Trev was suddenly in severe pain.
It was about 3am.
We waited for a while hoping it would go away and eventually decided that it was not going to do that. What to do????????
Luckily when we arrived we had been given a map with our address on it. Now was the time we needed it.
I tried to call our travel insurance emergency number - but my phone would not call it. !! (sim restriction we think)
So then we decided to call 155 (suggested by the Dr as the number to call if in trouble here)
The first time I got a Czech answer and asked to speak English and they hung up.
I called again. They said "call 112" and hung up.
So I called 112 and asked for English and was told to wait.
After a very short explanation they asked the address and (hoping I was right) I read out what was written on my map.
Then I tried to toss some things in a bag, and then rushed downstairs leaving Trev alone to open the doors 4 floors down and wait in the street for the ambulance, which only took about 10 minutes to arrive. , winding its way through the partying people)
The guys spoke very little English so they asked Trev to get into their stretcher chair (no help to get off the bed, no obs, no history) and took him down in the lift (tiny , takes a limit of 3 people or 250kg) , while I tried to find random wallet, shoes etc and think of what else we might need, then lock up and race down the stairs to meet them down at the bottom.
Paperwork was done in the ambulance on the way to the hospital which seemed to take ages, but the hospital is actually only about 500m away!!
ED was very quiet. The ambos hand us a bill for 5000 K (about $320 Aus dollars), hand Trev's passport over to the nurse and leave us.
He decides Trev needed Xray and ultrasound before he could give pain relief so he calls the orderly who takes us a bit down the corridor , waves at the doors in front and then upstairs and goes off on his way, leaving us guessing what we are supposed to be doing and where. So we walk up the stairs, and find a sign saying "sonar" something and think , well this might be about right. Down the corridor there is a green button m so we press it and wait. Trev still shouting in pain intermittently,
A lady comes out and looks at the paperwork in our hands and says to go downstairs. She is busy with an ultrasound already. Have the Xray and then come back, so we go back downstairs and ring another button to get through a door to a very grumpy lady. She tells us to wait and disappears.
Trev stands there shouting in pain, I'm beside myself with frustration and distraught watching what he is going through, Anything could happen here. How do I call for help if we need it? Is there a crash cart in this hospital. Does anyone care?????
Eventually the Xray witch takes him in there and Trev is in trouble because he moved, even though he wasn't understanding what he was being told and was writhing in pain, but the Xrays were done and we went back upstairs to wait for an ultrasound.
Eventually it is done and we make our way back to ED and knock on the door there - (is that what they expect us to do, or should we just sit down and wait??)
Sure enough Trev has 5 fractured ribs (3, 4, 6, 7 and 8) and some bleeding in the pleural cavity. (this bit is not a problem) . They will admit him for pain. They will give him something for the pain now (thankyou thankyou) . The Dr did agree to give me a copy of the Xray report.
Now walk to the ward . Two others in beds already , stinking hot. No sheet , just a quilt, so , like the others, Trev is there with nothing but his blue hosptial gown to cover him. There are no curtains between the beds and the guy next door rolls over and shows us everything. No explanation of what will happen , what they want from us. So Trev gets into bed, I sit there. They bring fluid for him to drink and leave us,
Two hours later I am still sitting there waiting for admission paperwork - there never was any. Eventually I decided to leave, and stopped by the nurses station to check this was OK. When I found someone who actually spoke a couple of words I could understand I cried!!!
So at about 9.30am I walked home using my map on the phone to find my way, to try to get some sleep with my mind whirling and the memory of Trev in pain , wondering what I will find in the morning if I can find my way back there and find him in the hospital.
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| I took a photo of the door to the ward to make sure I could find it again the next day. |
Just one more travel adventure we weren't anticipating.
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