The Medical Leave I Wished I Never Had

I didn't really think of writing about this but a friend did give me a few good reasons why I should.

Looking at my lifestyle and my medical history I really considered myself a healthy person. Even if I did smoke, I've never been confined, colds will last for only 2-3 days and a fever will be gone overnight.

I was diagnosed with acute appendicitis and had to undergo an explor lap appendectomy last month. But I had to go to 3 different medical institutions until I actually found out what was wrong with me.

It was around 7:00pm, April 24 when I started having abdominal pains which I thought was just gas. I came home 2:00am the next day and slept while lying on my stomach which I usually do when I get gas. I woke up and the pain got worse. My dad gave me antacids which didn't work at all. Two hours later, he gave me medication for ulcer which again didn't work. I asked him later on to bring me to the hospital.

He drove me to Asian Hospital and Medical Center, one of the best hospitals in the metro which luckily my HMO covers. Trouble is, I didn't know a doctor there, so I went straight to the ER. One of the interns attending took my blood pressure and temperature. She asked me to fill up a form and twenty minutes later asked me to go to the 6th floor of the other building. She told me it was not that far. So I walked and eventually got lost. The pain was already excruciating. I finally found my way and had to wait at least 5 minutes for the elevator to go down. I was literally pushing myself in already since I desperately wanted to get treated. I finally reached the 6th floor and looked for the room the intern referred to me. When I finally got there, the office was closed for the day. At this point I was already nauseated big time. I called my dad to drive me somewhere else because I couldn't wait any longer. I was literally sitting down on the floor while waiting for the elevator. When I told a colleague from work what happened, she told me that the person that the nurse referred me to was actually the person who approves the medical coverage of my HMO, and this is a standard procedure before they refer you to the actual physician who will attend to you. That means, that would've been more walking for me too. So we decided to go somewhere else.

I told my dad to drive me to Tokyo Healthlink because I was really sure that I don't have to wait long. True enough, after less than 10 minutes, there was a doctor attending to me. After about 15 minutes, she told me all I had was dyspepsia, prescribed Zantac and asked me to go home and rest. So I did.

I went home and took the medicine. After 2 hours, I felt worse than before I took it. I started vomitting and at that time I knew that something was really wrong. I called my boyfriend since my dad left for a while and will take some time to get back home. This time we went to Las Piñas Doctor's Hospital where our family doctor was a resident. They attended to me the moment I stepped into the ER. My dad followed shortly after and recommended that I stay there for the night so that they can observe me. About 30 minutes later, the attending physician told me it was possible appendicitis since I had the symptoms and my white blood cell count was high. They referred me to a general surgeon who came in at midnight to attend to me and confirmed that it was indeed appendicitis. The surgeon also told me that I needed to undergo surgery immediately because I've been experiencing the pain for more than 24 hours and complications may happen if my appendix ruptured. At 2:00am, they proceeded with the surgery and by 4:00am I was already out of harm's way.

So. Why am I writing about this? I'm definitely pissed about how I was treated but I'm not saying that Asian Hospital and Tokyo Healthlink are bad places to have yourself checked and you should all go to Las Piñas Doctors. I just wished that procedures were better and that there were more doctors who took me seriously. Remember, that doctor who diagnosed me with dyspepsia told me to rest. If I did, my appendix would've ruptured and I could have died.

How am I now, you may ask? Well, I'm back to work and able to do everyday activities but exercise, roller coasters and lifting heavy things is a no-no for the next 3 months. People told me that I lost weight, but I did gain a pot belly which is natural when you have an operation. Whether or not I can still wear a bikini is still to be determined. But hey, I quit smoking. That's good!

So just make sure you have a good relationship with your doctors. The ones who attended to me were friends of my parents. Even if not finishing their dinners or leaving the house at midnight to go back to work and attend to an emergency patient, most especially do a surgery at 2:00am are all part of their jobs, I don't think those other doctors who didn't know who I was would've done the same thing.