A surgery professor was renowned for his simple instruction to surgery residents, "Don't see what you can get away with, do the right thing."
A baby grunts when she is having trouble breathing. It is the same sound Venus and Serena make after a ground stroke, just a whole lot quieter and after every breath. It is a distinctive sound.
That sound was coming from a mother's mbeleko(the patterned scarf that holds the baby to the mother's body) A toddler was slumped to the side on her mother's back. The breathing was rapid and labored.
The nurse shared with me that the 22 month old had swallowed kerosene. This is a not infrequent problem because in the home dangerous liquids are stored within reach in soda bottles or similar containers.
The problem is that vapor and/or liquid reach the child's airways with inflammation and fluid leakage into the lungs as the result.
This baby girl was struggling with every breath. We placed her on oxygen. There are no monitors. The ICUs had no beds. There is no portable x ray.
I talked with the pediatric resident on call to explain the situation and she said to admit the baby to the ward. We had to take the baby off oxygen to get an x ray. There are no portable oxygen cannisters.
Today I went to the ward where the baby was admitted. She was doing fine. We got away with it. There was no right thing to do.
1 comment:
Steve, thank you for taking the time to update the blog. It's good to hear from you and feel that connection. Thank you also for sharing not only the stories about those you are serving but also reflections on the context. It is helpful to see another view of the world rather than all the talk about "sub prime lending", credit default swaps, and panic as financial instituions are falling like a house of cards. It certainly gives one a different world view and understanding of what is truly important in life. Keep the posts coming.
Love and Shalom!
Dick
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