I couldn't sleep and spent the night with our Hawaiian friends instead. Here is the result, I hope you'll enjoy the reading as much as I enjoyed writing it. Longing for your reviews, K.


Chapter 21

REHAB, PT gym, 4 weeks later, 10 months after the explosion

"Do you know what an SCI peer mentor is?" Alexander Greene looked at his patient who had just successfully transferred himself from treatment table to wheelchair without a transfer board for the first time.

Steve looked at his occupational therapist, shook his head and waited for the explanation.

"We have a special program called SCI Peer Mentorship. Those mentors are certified people who sustained a spinal cord injury in the past and who are trained to help newer SCI patients realize they don't have to struggle alone and that there are others who have faced or overcome similar situations. I think you reached a point where you are ready to meet some of our peers. How do you think about that?"

Steve thought about the offer for a moment. "Well, if you think that's going to help? I'm not sure, for the moment my day consists of practicing transfers, training core stability, practicing transfers, training core stability, and then all over again from the start. I don't see where that peer-guy should fit in."

"We discussed that we will modify your therapy plan again next week. You are fit enough now to not only train transfers and core stability. It's time for the cool stuff, you know. Starting to learn how to use that chair in more demanding situations like how to wheel over a threshold without losing the balance of your upper body, surpassing curbs, going up and down small ramps, … There are a lot of obstacle at the outside, structural conditions that aren't exactly made for wheelchair users. Your left hand is strong enough now to handle the chair in those situations even if your right wrist is lacking the strength and the fingers won't bend in any coordinated way. But be sure, that change of therapy will be a challenge, you will struggle and sometimes feel like you won't succeed. That's where the peer comes in. If you agree, I would set an appointment with one of the guys next tuesday."

Steve agreed to meet the peer. He was eager to learn how to deal with unforeseen obstacles and the meeting with someone who had experienced a similar life-changing trauma seemed to be a good idea. This morning, Steve had been evaluated by his team of doctors and therapists and they had held out the prospect that, at the very best, he would be able to leave the rehab facility in two to three months and continue treatment as an outpatient. That was his next target to focus on now. If everything went according to plan, he would be able to leave REHAB after 10 months of intense training, a little more than a year after the explosion. To make this dream come true, he had a lot of training and learning ahead, but he was ready and prepared to work even harder than he had ever before.


REHAB, Steve's room, later that day

"Ok, best case scenario is they'll discharge you in two months. That gives us 8 weeks max to remodel your house, even less because first we have to figure out what exactly you're going to need. So we should set the appointment with your occupational therapist asap. He suggested to come and visit your home to give advice at how and what should be modified to make your transition as easy as possible." Danny was happy for his friend but at the same time felt the pressure to get the remodelling done in time. He didn't want Steve to go home if his house was still a construction site, he wanted it to be perfect.

"Yes, Greene spoke about calling you tomorrow morning to set the date for the visit. I have a whole bunch of brochures about any kind of devices I am going to need, and honestly, I feel a bit overwhelmed by all the decision I'll have to make during the next week. Time is flying by. Maybe we waited too long? I mean, two months, that's not very much time for a full remodelling. My house isn't quite wheelchair accessible at the moment." Steve felt like he had been hit by a truck. He was so eager to go home, but he knew that he wouldn't be able to even enter the house without help before it would be remodelled.

"Don't worry, buddy, I promise we'll realize all the requirements you need just in time. We'll call in any favours we can." Danny smiled at Steve who just nodded and seemed to be lost in thoughts.

"Do you want to join me when Greene visits your house or do you trust me to make the right choices?"

"I trust you with my life, Danno. Why shouldn't I trust you to meet with Greene at my house without me? I'll have to sign the orders by myself anyway, so there is no risk that you turn the house into something terrible tacky with pink wallpapers." Steve grinned at Danny, knowing that his brother would take the right decisions.

"You'll have to place the orders? Last time I saw you holding a pen to sign any papers was before the explosion. Can you even write your name with that right hand?"

