#targetzeroabuse – Tribute to KKH staff

[By Big C]

This post is inspired by the recent incident (read more here) where a mother alleged that Dr Peter Wong at KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH) has been negligent in overseeing her child’s case when they visited the A&E department.

Similar to all other incidents that I have seen, be it to expectant mums, new mums, babies, toddlers or children…

Many mums would respond with NEVER EVER GO TO KKH! Go to a private hospital instead!

Every time I see these comments, I feel sad for the doctors and Nurses in KKH because I benefitted from their meticulous care for the past 5 years! Yes and that is as a subsidised patient. It is the same no matter for myself when I was pregnant or for both my kids.

So I wish to share my stories and support #targetzeroabuse for all healthcare givers who are giving their best!

I went through 2 pregnancy & delivery and 1 miscarriage at KKH as a subsidised patient.

My pregnancies

I remember when I first shared that I am going for that during my first pregnancy, everyone around me were stunned. My colleagues even told me “you should treat yourself better”. But I had faith in KKH believing that I can get the best care there. Besides, I wanted to be on subsidised mode to save the money for baby when she arrives.

The experience was awesome. I had opted for Ward B2 (without air con) and was granted a free upgrade to Ward B2+ (with air con).

That was not exactly what made me feel so thankful for because I really preferred a non air con environment. Hubby was pleasantly surprised though.

It was how my delivery was handled and how my labour ward nurse cared and had me on her mind even after her shift. She took the effort to call me at my ward to ask how I was feeling and kept praising me for my efforts and how well I did for the labour.

It was how the Nurses attended to all my queries as a new Mum and taught me how to care for my new born. They were so kind, caring and patient.

The doctor who delivered Big E also visited me to check on my condition due to the tear and she did a great job stitching me up. But it was still very swollen “down there” after the Long labour. I could see that she “felt the pain” for me and she quickly ordered the Ice pads for me. Even the anaesthetist who did the epidural for me came to ask if I was well after the procedure and gave me advice of what to expect.Big E had slight torticollis issue and the physiotherapist was also very gentle with her and patiently explaining to me the condition and the follow-up treatments.

I could feel genuine care and love from them even though they see to so many mummies every day!

It was so overwhelming good that I told my friends I had no regrets opting for KKH at all! And I recommended everyone and of course I went back to them for my subsequent pregnancies.

For Small E, the process was even more drama. I was admitted 5 times for blood gushing incidents (I am going to share the details soon in separate posts).

And in contrary to my belief of how the healthcare givers would generally be immuned to our feelings and reactions, they were calm and professional with genuine care!

They may not seem that warm and shower us with attention but they are always there. They are busy bees who have to buzz around to take care of so many mums who are just as frantic and stressed out and in pain. They had to be there for every one of us and they were.

Even when they are screamed at by mums who are going crazy with the labour pain, shouted at by dads who are equally stressed out, they maintained their poise and attended to everyone.

My miscarriage

Before Small E, I had a miscarriage (Read my story here) and had to go through uterus evacuation.

Throughout the ordeal, none of them were dismissive. Again I thought being an early miscarriage and it was already my second child and the number of similar cases they have seen, they wouldn’t care less for me. But I was wrong. They were careful and gentle with their words and offering me their professional advice.

I had to go through the procedure and hospital stay alone as hubby needed to care for Big E. The Nurses took extra care to check on me and inform everyone in team that I was alone. They also contacted him immediately to let him know that I am well and awake after the procedure.

The kids

I have a few occasions where I had to rush my kids to KKH A&E because of their high fever (Read more about it here) and once Small E had stomach flu and had to be admitted for dehydration.

I have always been reluctant to go because I fear the Long waiting time and yes I also believe that in the night, it’s always just junior Doctors.

Again, I was proven wrong. The Doctors who attended to us were great! No matter if they are junior or senior, they all were professional and calm even though there were so many cases. You could see a lot of fever babies and tots as well as injured kids. Everyone was a priority there, and there is always a more serious case around.

Of course as a parent, I would panic and get angsty from the waiting but I could only wait.

Then I realised that they would indeed attend to those with fever and hadn’t feed their child any medication yet. They also prioritise by age.

In fact, I am thankful for their calmness because that calms me too.

Each A&E trip was Long waiting time but each doctor’s diagnosis was meticulous and professional. I didn’t feel them rushing to dismiss me. They explained the condition and the test/ treatment / medication required and assured me that my child will be well in no time. They answered all my queries and gave me brochures to understand more about the conditions and medications. And yes, they were smiley too.

I am always happy to leave the hospital with a peace of mind.

Small E had to be on drip for his dehydration and of course I was freaking out at how scared he would be and how painful it would be.

I was told to stand behind the curtain. And hubby was going mad too asking me why should we? I told him let’s not stress the Doctors and let them do their job.

I peeped and saw that they used a swaddle cloth to wrap across his body to hold him down. I was impressed as I thought they would just pin him down like how we would at home. That method actually can avoid hurting Small E!

Yes he was crying but it was short. He wasn’t traumatised and was quickly calm right after I pick him up again.

Conclusion

Thank you KKH and all who have been giving your best to all the patients and their family!

Thank you for staying in the healthcare industry and making a difference in our lives.

Thank you for taking care of not only the patients but also their family, assuring them when their loved one would be fine.

Thank you for continuing to give your best even when the whole world bashes you and your team!

You may also like…
What to do when your child’s fever goes above 40 degree Celsius?
My miscarriage : Pre-procedure
Help! My kid is not speaking yet?!
Dear boss, my son is down with fever again…

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