The Last Mon Standing

I guess ill just fallow the advice of the popular chocolate coated wafer… HAVE A BREAK…

I am giving meself a short hiatus from blogging… since i have to concentrate on my studies (JOKE)… i am just busy with my new org and hospitalo internship and stuffs… and the new blog that i am writing (anonymously)…

but may i leave this… taken from my new blog… written about my nursing duties only…

After Lunch, Before the Last Subject

I spent my lunch today with J.A.A. and J.N.A  in a fastfood with a striped insect as its mascots. After we ate the not-so-"yummy" burger and salty fries we decided to stay there for a while since it was still 30 minutes before our next subject (pharmacology). We were chatting when we saw our two former blockmates, J.L.M. and A.M.  walking toward us cladded in all white Nursing uniforms, unlike us, who were wearing civillian clothing since our duty is on Thursday.

They sat on the seats beside our table.

J.L.M.’s patient died last Monday. I was deeply interested on how that happened so I started bombarding him with questions. I thought that his patient died because he left him for lunch. But I found out  what really happened was a very different story.

According to him, Baby Boy S.C. was a 7 and half month premature baby. He was born last July 19. The baby left the hospital that day, I am not certain whether it was suggested by the doctor or it was a HAMA (home against medical advice) though I though I think it was a HAMA case since the baby’s family is poor (the hospital is a general hospiatal, not a private) a lot of cases like this one happens since the patients’ families were unable to pay for the medicines and other hospital fees (there is no such thing as a FREE hospital service).The baby was at home when he started manifesting Severe Jaundice ( a complication common to many neonates characterized by yellow colored skin and sclera).

The baby was immediately rushed to the General Hospital.

According to J.L.M., the baby was really in a bad situation. The RR (respiratory rate) was 2bpm (beats per minute) which was really scary. The normal bpm of an adult is 16-20bpm and it increases the younger the person is.

The infant was unable to breathe by itself and so they put an ambu bag (a gadget for breathing). J.L.M. was assigned to take care of the baby. He was ordered to keep the manually operate the machine (it is use by squeezing air in it).

He diligently obeyed the order and gave it to another student nurse when he was about to eat his lunch. When he returned after lunch, it was now the doctor who was manually operatiung the apparatus. He said that the baby’s granmother asked the doctor to stop it since they know that the child will eventually die. And everything happened.

Yes it was a euthanasia.

I was deeply bothered by J,L.M.’s story… I am so much against in mercy killing, abortion, and even death penalty.

I strongly agree with what has been taught to us by our CI (clinical instructor) last summer…

"A nurse is his patient’s advocate."

Meaning, we should in everyway promote our patient’s wellfare and not the welfare of his family. We should not care about the financial problems or anything about client’s family, as long as our patient is getting the ultimate care that he well deserves.

But, nevertheless, things like this, though illegal and unaccepted here in the Philippines, are inevitable… and they continue to happen.