December 29th, 2011

My Emergency Room Experience!

As we reach the end of 2011, I thought I'd share some of my most popular blog posts.  This year had many joyous occasions as well as some not so fun ones, such as when my dear French Bulldog, Francesca, accidentally hit me in the face!

I returned home from my trips to Cartagena, Colombia, South America, and Orlando, Florida on Tuesday night, right before the predicted snowstorm.  I unpacked, sorted my stuff, and played with the dogs.  I planned to get into New York City that night, so I would not be delayed in the morning by the snowfall – twenty inches were forecast!  I had a 7:00AM call at the Today Show and a 9:00AM call for the Martha Show.  As I leaned down to whisper goodbye to a dozing Francesca, I must have startled her, because she bolted upright with such force that she hit me in the face like a boxing glove hitting an opponent’s face.  I was entirely startled and my neck snapped back.  I felt a bit of whiplash as blood gushed forth from my split lip.  Frannie was as upset as I was and cowered in her bed.

Rushing to a mirror, I realized it was a pretty serious gash.  I called Alexis and asked her to call the hospital to get a plastic surgeon to the emergency room.  I called the police to ask for a ride to the hospital, forgetting that Carlos, my driver was waiting to drive me into the city.  Carlos and Betsy Perreten, my stable manager, packed me into the car and we drove in the falling snow the few miles to the emergency room in Northern Westchester Hospital, my wonderful neighborhood medical center.  When we arrived, I was instructed to lie down and wait until the plastic surgeon on call, Dr. William Nolan, could get there from his nearby home.  The pictures tell the rest of the story.  Thank you, Betsy, for taking the photos.  Thank you Carlos, Alexis, and Mike.  Thanks to the hospital staff for their prompt and professional attention and of course, Thank you, Dr. Nolan!

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1 I was taken to Northern Westchester Hospital emergency room in Mt. Kisco, NY with a badly split lip.

2 Another view - It wasn't necessary to have any other medical treatments, except for a blood pressure reading, which was 165/86 - I was agitated!

3 The split lip - How many stitches would be needed? That was the big question.

4 It was best to rest quietly while waiting for Dr. Nolan to arrive from his home in nearby Pound Ridge. The time was 8:59PM.

5 Dr. Nolan arrived and examined the split.

6 Injecting the anesthetic - I needed quite a lot.

7 Here is a good clear view of the nasty split.

8 Even more shots and feeling a bit numb by now

9 And even more numb!

10 The ceiling border in the little patient room could use some updating, don't you think?

11 Relaxing and waiting for the area to become completely numb so that the stitching can take place.

12 The nurse, in her winter snow clothes and the plastic surgeon, Dr. William Nolan, preparing to flush the wound

13 Flushing out the wound before applying the antiseptic

14 The tools used for the stitch up

15 Forceps, tweezers, etc.

16 The first suture - Using an almost miniscule curved needle, the doctor first matched the outline of the lip so that the finished job would allow me to have an uninterrupted lip line.

17 Another suture

18 This one hurt even though the anesthesia had kicked in.

19 More stitches - The tying is quite complicated.

20 Look very closely - You can barely see the tiny needle, which is drawn into the flesh by using tweezers and forceps.

21 I think I had counted six stitches at this point and was getting really concerned.

22 Not looking too happy

23 Every hospital room has a biohazard receptacle.

24 More disposal apparatus

25 Finally! Almost done! - Stitching up the lip, itself

26 I think I have two sutures in my lip.

27 Nope - three!

28 Checking the tightness of each stitch

29 The doctor giving me his instructions for my behavior following the procedure

30 I look a little dazed by now. Perhaps the anesthesia?

31 Mike Fiore, my property director, came from his home in Greenwich, CT. He was there to help get medications, talk to my TV staff, and to console me. Dr. Nolan had a long day and by now, it was 10PM.

32 Here are the doctor's simple, but imperative instructions - Take antibiotics, use cold presses, and be seen again on Friday.

33 When I finally got home, I photographed the snow that had already fallen. It was very pretty.

34 More snow in the courtyard - It snowed throughout the night, while I fretfully tried to sleep.

Posted on December 29th, 2011 in Behind the Scenes, Family, My Pets, Photo Gallery, Television, Travel | Permalink |

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