Tuesday, January 29, 2008

A Visit to the IJN

Prior to this day, I have never stepped foot into the Institut Jantung Negara. Though before I passed by it almost daily, it never occurred to my mind of what really goes on inside. I had, then, thought IJN is a hospital for the rich and famous, catering to the needs of heart patients as its name would suggest. My visit there earlier today to ziarah pakngah has opened my eyes a wee bit wider.

I was thinking about putting a slight humour about this visit but then thought it may not be proper. Well, perhaps towards then end...maybe. Mind you, I am not even a comic nor a jester, but just a clown who goes by his daily routine and wondering when the day itself would cease to exist...for me. Afterall, the world is a temporary passage for the eternal world hereafter.

I hate going visiting people in the hospitals, I really do. Not for anything, they remind me of the suffering which at many a time, I am incapable to assist even in the smallest physical manner possible; the only recourse we as His humble servants can do is to pray to Allah s.w.t. to forgive and enlighten the burden of a brother, another human like you and I, who is incapable of anything but which He decrees and gives.

Pakngah looked healthy for someone whom I thought I would find lying helpless on the bed feeling sick and all. In fact, his bed was propped up so he may read newspaper as did his father sitting on the chair beside the bed. On my giving the salam, both faces lit up with sincere smiles radiating from their faces. But let not the smiles fool you an instant bit.

Even as I shook hands with Pakngah, I could see many plastic tubes extruding from various parts of his body as well as a thick bandage on his left arm. Both sides of his neck were punctured with one side bandaged to hold a long tube which I was later informed, used for the hemodialysis process - the veins of his left arm were left to heal and rest from past puncture wounds.

As I politely took the seat Pakngah's father offered me, I noticed a bulge under the robes of his right ribs, and 2 more long plastic tubes leading from it to 2 containers already filled with red liquid - his blood! The surgeons at IJN had inserted the tubes to drain the blood from his lungs. Within the space of 6 days Pakngah has been at IJN, he has received 6 pints of blood already to replace those lost!

The whole ordeal began when the clinic he went to tried to use the veins on his right neck for the hemodialysis process. Somehow the technician or doctor on duty had pushed the wire through a wrong entry that led straight to the lungs, puncturing a wound along the way which led to the internal bleeding.

I relayed the advice I received from Cikgu, Doc TA, kerp and Pak Zabs in the previous entry regarding making a police report and such but was informed, much to my and especially Pakngah's family relief, that IJN had waived all charges. Alhamdulilah. But that does in no way absolved what transpired. Still, the father seem to agree to make the report just to be on the safe side should any parties later have a change of mind, and the family finding themselves saddled with a bill in excess of RM5,000 which they cannot afford.

As I passed the RM150 our brother Mat Salo had given earlier for Pakngah, a nurse walked into the cubicle with a tray filled with towels and 2 basins of water. I gathered its cleaning time but just could not resist shedding the sombre mood setting in and gave a shot at the nurse: "He already has a bed and a retinue of people looking after him; why don't you clean me instead?" It did cause even the people in the next cubicle to laugh, proving yet again I do make a good clown. And like any clown, I took my leave before jade sets in.

6 comments:

Unknown said...

A hospital is a place for the sick to get better but for the healthy to get depressed. I don't know about any of you, it is very depressing going to hospitals. Its just that there are so many sick people around, it reminds you of how fragile and human you are.

We only see the tubes, we do not feel the pain the patient is going through.

Oh, making a pass at the nurse eh? Wait till someone read about this. Like Russel or his father use to say, SOMEONE IS GONNA GET A HURT.

cakapaje said...

Salam Cikgu,

Hehe...naw, I was not making a pass at anyone at all. Just trying to liven up an otherwise sombre time.

And you are right about the pain. As the malay saying goes: berat mata memandang, berat lagi bahu memikul.

tokasid said...

Salam Shah:

I glad pakngah is on the road of recovery. And waht a relief IJN wanted to waive the hospitalisation charges.Alhamdulillah. Otherwise smeone will get a heart attack looking at the bills.

The report, proceed as planned. We need to cover our bases and assess.

Eventhough I was in a hospital setup 15 years ago, I do have qualms visiting friends or relatives in the hospital. I don't usually like to stay by the bedside for long.

The few things that I noticed about visitors to the wards:

1-they'll come in and say hi and apa khabar and sakit kat mana stuffs and they'll start their ward rounds by visiting the patient next bed and the next and the next. By the time visiting hours is over, they'll know this guy had this and that guy had that ailments.

2-The makciks(especially) will start to give motherly or grandmotherly advices to the neighbouring patients of what to pantang etc,etc.

3- They'll chat with the patient(next bed)relatives and visitors and suddenly, ths guy knew this guy and that and they start to gossip from this and that from politics to the entertainment stuffs and where is the best mee bandung in Muar or is the Batu Pahat Gam briayani as good as before and who just died or who just took a second or third wives and which artiste got a divorce.

At the same time the patients had to force themselves to be a good host and a sporting one at that by telling and re-telling about his ilness and what the doctors had done to him or plan to do on him.
And suddenly everyone brought apples and oranges and grapes for him when he had difficulty even to drink.

I remember a hadith that says when we visit the sick,make it short. Make du'a for him so he recovers speedily. Assure him InsyaALLAH he'll be alright. Lift his spirit by telling him that the disease or problems he faced now is a way of cleansing his minor faults or sins.

TQ Shah for updating about pakngah.

cakapaje said...

Wa'alaikumusalam Doc,

Alhamdulillah, I think Pakngah understands about making the report...I hope.

With regards to the visitor's, I mentioned such things as well in an earlier entry, "Unqualified Funny Bones" or something like that. It seems, all of a sudden when visiting a patient, everyone's a genius in medicine! lol!

And thank you for caring, Doc.

Mior Azhar said...

Salam Shah,
Alhamdulillah and blessed the good people at IJN. Inilah baru namanya Malaysia Boleh! InsyaAllah Pak Ngah will get well soon.
Yes, a visit to a hospital is never fun (rightly so). And what more if you are to be warded (or need to take care of your loved ones 24x7). It can be very frustrating, I know becasue when I was younger I always spent at least a good portion of my term leave with arwah bapak who managed to be hospitalised like every year. And only last year my mak was hospitalised too. Being stucked at a hospital, we need all the laughter we can get. To stay sane and positive. And you provided that yesterday. Fantastic.

cakapaje said...

Wa'alaikumusalam Pak Mior,

I'm sorry to note of your father and mother. InsyAllah, that too has a blessing.