Simplemama
New Member
Health care or nightmare?
I need to write this after I read an article on fb regarding how hopeless she is that she spent S$1 million on Doctors' fee and medication and in the end that the diagnosis was delayed and Mother passed away. The photo in her article clearly reminded me that is the same ICU my baby boy went in May.
And the nightmare started there. We transferred to Mt Elizabeth Novena as not enough beds in the government hospital and his condition was no any better after five days stay. So we faster changed him to Mt E to get better and faster recovery. Well. Mt E ,A top private hospital in Singapore, and also Super expensive. But we have no better choice. Baby boy was having high fever and breathing very hard and fast. After first night check up and stay, boy suddenly got worse the next morning and was decided to send to ICU for closer monitor. ICU, so many wires was around him and there will be one nurse taking care of him and monitoring him. But I was also watching the oxygen level and heart rate and breathing rate every second. As he is only one year old, I had to stay in with him. I couldn't sleep the whole time worrying about his condition. Few things to note about this Super expensive private hospital:
1. Oxygen machine issues: baby does not like the tube or mask around him. Why would he? But almost for a week, I have to hold the tube, a very short tube to let the oxygen be around him. What he get is way less than if can be into his nostril directly. Until the very last few days, their head nurse found a much longer tube because we made the complaint here and there. And we don't want to, we really couldn't hold any more. Too many things to mention. Here I only talk about a few. Except the tube, doctor request a warm moist oxygen tank and I heard very clearly. First day. Yes the nurse changed to a moist one. Then second day. After doctor request again. She went to put a warm moist one. But she does not know how to install correctly. And it took her a Long time. Note: she is a senior staff nurse. Senior one! And then she ask head in charge to help. Ok. Done. But the way the head put the tube around my baby was different from what doctor said and she insisted this is the better way. No! Please. Don't make your own decision. You are nurse not doctor. Same thing goes on every single day while we were in ICU or back to ward. The stupid oxygen machine. Not warm? No moist? I become the close monitor of the oxygen machine but not nurse. There were few night baby's oxygen level was Super Low and Cannot keep up the oxygen level. At first I believe that he may not breath well while sleeping. Then I found out sometimes it's the machine not even working.. One head told me one of the night the night shift was very experienced with the oxygen machine and she didn't believe when I said the machine is not working as she thought the oxygen came out. I insisted and told her I experienced that every night. So she fixed it after almost forty minutes and she slammed the door and went out. It was 2140pm at night and baby was in bed already. Yes it's giving the oxygen but the machine is not working at its optimal level because the connector was too loose or the level they given didn't even follow Doctors' requirement or they could have changed the level according to his condition. But they chose to just wait and see. To be honest. Is Delay time like this can make the bill higher? How about patients' life?
2. Dosage of the medicine: same thing happened to that senior staff nurse. That's the very first time I started to suspect those Nurses and be very cautious each time. Nurse passed me the syringe to feed him probiotics. I used it home so I knew that five drops each time and the previous Nurse also did that. She gave me a syringe full of probiotics. I question how much are you giving. '-She said 2ml. 2ml? -Where did you get this instruction from? -Oh previous shift told me that. Did I note wrongly? - I said I feed him home this too. I know it's 5 drops. So after I said this. Surprisingly she said. - ah you must know better than me. And give me five drops. She didn't go check what I say is right or wrong. And the second day. I asked the next shift and she told me 5 drops with 2ml water. That's what she meant. 2ml water. But that nurse? It made me think. And it made me very worried. 2ml water become 2ml medicine neat. This is probiotic still alright. What if it is antibiotics. What if it's other medicine. I cannot imagine further. Now it happens to me. Because I used this before. And I was looking at it. What about yesterday. Did they give correctly? How about The drip they are giving. I never saw when they prepared it. And many other family they may just trust nurse and let them do the job. And so on. I complained about this to the head and I told her who did it. No formal reply or explanation. Just tell me thanks for mu feedback. I am serious here it's about life not feedback. Second episode came a few days after. Doctor said give 3.75ml steroid every night. Because the first night was 7.5ml. I asked why so much. Nurse told me only the first night. And then half every night. So I remembered the dosage very clearly. Again. Two Nurses came in to give medicine. They passed the syringe for me to feed. I took a look. 7.5ml? Huh? I asked her. She took back the syringe and calculated a while and gave me 3.75ml. Now can I still sit there peacefully? Double of the dosage. It doesn't matter the dosage is Little or the medicine is mild or strong. My Husband questioned her. She just said calculated wrongly. Two Nurses together. Did this wrongly.
