Drama @ the Clinic

Date: 23 May 06
Time: 10.30pm
Venue: Clinic @ Sembawang MRT
Involvement: Daddy isaiah, Mummy Klessis, Grandma & Doctor

Doctor: What's wrong with her?
Mummy Klessis: She couldn't sleep well the whole day, and her hands and legs are very cold.
Doctor: Emm Hmm.. and ?
Mummy Klessis: And her forehead is also very cold.
Doctor: How is her appetite?
Mummy Klessis: She's eating well, as per normal. Bowel movements also normal.
(Doctor proceeds to take joey's temperature using ear thermometer and checks her with a stylophone)
Doctor: Temperature is normal. There's nothing wrong with her.
Mummy Klessis: But.. but.. she's breaking out in cold sweat. Are you sure she's OK?
Doctor: There's no such thing as 'breaking out in cold sweat'.
(Doctor starts looking impatient.)
Mummy Klessis: ........
Doctor: Your first child? (Tone: Sarcastic)
Mummy Klessis: Yah.. Ermm.. if she has a stomachache, how can I tell?
Doctor: She can't tell you herself she's got a stomachache, so you can only know if she has diarrhoea or vomiting.
Mummy Klessis: Oh...
Doctor: There's nothing wrong with her. No need for any medicine.

(Doctor's face turned a nasty grey.)

Mummy Klessis: Oh... ok... thank you..
(Mummy, Daddy & grandma proceed to leave and paid $18 for consultation fees for what the missy said, 'assurance')

Joey has been very irritable these 2 days. She refused to sleep in her cot, and will fall asleep only in my arms, only to stir 10 minutes later again. If she's in the cot, it's worse. She'll start crying after 5 minutes. By evening time today, her whole body was quite cold and her forehead especially is cool & she's breaking out in cold sweat. Just to play safe, my mother in law said better to bring her to see the doctor. And old people say that when a baby's forehead is cold, that means she's having a stomachache. So we went to the only clinic open at such a late hour. The above captured the gist of my conversation with the doctor.

I must complain! This doctor is very uncompassionate, I must say. Firstly, he did not even bother to ask how old joey is, and only ritualistically performed what he needs to do as a doctor. And obviously, he was impatient to leave the clinic and felt that we were wasting his time because we were the last customer and to him, joey was obviously not sick. Did it occur to him that I did not go to medical school & thus would need his professional advice & assurance that my baby is alright, and therefore I went to his clinic? Sigh.

And what does he mean by 'there's no such thing as breaking out in cold sweat?' If don't have, how come got that phrase leh?? *bewildered*

And please! If my baby has diarrhoea or vomiting, OF COURSE I know she is sick la! ANYBODY can guess the baby is sick by then, right?! By then, do I still worry about her stomachache? I should be more concerned about her vomiting & diarrhoea liao! Sigh again.

Oh well, what else can I say?

On a lighter note though, the three of us walked out of the clinic laughing at ourselves while simultaneously complaining about the uncompassionate doctor. Joey also laughed along with us that we are 3 gan cheong spiders. Wahaha.. But I think joey did enjoy her little ride out in this cool night. Cooped up the whole day at home probably made her frustrated. A report that joey is alright and not sick at all is of course better than the doctor telling us she's sick somewhere. So, never mind the drama lah.

I forgive the uncompassionate doctor. God bless him.