I have buddy in Rhode Island who makes routine trips to the local Emergency Room. It seems that his 11 year old son is quite the athlete and thus tends to push the boundaries of the human body a little more each day. Perhaps a little too much at times. It is not uncommon to find my friend driving to the hospital to deal with his son’s issues of broken bones, stitches or even a fish hook stuck in his head.

In all fairness to the fish hook story, I’m told that he still managed to catch a nice sized fish although I'm not quite sure how to visualize that. Apparently this trait (the broken bones, not the fish hook) is common in active kids and although I can’t remember it myself, I was reminded by my mother that I too acquired some frequent flyer miles at the local Ohio hospital. These events, of course, are lost in my sea of youth; apparently blocked out by a brain barrier of sorts. Selective memory is a wonderful thing.

As Deanna and I were making plans for our return to Maryland one of the transplant doctors made an odd off-the-cuff comment to me. He said that Zachary will return back to the Children’s PICU at a later date. It is not a question of if, but of when. He said that all of the transplant patients return for one reason or another - whether it is an organ rejection issue, an infection or blood test irregularity. The comment was made with such indifference that he barely broke stride while sipping his hot coffee.

His prediction came true last Friday.

That afternoon, just a few days before our discharge from The Children’s Home Zachary spiked a small temperature. The usual first wave of remedies was ushered to the front line. A fan usually does the trick. Tylenol was next in line. Neither option worked. A few hours later his temperature showed another slight increase. Later that afternoon his temperature increased even more.

At this point the nurse drew blood samples to determine if an infection was brewing. Within 24 hours we got the bad news. The culture was positive – Zachary had a bug. The obvious decision was made to transport Zac from The Children’s Home to the PICU at Children’s Hospital for closer observation and antibiotics. The very place that we were fighting like hell to escape from a month earlier has now become our sanctuary. Ironic isn’t it?

It’s been a few days now since the initiation of antibiotics and it appears that Zachary is doing just fine. The absence of a fever or low blood pressure suggests that the bug was contained to the intravenous line and not running rampant throughout his blood stream. Zachary is currently resting in his crib, unaware of the close call that he experienced.

Like my buddy in RI, the Johnson family has to accept the fact that we will visit the hospital several times each year. Aidan may require a cast. Maddie may need a stitch or two and Zachary will most probably need further doses of antibiotics.

However, let’s hope my kids stay away from the fish hooks.

Brian & Deanna
johnjoss22@msn.com