From hospital to hospital

and finally she landed in KL General Hospital intensive care unit.

IPR did not take full care of mom. She needs the ventilator every night in order to be weaned off it. And also, with mechanical ventilation, her heart rate and carbon dioxide content can be controlled. Surprisingly enough, IPR, a specialist centre, didn't have a single ventilator with them. All they had was a fish-tank trachy mask.

I'm relieved, for one thing : she instinctively wanted to go to KLGH because a doctor there saved her life after a fatal accident twenty-five years ago.

When I first entered KLGH, I remembered what one of my teachers told me - beware, that place is pretty run-down. But when I stepped foot into the ICU, I was shocked. It was a world of difference. Not only was the security good, and there were Malays speaking Chinese (I was impressed !), there were electric doors, marble tiles, Surgi Scrub 4%... everything was characteristic of a recent renovation. And again, I noticed that KLGH was way better equipped than SJMC. The nurses and doctors there are prompt and friendly, and very polite. Much better than SJMC's tardy nurses, or Putrajaya Hospital's rude lot, or IPR's lying specialist - we came to a good place.

And surprisingly enough, KLGH is one of the most affordable hospitals (as it is a government hospital), but I have to say it is the best.

Yesterday her heart rate reached 160. Extreme tachycardia - well, as a result of being on the trachy mask for twenty-four hours. With all the care given to her as well as the prayers, it dropped to 130, then 110, then 100, and now, 90+. And if she keeps this up, she may be able to go to the normal ward soon.

SJMC was capable of doing this (primarily because they boast about having the best laboratories in Malaysia), but they did not do it. Putrajaya Hospital, being a new government hospital, looked rather run-down compared to SJMC, and was partly capable of doing it. They did all they can - um, the doctors, not the nurses. KLGH is doing a pretty good job, I say.

My only plea now is for mom to be healed and to return home to us. Sometimes, I wonder if it's too much to ask. But all in all, I trust in the healing power and presence of God.