Steve rolled his eyes. "Yes, I can. I've been training to grab a pen and hold it in my fist for months and trust me, I can sign a contract now although my handwriting looks terrible and if you could see how awkwardly I hold the pen, you would think I'm a first grader. But that's probably as good as it gets. The doctors are pretty sure that the right hand and fingers will be permanently limited in motor and sensory functionality, they say I probably won't regain more than 50, maybe 60 percent back. So you'll have to deal with my unreadable writing. I'm going to send you lots of handwritten love letters in the foreseeable future. But besides my writing issues, I don't think that I want to join you at my house for this appointment. I know that if you take me there before I'm discharged, I don't want to leave again. I miss home so much, especially the ocean." A sad look appeared in Steve's eyes as he looked at Danny.

Danny took Steve's splinted hand and locked eyes with him. "Buddy, it's two more months, maybe three until you'll be back at your house. I understand your longing for the ocean and for your home, but you have been here so long, those two or three months will be over in a blink, believe me."


McGarrett residence, two days later

"Well, gentlemen, this is going to be a huge challenge. There is more work to do than I expected. But I'm positive that the house will be perfect for commander McGarrett after the remodelling. The only problem that I see is the relative short amount of time. And it's going to be very expensive to transform this house into a full wheelchair accessible residence. But that shouldn't be a problem here. Our care coordinators received a call from the governor's PA last week, telling us that any adjustments that need to be made will be paid, it's mostly covered by the employment and health insurance because the commander has been permanently disabled through a work-related injury and the PA confirmed that extra expenses will be covered half and half by the state of Hawaii and the US Navy. Obviously, commander McGarrett did a lot of heroic actions during his career, first in the military and then as the head of the governor's taskforce. I must say, I'm really impressed. I knew, that he is a former SEAL and used to be an elite taskforce leader, but the governor himself confirming that all expenses, whatever requirements are needed, will be covered, that's unique. I'm doing this job for more than 20 years now, and I never had a similar case." Alexander Greene looked more than impressed as he told Danny and Junior what the care coordinator of REHAB had confirmed to him this morning before he had left to meet the two men at his patient's house. His job as an occupational therapist also included giving advice to patients and their families regarding the needed adjustments of the patient's home, but this time it was different. REHAB had the direct order of the governor of Hawaii to supervise the whole remodelling process and to ensure that the construction work would be completed on time.

"Wow, I had a meeting with the governor a couple of days ago and I knew about his plans to cover as much of the expenses through whatever fund he would find, but it is new to me that he managed to involve the Navy and that every penny will be covered. That's fantastic news!" Danny was overwhelmed by the support his friend received not only from the state of Hawaii but also from the military. "So, if the money isn't supposed to be a problem, tell us what adjustments do you suggest."

Danny and Junior looked expectantly at the occupational therapist who started to rattle off a long list of things that needed to be done.

"Whoever built this house a long time ago, had no idea that once there would be living someone in a wheelchair. Most of the doorways and corners are simply too narrow to move freely around with a wheelchair. I will explain you what has to be done by going through room by room, starting with the sleeping room. This is the first of many obstacles here. The house has a first floor and there is no way that commander McGarrett has to abandon this part of the house. So he'll need a lift to get to the upper rooms. There are different ways to put in a lift. By the look at those stairs I would recommend a wheelchair platform that goes separately up to the first floor, the stairs remain untouched. Technically it's not a big deal and I'm sure the craftsmen will find a way to open the ceiling for the platform. The hallway up there is wide enough to wheel through, there is no modification needed. The sleeping room itself is large enough to circle around, there are just some minor adjustments like a special mattress needed. Like every paraplegic, your friend has a high risk of developing pressure ulcers and will need a mattress with a weight distribution technology. This is standard equipment and won't be difficult to find.

