Marqueritte Clasquin

Life is Life

Today I want to tell you a true story, a story I believe you hear every day but I still need you to hear it again.

A While ago I had to go to the specialist and the appointment was around 4 o clock, he ran late but I always calculate that in as I know that he always runs late. But nevertheless the doctor suggested that I should have a CT scan made of my small intestines.  Okay no big deal I have had worse things done, but when the secretary wanted to make an appointment with the x-ray department everybody was gone home. She, the secretary said never mind I will phone them tomorrow and make the appointment and then I will phone you at home. Okay I said and off home I went.

The next day she did what she promised but then said that I need special medication that I have to take before going there and I need to go and fetch it. The problem was that I cannot drive a car because I am on morphine and I definitely don’t want to take the risk of knocking someone down. Eventually I got my father to go there and fetch my medication, I gave him my card (by accident the wrong card, wrong hospital) and I wrote a letter giving him the right to fetch it. Now I even phoned them before he left and everything was in order they said.

When my father got there (only and hours’ drive) he said who he was, gave them the letter, they moved towards a huge cupboard with medicine and gave it to him.( they did not even see that the card was from a differen hospital) He asked “are you sure this is the right stuff as she said she needed more than this “the nurse “I am sure that this is the right medicine “my father “my daughter just phoned can you remember, and she said something about some directions as how to take it and what this scan is all about” the nurse got very , very agitated and sneered at my dad “Yes this is the right medicine, I know what I am doing “and game him the look. You know what the look is don’t you the look “get the hell out of my sight, I am busy and you are wasting my time.

As a good citizen my dad thought okay I am sure they know what they are doing.

When I saw the medicine that was the next day, I asked my dad for the booklet and he said that this is all he got. I thought by myself how I know how much I should take as on the insert there were various ways to take this. I decided to phone the x-ray clinic. I told them my story and my head still rings when I heard her say “but this is the complete wrong medicine for the scan you are getting, you need two drinks and tablets and the day before you are not allowed to eat, and this and that.

You know I got so mad that moment, but it helps bogger-all. Monday morning I asked a friend to take me to hospital at 8.00 o clock in the morning to fetch it. My hubby is out at sea otherwise he could have gone to fetch it, but maybe just maybe it is luck that he isn’t around. I am not sure how he would have reacted. Monday morning think of me getting up is painful for me especially early in the morning, then taking the stuff I am sure it will be vowel  and then Tuesday think of me and send positive vibes that they don’t find anything unusual in my intestines.

Life is life, is just something that I say to myself when things like this happens, I cannot stand anybody being rude to my father especially when he means well. I am a sick person and a go from hospital to hospital but the people who work there should know that they are not working with normal people, No! We are ill and also want to be treated with respect, have some compassion. when you tell us something don’t treat us like children, you know I am wearing hearing aids- don’t start speaking as if you are mime artist, when I am in my scoot mobile please look over the counter and don.t speak to me and you know I cannot see you. I love my life and I want to love the people around me for as long as it last. Why am I telling you this, I am telling you this so that you can see how often things go wrong in hospitals, just a small thing like medicine, he only had to look in the appointment book to see that I had a different scan than she had in her mind. In a hospital you cannot assume , no you have to know, what you are giving, how many mistakes that we don’t know of that might have caused DEATH.

I rest my case.

Marqueritte Clasquin