptosis of the eyelids. But for the time being Jim is resting and getting back his strength. Thanks to you all for the calls, visits and moral support.

We had our final doctor’s visit today. The eye pressure has increased which is good although it is now a little high it can be brought down and we got medication for that. There is still no improvement in Jim’s vision so we have to wait until the blood in the eye is absorbed to see whether his vision will improve. Dr. Flynn is going to liaise with Dr. Hosein for follow up. Depending on how the eye heals and whether there is any improvement then a decision will be made re further surgery.

We had another doctor’s appointment this morning. There has been some improvement which is good according to them. The pressure in the eye is better and quite a lot of the blood is gone although there is still some which is preventing vision as Jim can only distinguish shadows and light. However they have suggested that we return home to complete healing and return in a month’s time for step 2. We have another appointment on Friday where they hope that they will continue to see further improvement before we leave.

In order to assist in defraying  medical expenses, 3canal has graciously stepped in to assist by offering a Gala Benefit of the Opening  Night of the 3canal Bacchanal Show on Monday 12th at 7 pm at Queens Hall to contribute  towards the medical expenses. Tickets are available at the Queens Hall Box office, open from from 12 noon to 7:00 pm daily Tel 624-1284 and  cost $300.

Please Support this event.

Today we had another post-op visit. They did another ultrasound of the eye which showed some improvement with respect to the blood in the eye There is still some air there as well from the surgery but the doctors seemed to think that overall the signs were more positive so we have to return next Monday and continue keeping the head elevated and putting the drops in. Hopefully there will be further improvement by next week

Today we had another post surgery doctor’s visit. There is still no major change. There is still blood in the eye and the pressure is not as high as they would like. We have to continue with the drops and Jim was told to spend most of the time sitting up. The doctors want to see him again on Monday to monitor that there is no infection or further bleeding. They say that healing will take time since there was serious trauma to the eye and that there are no magic drops so we just have to hang in there.

Well - somewhat depressing - Daddy went for the checkup and there’s no change. But there is still some blood that needs to be reabsorbed, so the next appointment is Friday morning. In the meantime, he’s chilling out and resting at Uncle Teddy’s in West Palm Beach. Mummy is back online there as well, so she can be contacted by email.