The long delays Thursday affected more than just the patients getting treatments. The Therapists running and scheduling the proton treatments had to do some shuffling of appointment times and gantries to get everyone back on track. One result was that my appointment for yesterday was switched to the #1 (blue) gantry and the time moved up to 7:20 am. My times had been in the 10:30 to 11:00 am range, because they want to do the research study blood draws in the mornings.
The early morning times, 6:30 to 8:30 am, are highly prized. Typically there are fewer delays, but more importantly it means a patient has most of the rest of the day to do other things in Jacksonville and the surrounding area. On Fridays an earlier appointment makes it easier to drive or fly home, or to make other long-distance plans. Because the early times are desirable, they're usually reserved for those with special needs, or who have seniority. After only a week at PTI, I don't have any seniority at all, so after my last blood draw for the research study on Tuesday, I expect to start getting much later times. The latest appointments are usually 10:30 pm, but with delays the actual time can be much later. I'm an early riser, and I'd rather get up before dawn than stay up that late...but I'll do whatever is necessary.
Yesterday I took advantage of the early appointment to leave for Tallahassee later in the morning. It's good to be home, even if just for a couple of days.
Today I reviewed my previous blog entries, and realized I hadn't published one that I drafted on January 24. It's titled "Decisions, Decisions" and has details about several of my treatment options and plans. If something I've posted since then seems incomplete, it may be covered in that earlier post, which is now up and still dated January 24.
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