Isolation

Since her arrival at Totally Kids one week ago, Ivy has been upset and confused much of the time. I don't think it's due to anything the facility is doing wrong, but it is a noisy place. She shares a room with two other patients, there are babies across the hall, devices beeping, staff talking, visitors, etc. It makes for a difficult environment to rest in. With this in mind, Melinda requested that Ivy be moved into the isolation room for a few days to see if it would calm her down. The staff, having observed Ivy in such distress thought it was a good idea, so they moved her into a private room. The first day, Thursday, she was already sleeping for longer durations and clearly less agitated. Yesterday, saw even less discomfort. The physical therapists have been concerned about the tension in her arms. When she gets frustrated, she flexes her arms really tightly. If she does this too much the muscles in the arms can contract. The shortening of these muscles can cause the arms to remain in a permanently bent position, so we've been working hard to keep her arms extended. Yesterday though, her arms were relaxed and stayed that way all day. Ivy has been smiling again for the first time in a week. The new room is much cooler, which suits her as she's been a sweater since she was a baby. They also resumed giving her Ativan, an anti-anxiety med on Friday, which surely contributed to her relaxed state. Some on the staff who have seen this improvement are working to keep Ivy in the private room, but it will be difficult to justify to other families why Ivy deserves it more than their child. If she does have to go back, hopefully the rest she's had over the past couple days will help her settle into the other room.