Yesterday I woke up early to bring my yaya's son to the hospital.
My yaya started to work for us during the time of Ondoy to take care of our new baby Christian. She had left her two-year-old boy in Samar under the care of her mom.
Two months ago she asked permission to go home because her son was sick. She borrowed money. When it ran out after a few days she borrowed again, so I asked her to MMS me a photo of her son. I wanted to know if she was telling the truth.
When I received the picture of her son, my heart broke into pieces. We sent money for her to bring her son to Manila for treatment.
When I saw her son for the first time, my heart melted. Even with his distended stomach and skinny limbs, I found him cute, although I had never seen a baby with sunken cheeks.
For the last month I have been sending her son to our pediatrician for checkups and tests. It was discovered that he had many worms and an enlarged liver. With meds and Pediasure, his cheeks started to fill in and he became more lively. But health-wise he was not improving.
The doctor passed him on to a new doctor who wanted him confined to UERM for more tests, but I refused because that was the hospital
that went down during Ondoy. I wanted him at a nearer hospital.
I Googled and found a gastro-pediatrician at Medical City. I woke up early to take them there.
From the new doctor I found out that the baby was suffering from pneumonia more than anything else and was critical. Doctor wanted the baby confined right away at the ICU.
When I found out the ICU was gonna cost PHP 25,000 a day, I was in shock.
Doctor suggested we take him to a government hospital in Pasig.
We went there—I, the yaya, her baby and the yaya's sister. It was the scariest thing. The people were so unfriendly and lifeless. I could not believe the crap poor people go through to be in a hospital.
You know me, I dress like a homeless person in sweats and sneaks. They were so rude. I had the to fight the guards to let the yaya's sister in and not wait in the heat outside. Some security guards really deserve to go to a special place in hell.
Only very few medical workers looked like they cared, but for the most part the people there were uncaring zombies who I know are paid crap—I'd be in a bad mood too.
I had to walk outside on the street to buy IV supplies while the yaya and her baby were in the E.R.
That's when I found out that in government hospitals you have to buy every single supply from the pharmacy on the street, like pay as you go.
I was also surprised that the IV liquid was very affordable—PHP 85 only.
It was the most inconvenient thing. Imagine stepping out for every single hospital supply.
I saw a lot of suffering in the emergency room, a lot of dregs of society moaning in pain.
While waiting for doctors to look at our patient, 15 people suddenly rushed in with a man on a stretcher—about 50 years old with a big stomach and very dirty clothes.
It looked like a stroke or heart attack. From what I gathered he collapsed in the heat.
They ripped off his shirt and let him have that machine you see on TV—the one that shoots doses of electricity into the heart.
I watched them insert a tube down the man's throat and pump his lungs with air and chest manually.
To me he looked already dead.
I had to leave to do the paperwork for our patient. When I got back the man was already wrapped in a green bed sheet. Gone just like that with no family, only co-workers who took him there.
After they wrapped his body some of the nursing students were laughing around him, like nothing happened.
I finally got a room for the baby. Php 700 a day is more affordable. I figure he could be there for weeks or months and I am prepared. I found out that his cousin had died earlier at the same age in Samar from the same symptoms. I don't want this baby to die.
After four hours my work was done and I had to catch a meeting at Shang. I left the girls with money and today I heard that the baby's doing better with the IV and meds on.
I can only pray that God does His magic on this kid and lets him get well. He is my yaya's only child and I cannot bear for her to lose him.
This is June. He is two years old. If you are a mom, please say a special prayer for him today to get well and hopefully soon.
Happy mother's day to all the moms out there.
![June]()
