Hospital experience - hope it's the only one!!

One of our Elders had abdominal pain with difficulty urinating and called our mission president’s wife, which is the protocol here. The next day the mission doc, who lives in Manilla, began treatment for a urinary tract infection.  WE had zone interview training just a few days after and the Elder didn't look very good but had just begun the meds.  Two days later he looked even worse according to the mission president’s wife who was in town with the president for interviews.  He went to the best hospital here called Silliman founded by an American many years ago.  It is also a University - very well known in the Philippines.  Elder had a ruptured appendix which had been encapsulated by his bowel to contain all of the infection (pus).  They opened him from his rib cage down to his pubic bone.  Surgery started at midnight and lasted a couple of hours.  We heard about it Sunday morning and rushed there after church to find him in a ward of 8 other people, a man whose face had been traumatized by some kind of hook while he was drunk, small children with high fevers, an old woman coughing up nasty stuff, and others who were extremely sick.  No AC so all were lying there without covers and only partially dressed.   It looked like a scene from an old movie. Families surrounded the beds and missionaries surrounded Elder’s bed.  His companion, a Tongan from Australia who is brand new, was staying with him that night.  He said he didn't dare sleep when he saw a 14 inch rat (sure he was exaggerating!) slither out of the food cart and another running along the floor against the wall.   The nurses go from patient to patient and rarely washing their hands.  Mission rules are that we only have private rooms but none were available until the next morning.

Elder Anderson and I spent several hours each day with him sometimes spelling the elders for a few hours so they could get some work done.  They loved showering in the private room since it had hot water!!  The private room was clean with an excellent bathroom (or comfort room as it is called in the Philippines), had a hard chair and a small hard bed for the elders to sleep on. 

 Let me list just a few of the interesting things different from what we are accustomed:

•    no silverware on food trays – it was given upon check-in and had to be washed by the patient or family after each meal.

•    no water delivered to the room daily

•    we received a daily hand written prescription for the meds for the day and had to go purchase them each morning ourselves.  If we didn't get it done, the meds were not given.  The hospital pharmacy had only a few of the meds – Elder Anderson went outside the hospital to a local pharmacy or two daily to pick up others paying the 6000-9000 pesos in cash, usually, to obtain them.

•    glass IV bottles

•    IV tubing never changed until I requested it - (demanded may be the more appropriate term since they didn't seem to respond quickly to this request)

•    IV site not changed, even though I requested, until his fever spiked and the doctor thought it might be the cause of new infection.  (It wasn't but sites should be changed every 3 days)

•    Elder was not gotten out of bed by staff and we were told he was to stay in bed.  Elder A and I got him up each day and they were horrified that we walked him down the hall.  It caused a real stir at the nurses's station.  When his fever spiked, the dr. said it was the third day so he should probably get out of bed more - that he had ordered it but the nursing staff said he had been refusing to get up.  I very nicely said, "He doesn't refuse anything!  He is so good to do whatever is asked.  We have had him out of bed while we are here."

•    The IV pump is the first pump I ever used almost 40 years ago.

•    Nursing staff only does what they are in the orders written by the doctors.  Certainly are not encouraged to think and act for themselves. 

•    Intake and Output not measured even though the docs were concerned about his urine output once the catheter came out.

•    On the final bill which must be settled prior to leaving, we noticed they charged for the ice used in the ice pack, for a gown change after he soaked it with sweat when his fever broke, change of pillow case, any gloves used (they didn't use gloves to change his dressing or empty the drain that was inserted into his abdomen.)

•    hospital bed was manual - had to turn a lever at the foot of the bed to raise and lower his head.

•    no call button for the nurses station

•    major surgery and a week in the hospital cost about $4,000 US.  What would that have cost had it been in the US?

This list could go on and on.  It was a blessing that we could be there to get the meds, walk him and just offer support.  The drs. were both very nice and when the decision was made to send him to Manilla for recovery (the church has a medical recuperation center there) upon his discharge, one of the docs said he was flying there on Sunday and would escort him if we could get the ticket.  We did and the doc met us at the entrance to the passenger only area that afternoon.

Our surgeons.  The doctor on the left accompanied Elder to Manilla.

So much of the equipment reminded me of my early practice as a nurse – 40 years ago!! 

Elder has recuperated although he lost a lot of weight and it has taken him a good month to fully regain his strength. 

One of Elder's many nurses.  There were many male nurses here.

Elder and his companion who is brand new to the mission

The missionaries had taken Elder's clothes home and we had purchased this T-shirt and shorts for him to walk in so his backside was covered.  All he had to wear for the ride home.  Also did not have a razor there to shave!!

Elder and Elder Anderson relaxing while I prepared lunch after sacrament meeting prior to him flying to Manilla.

While the facilities and equipment is a few years behind what is current in the US and even in Manilla, he received good care.  We loved the doctors who operated on him and all of the nursing staff were very nice and eager to please and accommodate our desires within their bounds.