Ya Allah, bantu mereka..

It was 10am-10pm shift for me yesterday in green zone. Yes, it means extra money for the additional 4 hours but by 6pm, i was already exhausted from this seeing patient non-stop..

So I called in the next number. The boy came in with his mother, but also with another 3 siblings of hers. My houseman who's sitting in front of me blurted out ' Eh, ramainye masuk (dalam bilik)...' To which the mum replied in slow tone " Nak buat macam mana doktor, takde orang nak jaga..ibu tunggal'

My heart cringed. So I went on with the usual clerking and examination. With premorbid of childhood obesity (weighed 59kg at tender age of 7 years old), bronchial asthma and OSA(obstructive sleep apnoea), one day history of viral fever and dizziness already made him looked more ill than the average kids i've seen so far. He just looked unwell and sleepy, all the reason for me to offer for admission.

The mother had to politely refused. She mentioned about her aging parents who need to be told earlier if she wanted to leave her children with them while taking care of her son in the ward. "Sayalah ibu, sayalah ayah pada budak2 ni..kalu saya jaga dia dlm ward, takde sape nak cari makan..' and she could still smile. Apparently, she did odd job for living and came all the way from another town (an hour's drive) with motocycles to seek medical attention for his son, with the help of her relative (thank god for that cos carrying 4 children with you on a motorbike simply means child neglect..) She then turned to his son and asked if he wanted to be in the ward, to which he replied ' Tapi nanti mak tak jaga...' So she said to him " takpelah, kita balik dulu makan ubat..nanti esok tengok macam mana..'

I totally could relate to her situation. Honestly, i didnt go on persuading her to get the child warded cos i understand how it would be having 4 kids around in a ward...The nurses would be very harsh for bringing in too many relatives (yes, some ppl can be biatches towards others) and i dont want her to go through that.

In the end, I made her promised to bring the child again if he got worse at home..Then only i browsed through the old notes in the computer system, he was once been seen by dietitian and  from the history notes, its obvious that they're living in poverty.

When i came back home and shared the story with my husband, I wondered if the mother had left any contact number in the system for me to call back today to ask about the child's condition. I feel bad for allowing him to go home but at the same time, i dont want to put his family in much more trouble becos of that. When husband pointed out the fact that their living condition might not allow the mother to own a handphone, I couldnt help shedding tears. I really prayed that the child will recover well and his family will make ends meet..

Until this morning, i still silently pray that Allah will keep him healthy and their family safe.

Thank you Allah for reminding me to be grateful of what i have and keep my humility checked..Please make my job as a mean to help more of these people..