Gone Too Soon

My bleeper vibrated inside my lab coat pocket, I pressed the button and heard the nurse-in-charge's voice: Please come to pediatric ICU urgent...I didn't wait for it to finish, I came rushing, if they said urgent, then it is really super-dooper to the highest level urgent LOL!

I scanned the area which bed are they busy with, I saw a closed curtain, nurses are coming in and out in a quick manner. I went inside the curtain and saw the patient, the resident doctor are doing the chest compression (CPR) to the 6 year old local kid while the attending doctor is watching him and directing nurses to give this and that.

I approached the resident doctor and told him I'll do the CPR for him since he look tired already, he must've been doing it for a long time I guess, so i start the compression, 1-1000-2-1000-3-1000.... I counted in my mind. The boy's chest are already collapsed maybe due to chest trauma post CPR I was told this is his third time arresting.

As I was doing the CPR, I looked at the patient's face, he looks pale and gone...in other situations I must have appreciate his cuteness, I felt a great sense of regret for what is happening to him, he could've been playing, he could've been carefree and full of life...

"See, thats how you do great CPR, look at the cardiac monitor, you could tell if someone is doing it right..." I heard the attending doctor complimented me...but of course, how many CPR did I do way back home, some are lucky and some are don't, the thing is, you have to do it right, I don't know why others wasn't, I mean we all did have training.

I just smiled at him to show him that I appreciated his comment. I was getting tired and I said "change..." and the doctor took over while I rested and talked to the Filipina nanny...

"...he's been suffering for a long time, he is a kind kid...but we are all expected this to happen, his mom and dad are first cousins. Their two other children are like him too" she said. I saw the parents crying at the back. I imagined their fear of losing someone they love, and this time, their baby boy...

"Oh, that explains why..." I replied. tsk tsk...

Blood related marriage is still present in this country. We all have many patients suffering from illnesses and abnormalities due to this practice. I felt bad about it, the children are the one suffering to this tradition. I hope there will come a time for this to change. I just prayed that this child will be in our creator and have his own time to play and feel how to be a kid up there..free of any sickness...

We continued reviving him for 30 minutes until the doctors pronounced it: patient expired 4:35pm. He thanked all of us and talked to the family. Until we heard the mother's hysterical cry....

Nooooooooooooooooo!!!