“Probably not. None of her body is functioning well. Her eyes probably open and close by reflex, not under her control.”
“I’ll never get used to seeing her like that. Debbie, you just don’t know how active she was. So smart, so full of life. How can I deal with this?”
“Let me set you up with a therapy group. There are others going through similar traumas in their lives. The group will help.”
He looked at her. “I don’t need therapy. I wanted to tell you, I’m going back to New York. I need to be there for my company. I’ll come on occasion to see her. I’ll give Dr. Young my contact information. Thank you for your good work. I know she’s in good hands with you and Dr. Young.”
He pulled up from the wall and walked down the hall. He had to leave. He had to get out of there.
The next day they moved Gini to a room on the neurology floor. Now, Debbie’s job was therapy. She would move Gini’s limbs, talk to her, and see if there were any bodily functions. After a few weeks, Gini would be reassessed, and her future living facility would be determined.
Debbie rubbed up and down Gini’s arm. “Baby, your new room. So much better than the ICU. We can turn the lights off at night and open the curtains during the day.”
Gini did nothing while Debbie talked. When Debbie went to the end of the bed to pull up the blanket, Gini moved her left arm away from her body. “Eee, eee.”
“Gini, you’re doing so good, keep trying; we’re all here to help you.”
It was clearer that Gini would need a full-service nursing facility.
“I’m going to call Franco and get him here so we can talk about transferring Gini,” Robert told Debbie.
“I hate to see her go. She’s so sweet, like a child.”
“Now, Debbie, you’re not getting too attached, are you?”
“No. Okay, maybe.” She looked at him. “She does tug at my heart, for sure.”
He patted her on the shoulder. “You know she’s going to leave, so wean yourself away.”
Debbie gave him a look. “Wean myself? I’m a professional, Robert. I’ll be fine when she leaves.”
Lisa and Debbie had lived happily together for nearly two years. Occasionally, they ran into Lenny at the hospital when he worked a job there. He told Lisa most of his work took him to Connecticut and Rhode Island. The three remained friends.
The town grew, with more housing, a golf course, and a large park across from the hospital and behind the parking garage. Part of the expansion of the hospital, including the rehab center and another office building, was the enlargement of the restaurant on the first floor under the center. It would also function as the dining room for the senior community built to the east, next to the park. New Haven was a close-knit, friendly family town.
Debbie and Lisa had bought a small two-bedroom house in a new area just on the other side of the town center. They’d had a good time buying furniture and decorating their new home.
Near the end of October, Franco sat across from Robert in his office.
“It’s time to find a long-term facility for Gini.”
“No. I’m not going to put her in a dirty, stinky nursing home. I want her to stay here.”
“There are many nice facilities.” He reached across the desk and gave papers to Franco. “I have put together some information on a couple of good ones here in the area and a couple more near New York City. You can look online for more information. She will get good care at any of these.”
“I want her under your and Debbie’s care. I want her to stay here. I’m sure we can come up with sufficient financial compensation.”
“She doesn’t need hospital medical care much longer. Now, she needs rehabilitation. These facilities have all the equipment and staff for injuries like hers.”
“Rehab? What’s there to rehab? All she’s going to do is lie in a bed the rest of her life. I want people around her who care about her, and clean, attractive surroundings.”
Robert sat back in his chair and rubbed his chin. “Okay, just so you can see that there are good, clean places, I’m going to show you our facility.”
The two men got up, and Robert led them to the rehab wing.
“Understand, Gini doesn’t qualify to be here. Ours is set up to train people to go back to their lives, those who have had strokes or heart attacks and minor brain traumas.”
“Dr. Young,” the lady at the desk said.
“Tracy, this is Mr. Legotti. I just wanted to show him around. Any empty rooms?”
“We just cleaned up 4C, the apartment plan.”
As Robert directed Franco to the large rehab room, he explained about the area. There were four floors built above the west end of the restaurant. Each floor had five rooms: two small with a bed and comfortable chair, two larger with a larger sitting area and room for another bed if the spouse wanted to spend the night, and one large apartment suite. The apartment plan was designed for a sleep-in health-care worker. One end was a small living room with large windows looking to the atrium area and nurses desk. There was a small galley kitchen between the living area and the sleeping area. Closest to the kitchen was the patient’s bed, and a wall divider closed off the health-care worker’s sleeping quarters.
“Yes, please, reserve this for Gini. I want her to be in the apartment.”
“I’m sorry, Franco, Gini’s too disabled for this facility. If you like this arrangement, I’ll see if I can find a similar place that meets her needs.”
They walked back to the main hospital. “I’ll look over the info you