3. As baby's fever was still high first few nights, she needs sponge. What normal hospital will give us a pail with water and cloth and some ice cubes. But no. Mt E nurse just run a towel very thick hotel towel with tap water. Ask me to sponge a baby. So I asked about the ice cube. The ICU nurse. Again the senior staff nurse gave me a ice block as big as a brick. Wow. Seriously? Mt E. No money for ice cube? Am I supplied to put the brick on my baby's head. Super big and heavy.
4. Thermometer: few hourly check on temperature is a must to decide on what medicine to give. Above 38, paracetamol. Above 39, burophen. So the accuracy of the temperature becomes very critical. Sometimes. I used my hand feel quite high already. So occasionally I would ask nurse to check on and off. But the reading was still normal range. For example this male nurse told me 37.5. But I felt its higher than that. I requested to check one more time. Now 38. So give medicine. Two times within twenty seconds changed 0.5 degree and this didn't happen only once. Ridiculous. More instances but I stopped here. To Mount Elizabeth Novena! My husband and I are still waiting for your explanation after one and half month back from hospital. After we discharge and called the PIC twice. That's it. No more answers. She thought that's it. We were happy about it. Oh she sent us a fruit basket while we were still in hospital which I never brought home and left for the Nurses to eat.
please please. If any of your friends or family members stay in hospital, be knowledgeable and be involved. They could be 'killed' without you even know it. You think they are angels saving your loved ones, turning out they may worse the situation. That's the message I want to spread out there. Expensive place does not guarantee you a better service even their own head told me that. She cannot guarantee. Take care of your own loved ones and be involved in!!
I need to write this after I read an article on fb regarding how hopeless she is that she spent S$1 million on Doctors' fee and medication and in the end that the diagnosis was delayed and Mother passed away. The photo in her article clearly reminded me that is the same ICU my baby boy went in May.
And the nightmare started there. We transferred to Mt Elizabeth Novena as not enough beds in the government hospital and his condition was no any better after five days stay. So we faster changed him to Mt E to get better and faster recovery. Well. Mt E ,A top private hospital in Singapore, and also Super expensive. But we have no better choice. Baby boy was having high fever and breathing very hard and fast. After first night check up and stay, boy suddenly got worse the next morning and was decided to send to ICU for closer monitor. ICU, so many wires was around him and there will be one nurse taking care of him and monitoring him. But I was also watching the oxygen level and heart rate and breathing rate every second. As he is only one year old, I had to stay in with him. I couldn't sleep the whole time worrying about his condition. Few things to note about this Super expensive private hospital:
1. Oxygen machine issues: baby does not like the tube or mask around him. Why would he? But almost for a week, I have to hold the tube, a very short tube to let the oxygen be around him. What he get is way less than if can be into his nostril directly. Until the very last few days, their head nurse found a much longer tube because we made the complaint here and there. And we don't want to, we really couldn't hold any more. Too many things to mention. Here I only talk about a few. Except the tube, doctor request a warm moist oxygen tank and I heard very clearly. First day. Yes the nurse changed to a moist one. Then second day. After doctor request again. She went to put a warm moist one. But she does not know how to install correctly. And it took her a Long time. Note: she is a senior staff nurse. Senior one! And then she ask head in charge to help. Ok. Done. But the way the head put the tube around my baby was different from what doctor said and she insisted this is the better way. No! Please. Don't make your own decision. You are nurse not doctor. Same thing goes on every single day while we were in ICU or back to ward. The stupid oxygen machine. Not warm? No moist? I become the close monitor of the oxygen machine but not nurse. There were few night baby's oxygen level was Super Low and Cannot keep up the oxygen level. At first I believe that he may not breath well while sleeping. Then I found out sometimes it's the machine not even working.. One head told me one of the night the night shift was very experienced with the oxygen machine and she didn't believe when I said the machine is not working as she thought the oxygen came out. I insisted and told her I experienced that every night. So she fixed it after almost forty minutes and she slammed the door and went out. It was 2140pm at night and baby was in bed already. Yes it's giving the oxygen but the machine is not working at its optimal level because the connector was too loose or the level they given didn't even follow Doctors' requirement or they could have changed the level according to his condition. But they chose to just wait and see. To be honest. Is Delay time like this can make the bill higher? How about patients' life?
