Family meeting w doctors and therapists

Last week, Linda, Grandma and Grandpa, Lindsay, myself and...MY DAD were all able to Romero the table and meet to discuss my Dad's progress up to this point and his near future. It was very cool that he was able to sit in and give his thoughts.
Over and over, we heard the word "Remarkable" in reference to his progress over the previous week. He is so much more oriented and with it these days. Speech therapy has been administering a test called the GOAT. GOAT is an acronym for Galvaston Orientation and Amnesia Test. Here is a link to it: http://www.utmb.edu/psychology/Adultrehab/GOAT.htm
He had to be able to pass this test with 100% in orderto graduate to a neuropsychologist. He started out scoring pretty low, bun in a matter of a couple of weeks was able to score 100%. This was the test that he was giving BS answers to on purpose (so he said). Also, it's the same test that was being given when he believed that he was being interrogated by the government.
He starts his sessions with the neuropsychologist today. Her job is to really dig down to the nitty gritty and challeng his cognitive abilities. Things like putting the correct time frame on his memories and his ability to learn and retain new data. He is looking forward to the challenge and seems excited about moving up in levels of therapy.
His physical therapist said that he has been working very hard in the gym. He's gone from only tolerating about 10-15 minutes out of bed and sittin in a wheelchair, to an hour and sometimes a little more. He often has to be reminded motto support his weight on his left arm due to his broken humorous. His right wrist is splinted and his left leg has obvious scarring, so it's easy to remember (for him and his various caregivers) that they are injured, but because he has no immobilization on his left arm, sometimes they forget that it's broken as well. Really, he can bear weight only on his right leg and right elbow. So adjusting his position and getting in and out of bed are still quite a challenge.
He has gone from what they called "total assist" to "min to mod assist" when it comes to his occupational therapy. Occupational therapy, for those who don't know, is teaching him how to do the tasks of daily living. Things like walking, eating, bathing, grooming, etc. Their job is to prepare him to go back out into the real world and care for himself again. At this point, he can comb his own hair, brush his teeth, feed himself and many other daily tasks that he couldn't do when he was first transferred from RCH. He still needs assistance to shower though, due to his physical limitations and the danger thy a wet slippery floor presents.
They have also worked out a really good system and dosage schedule to manage his pain. He has actually been able to drop one of his pain meds successfully and doesn't need to be given medication as often as he was before.
He is on a full solid diet so his PEG tube (or as he has dubbed it, the tube of discontent) should beremoved today. The Gastrondoc was supposed to remove it on Friday, but unfortunately, he forgot to come by to remove it so my Dad had to keep it in over the weekend.
They expect to transfer him to a TLC sometime next week. TLC stands for Transitional Living Center. In TLC, he will still be inpatient, but it is less like a hospital and more like a dormitory setting. The levels oftherapy are more intense and he will be in some sort of therapy from 9am to 3pm. So, he will be working very hard in TLC and will have a lot less down time. The cool thing about TLC is that he will get to take field trips off hospital grounds which I am sure is exciting because he can have a change of scenery. Another great thing is that the neuropathologist at the TLC location specializes in pain management, so he can help my Dad manage his pain levels in alternative ways and not have to take so many medications. He seems up to the challenge, although he does believe he needs at least one more week.