Saturday

Slow but steady progress is all I can report. I'm slightly puzzled to get a circular letter from the local authority saying they will make an appointment for me to see one of their physiotherapists will contact me within four weeks to make an assessment of my needs, because if I need anything apart from the exercises the hospital prescribed, it would surely be a good idea to get on with it. I'm still doing the same exercises, going out for short walks, and moving about the house, and I suppose that five weeks after the accident the bone must have started to knit.

Tuesday

Victoria has spent the day here too, and among other things has unearthed useful documents from the archive. Doris has been here, a refugee from her flat where the landlords have been installing central heating - a bit late!

Yesterday I spoke to my sister Livy, who at the age of 83 is in a care home in Sydney. Frances and Johnny are trying to organise a move for her to Canberra, to make it easier for them to visit. She sounded quite cheerful, though I know she's not in very good health.

An interesting meeting yesterday with Shi'a friends discussing the history of Islam, and the current problems of Shi'a communities in countries where they are a minority, and particularly Saudi Arabia.

This afternoon I went for a walk, just to the children's playground. My leg is getting on fine, and the only problem is that my sleep pattern is disturbed, probably because I have to lie on my back.

Saturday

Victoria was here all day yesterday very kindly and usefully helping with paperwork, and is coming back again next Tuesday. My leg continues to make good progress, and I have abandoned the crutches for a stick around the house. I'm still sleeping on my back, an unnatural position for me, which makes me snore loudly and has compelled Lindsay to sleep in the spare room. I'm intending to have a short trip in the car to see if I have any difficulty with the leg movements that are necessary for driving, but I don't anticipate that there will be any. Its only two weeks until Olivia arrives, and I want to be able to get around then.

Tuesday

Not a great deal to report, with continued but slow recovery of strength and mobility. Had a visit yesterday from Liz and Donna, occupational therapists from King's, to discuss aids to getting in and out of the bath, and for the time being I have to be content with showers. Except in hot countries, I hate showers, because they entrain cold air, so that one is never warm all over.

Victoria has been here all day, and we have made some good dents in the paperwork and filing. I have sat up all day, and made two trips downstairs and back, and it hasn't been painful sitting at the computer. So its all go for the polevault in 2012, and in the meanwhile to be able to join the outings with Olivia, who arrives in two weeks' time!

The operation was called 'Dynamic Hip Screw Fixation', a common procedure for an extra-capsular fracture, ie one that is sustained outside the capsular attachment of the hip.

The prosthesis consists of a large screw which is inserted into the head of the femur using continuous x-ray observations in operating theatres, and held in place by a metallic plate resting onto the side of the femur bone.

The fracture is reduced by longitudinal traction applied using a special traction operating table. The other leg is moved out of the way. The surgeon stands to the side of the affected hip joint. Using continuous, x-ray emissions from an image intensifier the reduced fracture is visualized prior to making the incision to confirm proper reduction of the fracture. Then, a 6cm to 8 cm long incision is made along the top outerside of the femur bone. This exposes the subcutaneous fat. Further dissection of the muscular layer is carried out by using a blunt instrument. The femur bone is exposed. Under the x-ray guidance of the image intensifier the procedure is visualized on television screens. A guide wire is inserted into the head of femur using a battery operated power drill. A suitably sized screw is fixed into the head. This is connected to a mechanical plate with three to five holes along its length and held in place by screws. Images confirming proper placement of the screw and plate are obtained. The wound is closed in layers using stitches and a dressing is applied prior to the patient leaving the theatre.

Sunday

I didn't realise the disadvantage of having to use crutches for the simplest tasks in the office, with mounds of paper accumulating all over the place. The act of retrieving one pile requires moving a chair so that one can sit down on it to reach the pile. Then having picked it up, working on each individual document requires a variety of further actions: it can be binned, or filed, or be scanned and sent with a covering email to someone, or reference to be made to another document already in the files, and all of these mean getting around the office with bits of paper. If something is knocked off the desk or table and it finishes under the piece of furniture, as happened just now with Lindsay's clock, its a job to retrieve it, let alone put it back together. Victoria has been tremendously helpful, and of course dear Lindsay is too wonderful for words.