2. Dosage of the medicine: same thing happened to that senior staff nurse. That's the very first time I started to suspect those Nurses and be very cautious each time. Nurse passed me the syringe to feed him probiotics. I used it home so I knew that five drops each time and the previous Nurse also did that. She gave me a syringe full of probiotics. I question how much are you giving. '-She said 2ml. 2ml? -Where did you get this instruction from? -Oh previous shift told me that. Did I note wrongly? - I said I feed him home this too. I know it's 5 drops. So after I said this. Surprisingly she said. - ah you must know better than me. And give me five drops. She didn't go check what I say is right or wrong. And the second day. I asked the next shift and she told me 5 drops with 2ml water. That's what she meant. 2ml water. But that nurse? It made me think. And it made me very worried. 2ml water become 2ml medicine neat. This is probiotic still alright. What if it is antibiotics. What if it's other medicine. I cannot imagine further. Now it happens to me. Because I used this before. And I was looking at it. What about yesterday. Did they give correctly? How about The drip they are giving. I never saw when they prepared it. And many other family they may just trust nurse and let them do the job. And so on. I complained about this to the head and I told her who did it. No formal reply or explanation. Just tell me thanks for mu feedback. I am serious here it's about life not feedback. Second episode came a few days after. Doctor said give 3.75ml steroid every night. Because the first night was 7.5ml. I asked why so much. Nurse told me only the first night. And then half every night. So I remembered the dosage very clearly. Again. Two Nurses came in to give medicine. They passed the syringe for me to feed. I took a look. 7.5ml? Huh? I asked her. She took back the syringe and calculated a while and gave me 3.75ml. Now can I still sit there peacefully? Double of the dosage. It doesn't matter the dosage is Little or the medicine is mild or strong. My Husband questioned her. She just said calculated wrongly. Two Nurses together. Did this wrongly.
3. As baby's fever was still high first few nights, she needs sponge. What normal hospital will give us a pail with water and cloth and some ice cubes. But no. Mt E nurse just run a towel very thick hotel towel with tap water. Ask me to sponge a baby. So I asked about the ice cube. The ICU nurse. Again the senior staff nurse gave me a ice block as big as a brick. Wow. Seriously? Mt E. No money for ice cube? Am I supplied to put the brick on my baby's head. Super big and heavy.
4. Thermometer: few hourly check on temperature is a must to decide on what medicine to give. Above 38, paracetamol. Above 39, burophen. So the accuracy of the temperature becomes very critical. Sometimes. I used my hand feel quite high already. So occasionally I would ask nurse to check on and off. But the reading was still normal range. For example this male nurse told me 37.5. But I felt its higher than that. I requested to check one more time. Now 38. So give medicine. Two times within twenty seconds changed 0.5 degree and this didn't happen only once. Ridiculous. More instances but I stopped here. To Mount Elizabeth Novena! My husband and I are still waiting for your explanation after one and half month back from hospital. After we discharge and called the PIC twice. That's it. No more answers. She thought that's it. We were happy about it. Oh she sent us a fruit basket while we were still in hospital which I never brought home and left for the Nurses to eat.
please please. If any of your friends or family members stay in hospital, be knowledgeable and be involved. They could be 'killed' without you even know it. You think they are angels saving your loved ones, turning out they may worse the situation. That's the message I want to spread out there. Expensive place does not guarantee you a better service even their own head told me that. She cannot guarantee. Take care of your own loved ones and be involved in!!
