G6PD and our baby

Several days ago, my wife called me in the office to inform me that Caitlin (the name of our baby) has G6PD deficiency. Tin explained to me that if Caitlin eats the wrong stuff, she might suffer internal hemorrhage; it didn't sink in yet. When I got home to discuss it with my wife, she told me that Caitlin needs to be brought to National Institute of Health for confirmation test. I was furious when I found out because the resident pediatrician at UDMC informed Tin through SMS; and the result was not even final yet! I found the practice quite unprofessional (I told Tin I never fired somebody through SMS) considering that the pediatrician studied for $@!#$%^^!!! 10 years or so!!

Tin already shed some tears even before I got home; I did, too, when we were having the discussion. It's really a different feeling when you have a kid and she might be in harm's way.

I informed my aunt about it and she didn't sound so alarm. So I assumed it's okay; I also talked to our neighbor who happened to be a resident pedia in a government hospital, and her reaction wasn't alarming. So it must be a good sign.

Last Tueday, early in the morning we prepared for the trip to UP-Manila where NIH is located. Tin couldn't join us since she's on duty (I promised her that I will be with our kid until she becomes a consultant - bawian ko na lang siya 3 years from now). My mother in-law and the maid are with me.

The place is your typical old American building with high ceiling and windows on each room inside the building. The pillars are massive, just like the Sorsogon National High School. It looks pretty good (the restroom is surprisingly clean) for a government building. We were the 20th patient when we got in at 830am. There was a long queue already (chairs were placed on the aisle). I had to fill out one form that asks for the baby's mother's name - I found this weird since either parent should be able to attend to his/her child. It might be because of the nature of the deficiency. Later I noticed that if the father is with the baby, the mom is also close around. Apparently, it's only Caitlin who doesn't have a mom with her. I find it strange, but properly alright (Tin felt very guilty during this time since she also missed the first vaccine of our kid, she was also on duty).

Upon filling out the form, I noticed several instructions on the wall (below 6-month old babies have to fast for 2 hours; beyond 6 months, it would be a 4-hour fasting). Actually, I started checking the posters on the wall since when I asked the nurse/attendant for the day that I can get the result, instead of saying it personally, he pointed me to the instruction pasted on the door. This was one of the challenges since Caitlin had her last bottle of milk around 5am and it was already 9am; it was time for her to take the next bottle. But we couldn't give her otherwise, it can mess up with the test. So we actually starved her until she had the test; she fell asleep in the car on our way home so she had to endure 6 hours or so before she took her next bottle of milk.

The decision I made was quick, but it was different from decisions I made in the office. I couldn't even compare it with the decisions I made that would affect my people's career. It was just totally different!

My mother in-law brought the baby inside the testing room; I couldn't since I had colds (I still have) then. And only the baby carrier can go in - so it was Mama who went inside. After the testing, Mama put Caitlin on the chair to prep her up for our trip back to the house. I saw tears on Caitlin's eyes. Normally, she would cry out loud but there are no tears on her eyes; this is the first time I saw her with tears. And it really pained me to see her on such situation.

Next week, I will be getting the result. Hopefully it will have a negative result.

Note: Tin also mentioned that another had the same experience with the resident pedia at the hospital (different person though). But the patient turned out to be a relative of the high government official. The patient lodged a final complaint.