Saturday afternoon the phone rang. She ran to pick it up. It was a DIL*.
"Can y'all come for taco salad tonight?" she asked.
"Sure!" came the immediate response, a smile spreading across Mimi's face. It meant seeing the grand-babes!!
At the appointed 6:30 time, Mimi and Papa lightly tapped on the door that opens into the kitchen from the garage, realizing immediately that the door was already ajar.
Mimi pushed it open. There stood her son at the kitchen sink, holding the baby, wetting his head with a wash cloth. DIL was on the phone.
Son said worriedly, "He's got 104. We just took his temperature. She's talking to the doctor."
Mimi reached for the baby. Feeling his hot, hot body, she said, "We need to get him into a cool tub."
Mama stayed on the phone, nodding her agreement at the bath suggestion. Mimi headed to the bathroom, drawing a cool bath. Papa took the baby and started to peel off his diaper.
Mimi leaned over the tub, praying as she did so, feeling of the water to make sure it wasn't too cold. Praying for the baby. Praying for calm.
Down she lowered him into the water. He let her know immediately he did not approve of this plan. He squalled. Loudly. He shivered, stretching out his long little body in protest. She handed him the yellow rubber ducky. He bit down on it and continued his complaint while she cooled his face, his head, his back, his little legs.
Lifting him out of the tub and drying him off, she said to Papa, "Get them to take his temp again. Let's make sure it's coming down."
It had come down a little. He was a bit more responsive. Son and DIL and Mimi and Papa quickly ate taco salad, talking with the 2- and 4-year old, trying to make happy conversation. Plans were already laid. Mimi would go to the hospital emergency room with DIL and baby. The pediatrician thought that was what was best with that high fever.
By 8, they were in the car, packed with a couple of bottles, the stroller, blankets, sundry baby items. The rain was pouring down; the sky was dark. Thankfully, traffic was light, but still -- it was an hour-long journey to Dell Children's Hospital.
***
Do I need to even say how frightening it is to take a 6-month old to an emergency room? To see flocks of people around the door, coming in and out, wearing masks? To not be able to find a parking place?
To discover that the parking places nearest the building were labeled RESERVED FOR HYBRID VEHICLES ONLY?
What on earth does having a hybrid vehicle have to do with being cared for at Dell Children's Hospital? Why should one have a hybrid to be able to park closer to the building?
By 9 PM, we had finished registering. We kept baby in the stroller with the top pulled closed -- or else we would have to put a mask on him. I insisted that DIL wear a mask, as this flu is reported to attack people her age. Adults and kids wore masks. Signs were posted that if you had any type of congestion or cough, you had to wear a mask.
We were sent to a room that was filled with people. I did not want to push the baby into that room. Mamas had tubs for children to be sick in; the room was packed. Kids crying.
We questioned taking the baby in there; the receptionist replied, "Your baby has higher temperature than any of them." (In other words, he's sicker.)
Fifteen minutes later, they asked us to move into a different room. It had more room, fewer people. At 10:15 PM, we were called to triage. His temperature had come down to 103.5, despite the fact that Mama had given him more medication at 10 PM.
We were sent to the same room where we waited again. And waited.
The room started to fill. We moved to the hallway where we took turns holding him and pacing.
The hallway started to fill. Right before 1 AM, what we started to notice and began to concern us was that many were taken in who had arrived after we had.
At 1 AM, I walked through the crowded hallway to the front desk and said to the cop, "When will we be seen? We have a 6-month old with high fever. We've been here for four hours."
When he looked at the computer, he called someone. She looked, and she scurried down the hallway talking on her phone. Apparently, someone in triage hadn't entered the information correctly.
By 2 AM, we had been led into the hallway where the doctors were. A nurse came in, took vitals. We waited in a room behind a glass door.
Another nurse came in. Took vitals again and said all of the same things again. She explained that instead of seeing a regular pediatrician, they wanted us to see an ER pediatrician. What??We waited.
At 4 PM, after SEVEN HOURS of waiting at Dell Children's Hospital, our 6-month old baby finally saw a doctor. He was exhausted. Mama and I were exhausted. And frustrated.
Especially when the doctor said they want to treat all children under 1 because the flu is deadlier to them.
Nose swabs brought tears, but did not confirm flu.
Inserting a catheter to get a clean urine culture resulted in pain for the baby, louder crying, and a wait for results.
Complete blood counts meant inserting a needle into his tiny arm, which told nothing because his blood clotted.
And there was more invasive, painful stuff than I care to mention. They finally prescribed Tamiflu, telling us all of the deadly side effects ...
At 6:30 AM, 12 hours after we had arrived for taco salad, Mama and I pulled back into our town.
If this seems like a 'rant' or if it seems I don't appreciate the difficulty of being a doctor or nurse, you are mistaken. I love my doctors and nurses. I appreciate their expertise.
I'm just sharing, from a Mimi's perspective, how terribly frightened I was Saturday night, and how frustrated I was that only owners of hybrid vehicles could park closer to the hospital, and how upsetting it was to see that a 6-month old baby running 103.5 was not taken care of immediately.
*DIL = daughter-in-love
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