Joe Steinhagen

[Pete Mandt]

Joe Steinhagen was injured at home yesterday morning while trimming trees. He was using some type of lift when it tipped over. The equipment did not fall on him but he was thrown quite aways. He was unresponsive when Julie found him. She did not see it so she is not sure what happened but heard it. He was taken to the Hennepin County Medical Center. I just spoke with Julie and physically he is not beat up as bad as they originally thought but he has a brain injury they are monitoring. They have not been able to wake him up but he is responding to pain and stimulation. He seems to be improving but they are just waiting for him to wake up.

Please keep Joe and Julie in your prayers.

Thanks,
Pete

[M Kerkvliet]

Thank you for bringing this to us Pete.

Reminds one just how fast something like this can happen.

Joe and Julie are in our prayers for a speedy recovery.

Please keep us updated Pete.

[40avery]

Joe is strong and we pray that God intercedes with a recovery that will amaze his doctors.

Rick and Karla

[Pete Mandt]

I just spoke with Julie and got an update on Joe. She said to feel free to keep everyone posted. I hope I get everything right. He had a partially collapsed lung that has been taken care of. He has arm and leg movement. Vital signs are good and the brain pressure monitors are good. He is still in a medically induced coma and they reduce his medication occasionally to see what happens and he starts tugging at all the stuff hooked up to him. The monitors show increased activity when family walks in the room so he seems to be somewhat aware of his surroundings but Julie said the doctors will not give any definite prognosis yet.

There will be information available on http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/JosephSteinhagen soon. They just set up the site tonight, more information should be available on it tomorrow. No password or anything is required.

Thanks,
Pete

[M Kerkvliet]

Thanks for the update Pete. We will take any encouraging news we can get!

[M Kerkvliet]

The latest news on Joe from his Caring Bridge page HERE (http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/josephsteinhagen)

SATURDAY, AUGUST 29, 2009 6:35 PM, CDT

Joe remains stable; but he has a fever. Tests are being done to see if it's caused by an infection, the results will take time. In the meantime they have begun treatment with antibiotics. He continues to initiate his breathing with the ventilator, a very good sign for his ability to to discontinue using the breathing machine, but it is not likely that they will discontinue the machine until the fever is gone as that would likely put too much stress on his lungs.

Yesterday they removed the intercranial pressure monitor that had been placed through the top of his head - so now from the chin up he is completely free of tubes and machines.

This morning I saw him yawn - never thought I'd be so pleased to see such an ordinary reflexive action - he seemed as if he was saying that he was well rested and completely bored with the hospital surroundings.


MONDAY, AUGUST 31, 2009 9:14 AM, CDT

A friend of Joe's from Jamestown, ND diagnosed Joe's fever as being caused by "Steamthrashingitus". Since the doctors probably haven't a clue on how to treat that malady, perhaps we're all fortunate that the cultures have come back and indicate that Joe has pnuemonia - he's being treated with antibiotics and special respiratory care.

[M Kerkvliet]

Another recent update on Joe's condition from Julie...

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2009 9:38 AM, CDT

Good Morning all. Julie here. Thought I would give you some small, but I feel, significant progress updates. I visited Joe last night for a couple of hours. He was sitting in his chair and was awake the whole time. He definitely looks at you when you speak to him, although his attention span is short. For someone who wasn't really a big TV fan, he seems fascinated by it now. He was sitting again last night as if he was sitting on the bench out in front of Erickson's shop, with his right ankle propped up on his left knee. He looked very comfortable. He also was scratching his nose, which is something very new, indicating better coordination, I think. I was told this morning by his respiratory person that today they would be putting in a smaller tube in his trach, which is a step closer to removal of the trach. Joe has been breathing on his own now for several days, even at night. He no longer has been using the by-pap which supports his breathing. He is still breathing through the trach with an oxygen mask over the trach opening, but he is doing all the breathing. His lungs continue to heal, there has been no more fever, his blood sugars are good. To look at him, minus, the trach, he is actually looking like the picture of health, a little thinner in the face perhaps.

I hope to connect today with his physical and occupational therapists and see how that is going. They had hoped to get him out of his room by the end of this week and down to the gym for this therapy sessions. All of this therapy so far has been done with him lying in bed in his room. I am not sure what waits for him in the gym and am planning on attending his therapy session on Saturday to see exactly what kinds of pysical activity they have him attempting. The nurses keep telling me he is doing well and one of his nurses in particular says she has high hopes for Joe's recovery.

