Appendicitis

I've already done a good bit of research on this, but I was hoping you guys could answer a couple questions I still have.

1- How long from the time you go to the hospital (supposing they do surgery right away) is the surgery is over? Like, how long would someone have to wait in the waiting room to see the person who had appendicitis after the surgery?

2-How long does someone have to stay in the hospital after an appendectomy?

3-Do hospitals allow visitors to stay with patients overnight, or do they kick them out? Can the visitor just sleep on the chair in the patient's room?

4-If the patient wanted the visitor to lay on the bed with them, could they? Would the person be in too much pain to scoot over to make room? Or would that be impossible from wires or nurses saying they can't do that?

 

A young, healthy friend of mine was out the next day (had surgery pretty late in the day or it might could've been outpatient, I'm not sure), while my grandpa (actually also in pretty good health but 80 years old) it was about another day. Quick turnaround either way.

Yep, as long as you're not in the ICU someone can stay with you overnight.

 

So for number 1: On average its only 2 to 3 hours from what I have seen (through a few friends of mine but this was in the military)
2: A day or two usually but if there were complications or the patient had an extreme case it could be more.
3: Usually not unless the patient is a young child and the visitor is a parent. Recent years (in the US) they have cut back on that for security purposes.
4: That is explicitly not allowed. Besides that there are usually too many things hooked up and the patient doesn't want to move very much to avoid tearing any stiches (which I have done before and it is excruciatingly painful.)
Hope this helps.

 

#3 In the US it depends on the hospital, but I don't know if the variation is because of individual hospital rules or state regulations. When my elderly aunt was in the hospital for a few weeks for a broken hip a couple of years ago, a convertible chair-bed was brought in for my sister to stay overnight with her, and an orderly came in every night to set it up. But I've had other friends in other places who had to adhere strictly to visiting hours. I was in the hospital twice as a child (age 5, age 10), and my parents weren't allowed to stay overnight.

#4 would probably be a no-go anywhere. It's too easy to pull out an IV.

 

So long as the troublesome organ hasn't ruptured or is leaking, an appendectomy is very routine.

I visited the ER on a Saturday evening... I actually went to work first... thought I'd work my shift and then head on over to the emergency room after breakfast. But my coworkers thought I was being ridiculous and said I'd better get myself to the hospital immediately! Good thing I did, because I never made it to whatever gizmo it is they scan you with. I went from the ER to a hospital bed, was met by two surgeons who asked me questions and had me rollover on my side and lift my leg up, which was very painful. 20 minutes later I was out cold and wheeled into the OR.
From the time I walked into the ER and was released from the hospital was 23.5 hours, minus one appendix. They'd love to keep you for two days but hospitals really aren't my scene. Unless it was a young child who was in for an appendectomy and had an overprotective parent who wished to keep them company, there is absolutely no need for an overnight stay by a family member. And no, you cannot have a slumber party at the hospital.

After the operation I felt fit as a fiddle!
No pain to speak of, except some tenderness around the two small incisions. A nurse came in that afternoon and was hooking me up to an IV; I assumed it was another round of antibiotics so I made sure it wasn't penicillin, which I'm allergic to, and to my surprise I was going to be the unwilling recipient of a morphine drip! I told her I wasn't in any pain so why in the fuck would I need morphine! Three hours later I was at home doing some light yard work.

 

Depends entirely on where they live. Different countries have different healthcare systems, and even within countries there will be variation. I'm from England, and my cousin was sent away from hospital 3 times with a prescription for Oramorph because they didn't spot his appendicitis, and then he had to wait the best part of 24 hours for the surgery once they had noticed what was going on. Other areas in England will vary, as will varying regions in other countries.

Again depends on the policy of the hospital and how the surgery goes. It's a routine procedure, so usually the patient can go home within 24 hours as long as the surgery went well and they are able to walk, eat and use the toilet.

Here in the UK they wouldn't be allowed to stay unless the patient was a child. I don't know about other countries though.

Again, here in the UK that's not allowed. If you even sit on the edge of a patient's bed you'll be told by the nurses to get off. Again they would probably be more lenient if the patient was a child. Immediately post-operatively, the patient probably wouldn't be able to move over to make room. I've had abdominal keyhole surgery myself and the pain level afterwards was surprisingly high, and it makes it difficult to use your abdominal muscles, which would be needed to move over in a bed.