The fact that there is an en-suite bathroom is perfect, but the bathroom needs a complete reconstruction. As the level of injury is very high up the commander's thoracic spine, he cannot sit upright without aids, that means as soon as he takes off the abdominal binder that keeps him stabilized, he needs a high back rest and grab bars to hold his upper body in a sitting position. For that reason, a bath tub would be much more comfortable for him than the shower he has in the bathroom at the moment. If we put in the tub it will have a bath lift that can be controlled by a remote, meaning the commander could transfer himself in and out of the tub by said lift. We want him to be as independent as possible. We can add an emergency button at the wall besides the tub for him to get help if something goes wrong. As an alternative we could build a roll-in shower, but I think the tub would be better for him regarding his lack of core stability.

The toilet needs to be traded for a special one with a raised and padded seat and there need to be grab rails for transfers at each side either. Most of the time, grab bars need to be installed on a reinforced wall. This means a large plate needs to be installed behind the bar to properly support weight. Installing a grab bar without a reinforced wall can be dangerous since it can be too weak to support the full weight.

The sink will be modified for a wheelchair to fit under, which means the cabinets under it must be removed, the countertop will be lowered and we will install lever faucets for an easier use as the commander has a reduced hand function on his right side.

The storage space in the bathroom should be around 1.5' to 4'off of the ground, I'm not sure if there is enough space in this bathroom so we might add extra storage areas in the sleeping room."

The occupational therapist stopped and looked at the surprised faces of Danny and Junior. "Well, I knew that there would be a lot of requirements needed but when we had been talking to the care coordinator to learn what Steve will need to make his home accessible months ago, it didn't seem that much. This sounds like a huge project that will need more than just two months to be realized." Danny felt like he had been hit by a truck. It seemed hopeless to finish the remodelling on time.

"The bathroom is by far the largest part, and trust me, it is possible to realize it until the commander returns home. He set his goal to move back in about two months, but honestly I'm pretty sure that he will need a little longer, I guess everything starting from three months will be realistic. But we don't want to demotivate him, so we are all supporting him to achieve his goal." Alexander Green smiled understandingly and continued to explain the remodelling plans. "The ground floor is quite wheelchair accessible already. There will be some door widenings needed and of course we will have to install ramps at the front door and in the back at the lanai as well. Fortunately there is enough space on both sides to realize a ramp slope with an angle not more than 6 or 7 degrees which is the angle he will need to wheel himself up and down the ramp without someone pushing his wheelchair. Those ramps also are standard equipment and can be delivered whithin a couple of days, so no need to worry here.

The kitchen is another problem. As in the bathroom, sinks and countertops need to be adjusted in height and we should give commander McGarrett the possibility to wheel under the sink. For the closets there is a solution to put in a mechanism to pull them down to reach the content but as the commander is a complete paraplegic with no ability to get in a somewhat standing position even for a couple of seconds, I guess we won't need this feature. Maybe he can think about a standing wheelchair at a later point, this is a great help for people who are paralyzed from the chest down. In the meantime, it will probably be someone else to do the cooking. Oh, and that block in the middle of the kitchen needs to come off. There is no way to go around while sitting in a wheelchair.

I assume the commander loves to be outside in the backyard. We will install a wooden pathway to reach the beach as wheeling through grass can be very challenging and he should save strength wherever he can. When I look at the beach, I wonder if it will be possible to install a platform to make the water accessible for him but this is something we will have to discuss with the craftsmen. If a platform cannot be installed there are special wheelchairs for the beach with huge tyres that can easily wheel on sand and even can go into the water. This is certainly something that should be bought but it isn't essential to make the commander's transition possible. You should consider changing one of the extra rooms upstairs or maybe the garage into a small gym for physical therapy. After commander McGarrett moves in again he will first continue his rehabilitation at REHAB as an outpatient, but he will need lifelong daily therapy after the acute rehabilitation is over and it would be much easier for him to have a room at his house. There seems to be enough space here."

After setting more appointments for planning and meeting the construction company, Alexander Greene left the two friends alone. Danny and Junior stood in the middle of Steve's living room and looked at each other, both more than overwhelmed.

"I don't know about you, but I do need a beer now." Danny turned to get two longboards from the fridge.


I'm pretty sure that making the Navy and the state of Hawaii pay for all those expenses is more than unrealistic, but I like the idea. I think, they owe Steve that much :)