On a side note, Joe had five therapy dogs visit him on Tuesday night. Although Joe was not very awake at the time, he was sitting up in his chair and the nurses and I made sure he pet each and every one of the dogs. I had a great time...Joe wasn't so excited.

Again, all of your thoughts and prayers are so very much appreciated by myself, Joe and his family. We will get through this.

Julie

I will post these from time to time to make it easier for all of Joe's Rollag friends to keep up on his progress.

[M Kerkvliet]

From Julie, via Caring Bridge...


Joe continues to make progress. Yesterday, Wednesday, he was fitted with a device on his trach to better enable him to speak, should he choose to do so. He remains pretty tight mouthed but I did manage to get a "hi" out of him before I left the hospital on Wednesday night. We have been bugging his primary doctor since last weekend to give the okay for Joe to go outside in his chair and today everything came together to do that. Joe's brother Dan and Dan's wife Aldean along with Joe's sister Rita and myself all accompanied Joe on this outting. We were given a half an hour curfew and proceeded to the Bethesda Gardens just across the street from the hospital. The outing went off without a hitch. Joe seemed calm and relaxed. He was turning his head to both sides trying to take in all the sites. There is a saying in the Steinhagen family that a person has to get outside once in awhile to "blow the stink off." Well, Joe did that this evening. By the time we got him back to his room and he was put back to bed, he had been up in the chair for a little over three hours. He was exhausted and almost immediately went to sleep. I am hoping to connect with Joe's therapists on Friday to catch up on any further progress he may be making in his sessions with them. All of your thoughts and prayers continue to give us strength and support to help Joe on his road to recovery.

Julie

And Joe's sister Rita...

Joe's progress continues. If you look over the past week he has started walking, talking and breathing on his own. This is huge. Today he walked, with the standby assistance of two therapists, 228 feet. And the pulmonary doctor is expecting that on Monday they will be removing the trach tube from his throat. Hopefully next week he'll make more progress on communicating with us.

In order to maintain the progress it's clear that Joe needs rest. We're now learning to balance the needs for physical, tactile, auditory and visual stimulation with the equally important needs for sufficient rest. Getting over stimulated makes it hard to get the necessary rest.

So after discussing this with hospital staff it was requested that the message be sent out that Joe have no visitors in his room between 1 and 3 p.m. so he can get a rest period between therapy sessions.

And we know that there are many who would really appreciate the chance to come to the hospital to see Joe. Hopefully the day will soon be here when Joe is able to truly visit with his many friends and relatives.

Joe has had more than 5400 visitors to this website since it was set up a month ago. These virtual visits represent hundreds of people who know Joe, care about him and wish him well. And we're certain that this tremendous community of support is adding to his personal resilience in giving him strength, comfort and healing.

We have a request for those who do come to Bethesda to be with Joe. Please know that he is very susceptible to infection. It would be too easy to unknowingly transfer a pathogen to Joe by doing something as simple as holding his hand.

Bethesda provides foam hand cleanser dispensers in Joe's room, at the door to the room and upon entry to the nursing station. Please be extra careful to wash your hands before having any contact with Joe and as needed throughout your visit. Any sort of infection could result in a setback to Joe's recovery.

Barb told me that it was raining hard in Saint Paul as she drove away from her morning visit. I don't know about the rainfall up in Alex, but down here we've been wanting to see it rain. I imagine that Joe would enjoy the sounds of a good rainstorm. I know he wasn't much for watching television; but I have no doubt that he enjoyed seeing the weather looking out of his living room window and accross the pond at the horizon.

I wish you each a happy and productive weekend.
Rita Clare Steinhagen

[40avery]

Prayers are being answered! :praying: Keep up the good work Joe:thumb:

From Caringbridge

Maybe it was the change in the weather. Whatever it took, we're so happy to know that the recovery continues. Lucy was with Joe yesterday. When a nurse left at the end of her shift, Joe looked at Lucy and asked "Who was that woman?"

She said that his voice is so soft it's barely audible.

After a while Joe said "I'm so confused" to Lucy. So she spent some time telling him about the events of his past five weeks, concluding with the most important part: Joe, you are getting better, and that's all that matters.

[M Kerkvliet]

More good news today!

From Julie via Caring Bridge...

Just a few quick updates. Joe's trach came out yesterday. After going for almost 24 hours without the trach, the nursing staff was comfortable with his breathing and also removed his oxygen/blood level monitor this morning. I suspect now he will be encouraged to speak more and take food orally, food meaning watery, jello type stuff. The feeding tube will remain in place for a while yet.