Saturday evening

Three weeks since the operation, and slowly gaining strength. This morning I had a shower upstairs, and in the afternoon went downstairs and sat in the front room for a couple of hours. The Eritrean Ambassador kindly paid me a call in the late afternoon. Yesterday Victoria spent the day here helping with paperwork, and I had a Skype call with Maurice and Olivia. We're enormously looking forward to their visit and I hope by then I'll be fully mobile. A major disadvantage of having to use crutches is that you can't easily carry things such as books, papers and mobile from one room to another.

Frank and Ros

My nephew Francis and Ros, on their honeymoon in Auckland, where they visited Maurice and Diana. She has four children and so does Francis. They each have a modest house, and their living arrangements will need a bit of planning.

LI Award

Receiving the Liberal International Freedom award from the LI President, John Alderdice, at the Party conference in Bournemouth, with Ros Scott, President of the Party.

Operation

Images of my left hip, before and after the operation to put it back together. The metal plate is apparently made in only one size, but I'm going to have a look at what there is on Google about this technology. Not surprising that its still a bit painful after three weeks, though its certainly improving gradually.

Today I had an appointment at 10.45 at King's orthopaedic clinic, waiting until 12.15 to be seen. The doctor said he thought a mistake had been made, because there isn't any treatment needed. But L asked what was required to improve my bone density, and they took a blood sample.

I managed to sit at the computer for most of the afternoon, but there's a huge backlog.

Back at home

My first entry since the Thursday before last, I think, a whole 19 days, spent in King's College Hospital, and then in 'King's at Lewisham', two wards rented by King's for patients being rehabilitated after an operation, or being held between operations. I'm still fairly immobile, getting round with the help of crutches, and having to do exercises that will bring the leg muscles back into full use. The doctors say that will take 4-6 weeks. Lindsay has been absolutely marvellous, trundling all the way to Lewisham every day, fetching me home yesterday and looking after me now I'm confined to the first floor - though I can manage the stairs with some difficulty. The bath is still a problem, and for the time being I can only sleep on my back, which makes me snore, unfortunately for poor Lindsay. She's threatening to sleep upstairs in JW's room.

There's a huge and growing file of Parliamentary correspondence, because I can only spend a limited time sitting at the computer. But I'm sure my strength will grow every day until I'm back to normal in a few weeks.

Whenever I spend any time in hospitals it always strikes me that a high proportion of their patients are there because of damage they have inflicted on themselves with tobacco, alcohol or obesity. The staff say they do what they can, but obviously they haven't the time or the skills needed to get patients off these habits. I do wonder if it would be cost-effective to employ social workers, as they do in St Mary's Paddington for patients whose alcohol consumption is a contributory factor, but covering all the bad habits leading to unnecessary burdens on the NHS.

Surely the tax system should also be used to the maximum effect possible, to reduce consumption of disease-causing substances. The University of Sheffield has demonstrated convincingly that a 10% hike in the cost of alcohol would produce substantial health benefits, and similar effects would no doubt be achieved if fast foods were made more expensive.

Lindsay writes: Eric returned home yesterday from Lewisham Hospital. He has a good four weeks more of convalescence and we hope that by January he will return to Parliament. No doubt the next blog will be from Eric.

This is Eric on Monday this week, with Lindsay, welcoming friends from the Bahrain Freedom Movement. Eric is receiving regular visits from the physiotherapist, who has him walking up and down the corridors and even climbing stairs. We're still unsure whether or not he'll be allowed to return home before the weekend, so if anyone is thinking of visiting Eric in Lewisham Hospital, please ring Lindsay first on 0207 640 2306

Visited Eric in Lewisham hospital this afternoon He has been sitting up for much of the day, reading and listening to music. A4 Marlowe Ward, on the fourth floor, with a lovely view of a park, is much quieter than the acute ward at King's, and has only four beds in it. Eric is making good progress, but it will be slow as most bones take about 6 weeks to heal. Old friend from the Press Gallery, Mike Steele, came to visit.

Eric's nephew, Francis Keighley, married Ros Rice in Canberra today. If only we could have been there to join in the celebrations with their two families. We wish Francis and Ros all joy and happiness. Lindsay