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On Monday, December 19, Dad tried to step up onto his trailer, slipped on the ice, and hit the back of his head on the trailer. He cleaned up the cut and went on to deliver cattle, and go to the grocery store. Later that evening, he was confused and disoriented. Ryan took him to the ER at Aspirus Hospital and they performed a CT. They diagnosed him with a traumatic brain injury, with bleeding in his frontal lobe, and he was admitted to the ICU. He has been on a blood thinner for years, which contributed to the seriousness of the injury. The bleeding stopped over time, and now it is a waiting game for the blood to disipate so the doctors can see what damage has been done. The neurosurgeon said his recovery will be long, and he will advance slowly. Two steps forward, one step back.
Monday night, he knew who Brooke was and said her name. On Tuesday, he knew Brooke, Heather, Abbey and Chip. He was able to feed himself chicken noodle soup, working hard to get every noodle out of the bowl. On Wednesday, physical therapy (PT) was able to get him out of bed, walked him a few steps, and in a chair. He was eating well, enjoying chicken noodle soup and yogurt. And, apple juice to keep blood sugar up. No salt restrictions, and he is loving it!
Late Wednesday into Thursday, dad became more lethargic and continued to sleep most of the night and day. PT and Occupational Therapy (OT), as well as the neurosurgeon and nurses, are having a harder time waking him up. He will be alert for a few minutes, then back to sleep. When Logan came to visit, Dad said, "Oh boy," and gave him a hug. On Thursday afternoon they inserted a NG tube to temporarily provide him nutrients, as it isn't safe for him to eat. Dad also had an inferior vena cava filter inserted to prevent blood clots from going to his heart and lungs, as the blood drains from his brain.
Dad will be in ICU until he is able to be more alert and responsive, and will be in the hospital until he is cleared for rehab. He has been receiving immunotherapy infusions to treat his stage four renal carcinoma (kidney cancer) after recovering from having surgery in July to remove the tumorous kidney. The treatments are on hold indefinitely.
We will update the site as things progress with Dad's condition. Please keep him and our family in your thoughts and prayers.
Our family is saddened to share that Dad passed away earlier this morning, with family by his side. He was comfortable and went peacefully. We are comforted that he is now with Mom, and all loved ones who have gone before him.
Dad's health had steadily declined over the past week, especially the past few days. When his hospice care worker visited yesterday (Friday), she noted many symptoms that he was nearing his final days, and the past 12 hours he declined quickly.
We are grateful for the care he received at North Central Health Care, and will miss many of his caregivers. As a nurse shared this morning, "I didn't know Dale for long, but I truly enjoyed caring for him. He was a fine man, and a kind soul."
Arrangements are as followed (complete obituary will be found here): Visitation - Friday, February 24, 4:00 - 7:00 pm, Schmidt-Schulta Funeral Home, Wittenberg Funderal - Saturday, February 25, 11:00 am, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wittenberg, with visitation from 9:00 am until time of service
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