His physical therapy and occupational therapy seem to being going well and he continues to progress daily. Speech therapy may now also be added with the removal of his trach, if that is deemed necessary.

Yesterday Joe's sister Lucy was quizzing him on money. He knew the difference between a $20 bill and a $5 bill and when asked how many $5's are in a $20 he responded 4. He speaks when he has something to say, although it is very soft. He remains a man of few words, so nothing has really changed in that regard. Our Joe is coming back.

Julie


Prayers are being answered!

[Todd Hintz]

I've been checking this thread regularly - although I don't know Joe, I was very encouraged to read the last few posts; it was nice to see good news in a world with so much bad news.:thumb:

[M Kerkvliet]

I've been checking this thread regularly - although I don't know Joe, I was very encouraged to read the last few posts; it was nice to see good news in a world with so much bad news.:thumb:

Agreed Todd. Don't even have to go off of this site to see a lot of heartbreak of late. It is nice to see that there is some encouraging news in our little corner of the world.

For those who know Joe... you can really relate to what Julie and his family are saying regarding his recovery.

BTW... For those who would like to put a face to the name, here is a picture of Joe I dug up from the MSEA Spring Steam Up at Larson Welding in Fargo in 2006. Joe and Mark Pedersen had just built the contractors bunker for Joe's 60 Case engine.

http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s317/mbkerk/WMSTR/SpringSteamUp2006027.jpg

Here is Julie's latest!

It has been six weeks since Joe's accident and he is making wonderful progress. He was moved from the 5th floor of Bethesda to the 4th floor. The 4th floor is for brain injury rehab. patients vs. the 5th floor which is for ventilator patients. As you will recall Joe's trach came out on Monday of this week. I spoke with Joe's physical therapist this morning and she informed me that she is so happy with Joe's progress in his physical therapy that she is bumping him up to two sessions a day in physical therapy starting next week. This will be on top of the therapy he gets for speech, occuational, and movement and memory. He was also upgraded if you will to a different wheelchair as he no longer needs one that is more supportive. I have seen him stand up on his own from his wheelchair and I have also seen him swing his legs over the edge of his bed and sit there, again on his own, not something the staff really wants him to do unless there is someone close by. Joe never really was a lay-around, sit-around type of guy.

Last night Joe and I were walking the hallway (Joe was in his wheelchair) and I was asking him what the various room numbers were and he was reading them correctly. I also asked him what a sign said next to a door and he replied "housekeeping" which was again correct. His responses are slow to come, but it just takes him a little longer right now to figure it out.

We are awaiting the results of a swallow test he took this morning. This will determine if he is ready to begin taking in food orally yet. Another CT scan was also done and the results indicate that his brain is improving. It does not indicate if there is any permanent damage of any kind. From the progress Joe has been making, I seriously doubt that if there is any, it will be so minimal, it will be noticable perhaps only to Joe. This is my opinion, not a medical one, based on my daily observations of Joe.

Thanks again for all your prayers and support. We will be back to Forada before you know it.

Julie

[M Kerkvliet]

Joe continues to improve!

Here is Julies latest entry to his journal on the Caring Bridge site.

Monday, October 12, 2009 12:13 PM, CDT
Merry Christmas. Oh wait, it is only October 12th. Anyways, it is snowing here in beautiful downtown Minneapolis, as it did on Friday night.

Joe had a good weekend. We took advantage of his newly granted passes. On Saturday, I picked him up and we spent the afternoon at my house in South St. Paul just hanging out. We talked about his house in Forada, his family and friends. I went online and showed him the CaringBridge website we have set up for him. I explained the journal entries and the guestbook entries. He seemed touched by the outpouring of concern and good wishes.

On Sunday I picked him up and we went out to Joe's sister's, Lucy, in Hastings. We talked with Lucy and her husband, Vern, and watched a little bit of the Vikings game. We then went back to my house until it was time to go back to Bethesda.

This morning, Monday, there was a family meeting held at Bethesda to update us on Joe's progress and our next step. Joe's doctor, his nutritionest, a spokesperson for his therapists, and his social worker were all in attendance, along with sisters Lucy, Barb and Mary Jane and brother, Jim. They all had the same thing to say....he is doing very well and continues to make great progress. The majority of his daily tasks such as getting dressed, washing up, shaving, etc., are done with minimal assistnace. He walks with little assistance and does well getting in and out of bed and did well getting in and out of my SUV this weekend.

