GRRR….ER docs

. I am MAD – I am normally not a MAD person, I normally can keep my feelings fairly well controlled but I am MAD today.

Abby has been doing so great lately. That was until last night anyway. She went to bed around 7:00 like usual and was sleeping when we went to bed around 10:00. 10:15 came around and she was coughing horribly, screaming and having a hard time breathing. We called our family doc (who is our doc for basically everything) and while my husband was on the phone with him, she went into one of the coughing spells and the doc told us to take her immediately to the ER (30 miles away). So hubby stayed home with Kayla and off Abby and I went. She sounded so horrible. It was like croup times 10 – Kayla had had croup before and this was way worse. So we get to the ER. The nurse was very pleasant and helpful, then the doctor came in. I really don’t know if any of the ER docs are able to speak English and I don’t think this one understood it either as he didn’t listen to a word I said. He listened to her lungs and said they sounded fine. They did an RSV test and flu test and they both came back negative. He then ordered a chest xray which he said looked good so then he said it must be the reflux causing her to cough. I AM SORRY, but her reflux is under great control and she has never almost quit breathing due to coughing. He said that reflux can cause a slight cough and that is what he thought it was (never mind that it sounds like Abby is coughing up a lung at this point and the nurses outside the exam room can hear her breathing. So they gave her a breathing treatment and sent us home at 2:00 and told us to follow up with our regular doc the next day. The rest of the night was terrible and she took a little nap from 8-10 and when I got her up, she felt so hot. I took her temp and it was 103. I had made an appointment for 3:30 as that was all they had open so I called our doctors nurse (who is so great) and said I wanted her seen sooner, so we were able to get in at 1:30 instead. When we got there, the fever was down (thanks to tylenol and motrin) but the doc heard her coughing again. He looked at the records from the night before and said “Oh, I see she has PNEUMONIA”. My blood pressure immediately went up and I said “what? Pneumonia – no one last night told me that”. To make an already too long story a little shorter, needless to say, she is now on neb treatments, prednisone, and an antibiotic. I am gearing up to call the hospital administration to voice a complaint and am still very angry. Our doc asked if they gave her a prescription to help through the night and into today and when I said no, I don’t think he could believe it. GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR – enough said – I have to get on the phone and make my complaint. By the way, Abby seems to be feeling pretty good right now – just had her first neb treatment and the tylenol and motrin are working their magic. Now Momma needs something to calm herself down

Thanks for listening

Robin