His feeding tube will come out tomorrow and they feel he is active enough now that he can stop getting his blood thinner medication. They are going to bring in an opthomologist to check his eyes, probably tomorrow, as he is having some blurred vision. We were told this can be quite common with a head injury and should correct itself as the healing of the brain continues, but they will see if there is something they can do for him in the interim.

Towards the end of next week we will starting looking into a Transitional Care Unit for Joe to move to. He will need to go to a TCU for more intense therapy. Health wise he is doing great.

All in all, it has been a good couple of days. Joe wishes things were moving along much quicker as he really wants to go home, and we keep reminding him of what a great job he is doing and how far he has come in the last few weeks.

As always, your prayers and good wishes mean so much to us and we find them a great support on this journey. I do feel, however, that I am finally seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. Take care.

Julie

[Sean Nelson]

Thank you for all the updates on his condition and recovery. It does seem that prayers are being answered. Prayers from us for a continued miraculous recovery.

[ottocollection]

Are there any new updates on Joe?

Keven

[40avery]

From Joe's Caring Bridge site entered November 12th.

Just a quick update for all of you. Things have changed a little bit in that instead of going to Galeon Wellness Center in Osakis, Joe will now be getting his therapy at the Douglas County Hospital in Alexandria. Insurance issues forced us to rethink our options. Regardless, we are confident the Douglas County Hospital therapy facilities and staff will provide Joe with the therapy he needs. Joe has appointments on Monday to get evaluated and get the ball rolling as far as setting up a schedule for his therapy sessions. Joe will still be staying with the Hensleys in Osakis during the week and I will be picking him up and taking him to Forada on the weekends.

Our visit to Forada last weekend went very well. He seemed relaxed and glad to be at home for awhile. We even made a trip to Rose City to check things out. The trip home and to Rose City were very helpful in triggering Joe's memories.

Joe is having a good week at sister Barb's in Hopkins. He has been swimming every day at Courage Center and has even been able to enjoy some therapeutic time in a hot tub. He was also able to spend time with sisters Lucy and Rita and visited with brothers Jim and Butch over supper.

Joe continues to remain positive and upbeat. His appetite continues to improve. He still tires easily and requires periods of rest throughout the day, but he seems to be enjoying his freedom from hospital life.

Take care all,

Julie

[ottocollection]

Thanks Rick, Goes to show you how caught up I am with what is going on in town. He will get good therapy at the Hospital as this is where Dad has been and is getting his therapy at the moment. My Mom is also at the same hospital.

We are happy to hear he is doing better.

Keven

[Pete Mandt]

Joe is home. Like the previous post says he is staying with some friends in Osakis during the week and getting therapy treatments in Alexandria. Julie picks him up and he spends the weekends at home. Last Sunday I had a treat, Joe called and we had a nice conversation. It was very nice to talk to him again, he sounds pretty good but still has some memory problems. He made my day when he called.

[M Kerkvliet]

From Joe's Caring Bridge site...

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 22, 2009 1:34 PM, CST

Just wanted to drop a quick note before the holidays to let you know that Joe is doing very well. His therapy sessions have been reduced to once a week instead of twice a week as he is making such good progress. He continues with his swim therapy several times a week as well. Joe is slowly becoming more and more self-sufficient again and is spending some alone time at his home, under the watchful eye of neighbors and numerous phone calls from Julie. We will be spending Christmas in the Cities with family and New Year's in Alexandria with friends.

Under the "its about time!" category, Joe and I got engaged last weekend. I plan to be moving up to Alexandria in February of 2010, with my last day at my place of employment, Oppenheimer Law Firm, being January 29th. I have been at Oppenheimer for 20 years and it will be difficult to leave. My primary job once up in Alexandria will be seeing that Joe continues to make progess and hopefully get back to work. I will then look for a job myself. I am thinking of it as a mini-retirement.

Here is wishing all of you a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Julie

As a side note... Katy and I (as a bunch of other friends) saw Joe at the Briden's home this past weekend! Joe looked great... almost as great as Julie!!!

Read the second half of Julie's note above closely! It has some great news in it... A long and sometimes difficult story with a very happy ending!

[Pete Mandt]

Joe and Julie,

I was tickled pink to see Joe on Saturday, it made my day. I also enjoyed seeing you Julie! I am very happy for both of you!!! Joe told me "he had to buy you a ring" with a grumble and a smile on Saturday, he still has his sense of humor. Vicki and I are still wondering why it took him so damn long to make the purchase.

Best of wishes,

Pete, Vicki, Amanda, Andy and Ted