I went through a few rough days

[ken88]

My wife in China came down with some stomach ache, 2 weeks ago, on Saturday, July 19, 2008. Next day she admitted herself into a hospital. Next day, Monday, she got some X-rays done. The hospital said that she needs an immediate operation which is scheduled for the next day. They need 25,000 RMB to get started.

 

My wife asked me for the money to be send right away. I asked her to get the full description of their findings, the name of the disease, and what exactly they plan to do. The best translation that I got was "stomach bleeding" and "gastric hemorrhage". I was not convinced. My wife is a healthy 34 year old. She had no past history of any peptic ulcer disease, etc.

 

I asked my wife's siter to tell the doctor to send me an e-mail about his findings in English or Chinese, and the hospital to fax me her medical record. They refused to do either. Then I asked my wife to go to another hospital to get a second opinion and may be a third hospital for a third opinion. The hospital and the doctor told her that if she leaves the hospital, she will die on the way. So she stayed put and asked me to rush the money.

 

Buy this time, it is Friday, July 25, 2008. I send her 30,000 RMB by Western Union. She received the money on Monday morning. Operation was scheduled for Tuesday. I could not reach my wife or her sister for the next two days. Thursday, July 31, I hear that the doctor said that operation is not needed. I asked to take her medications and go home. The hospital again says that if she goes home, she will die. So she is still in the hospital now.

 

I think that the hospital wants to keep her there, until they use up the money !

 

What was your experience with hospitals in China?

 

Ken88

[Randy W]

My wife in China came down with some stomach ache, 2 weeks ago, on Saturday, July 19, 2008. Next day she admitted herself into a hospital. Next day, Monday, she got some X-rays done. The hospital said that she needs an immediate operation which is scheduled for the next day. They need 25,000 RMB to get started.

 

My wife asked me for the money to be send right away. I asked her to get the full description of their findings, the name of the disease, and what exactly they plan to do. The best translation that I got was "stomach bleeding" and "gastric hemorrhage". I was not convinced. My wife is a healthy 34 year old. She had no past history of any peptic ulcer disease, etc.

 

I asked my wife's siter to tell the doctor to send me an e-mail about his findings in English or Chinese, and the hospital to fax me her medical record. They refused to do either. Then I asked my wife to go to another hospital to get a second opinion and may be a third hospital for a third opinion. The hospital and the doctor told her that if she leaves the hospital, she will die on the way. So she stayed put and asked me to rush the money.

 

Buy this time, it is Friday, July 25, 2008. I send her 30,000 RMB by Western Union. She received the money on Monday morning. Operation was scheduled for Tuesday. I could not reach my wife or her sister for the next two days. Thursday, July 31, I hear that the doctor said that operation is not needed. I asked to take her medications and go home. The hospital again says that if she goes home, she will die. So she is still in the hospital now.

 

I think that the hospital wants to keep her there, until they use up the money !

 

What was your experience with hospitals in China?

 

Ken88

 

 

The "she will die" thing is a gigantic red flag.

 

http://candleforlove.com/forums/index.php?...st&p=411643

Edited August 3, 2008 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Guest Rob & Jin]

Govt hospital or private hospital ?

 

 

Is she activiy vomiting or passing bright red blood ?

[ken88]

Govt hospital or private hospital ?

 

 

Is she activiy vomiting or passing bright red blood ?

 

 

None of the above.

 

No vomiting, no blood, no diarrhea and no fever.

 

In gastric and intestinal bleeding, there would be black stool. She did not say anything about that either (She said she did not know. She did not pay attention)

 

My gut feeling is that she ate something bad and she had a tummy ache !

 

She tells me that there no govt hospitals. There may be some small clinics. But all big hospitals are private.

 

ken88

[Corbin]

Govt hospital or private hospital ?

 

 

Is she activiy vomiting or passing bright red blood ?

 

 

None of the above.

 

No vomiting, no blood, no diarrhea and no fever.

 

In gastric and intestinal bleeding, there would be black stool. She did not say anything about that either (She said she did not know. She did not pay attention)

 

My gut feeling is that she ate something bad and she had a tummy ache !

 

She tells me that there no govt hospitals. There may be some small clinics. But all big hospitals are private.

 

ken88

I would try to convince her to leave and go home, though this may be next to impossible to do since you are not there in person. Does she still have pain and has she shown anything that indicates she is in danger of dieing or getting real ill real fast?

[IllinoisDave]

Just me but I might consider having her check out of that hospital right away and into another if necessary. And get her or her sister to fax/send you a copy of the hospital bill ASAP.

[jim_julian]

This is not inconsistent with what I've heard, and in a much smaller way seen, regarding some Chinese hospitals.

 

Unfortunately many Chinese are convinced that anyone with a white coat is an authority figure not to be questioned.

[shushuweiwei]

Govt hospital or private hospital ?

 

 

Is she activiy vomiting or passing bright red blood ?

 

 

None of the above.

 

No vomiting, no blood, no diarrhea and no fever.

 

In gastric and intestinal bleeding, there would be black stool. She did not say anything about that either (She said she did not know. She did not pay attention)

 

My gut feeling is that she ate something bad and she had a tummy ache !

 

She tells me that there no govt hospitals. There may be some small clinics. But all big hospitals are private.

 

ken88

 

Ken,

 

Don't know if you have a medical background or not so excuse me if I'm telling you stuff you already know.

 

The black stools of GI bleeding are pretty hard to miss. They are loose but "tarry" and stick to anything. They also have a distinctive odor that one never forgets and can't be mistaken for normal.

 

I would push to get them to tell you what her Hemoglobin is. If there is more than one done that would be great. If her Hemoglobin is normal and stable, I'd feel a lot more comfortable suggesting she leave. It would be doubtful there would be any significant bleeding.

 

If there is a doctor there who speaks English and you want me to try to get some info from them, let me know. Of course, if you are a medical professional you may have already tried that.

 

I hope that things straighten out and that your wife is well but I have heard of the hospitals there running this kind of thing for money.

 

Joe

[ken88]

My wife in China came down with some stomach ache, 2 weeks ago, on Saturday, July 19, 2008. Next day she admitted herself into a hospital. Next day, Monday, she got some X-rays done. The hospital said that she needs an immediate operation which is scheduled for the next day. They need 25,000 RMB to get started.

 

My wife asked me for the money to be send right away. I asked her to get the full description of their findings, the name of the disease, and what exactly they plan to do. The best translation that I got was "stomach bleeding" and "gastric hemorrhage". I was not convinced. My wife is a healthy 34 year old. She had no past history of any peptic ulcer disease, etc.

 

I asked my wife's siter to tell the doctor to send me an e-mail about his findings in English or Chinese, and the hospital to fax me her medical record. They refused to do either. Then I asked my wife to go to another hospital to get a second opinion and may be a third hospital for a third opinion. The hospital and the doctor told her that if she leaves the hospital, she will die on the way. So she stayed put and asked me to rush the money.

 

Buy this time, it is Friday, July 25, 2008. I send her 30,000 RMB by Western Union. She received the money on Monday morning. Operation was scheduled for Tuesday. I could not reach my wife or her sister for the next two days. Thursday, July 31, I hear that the doctor said that operation is not needed. I asked to take her medications and go home. The hospital again says that if she goes home, she will die. So she is still in the hospital now.

 

I think that the hospital wants to keep her there, until they use up the money !

 

What was your experience with hospitals in China?

 

Ken88

 

 

The "she will die" thing is a gigantic red flag.

 

http://candleforlove.com/forums/index.php?...st&p=411643

 

Orrin's case can be put in the same category. His hopital also used similar, " You better listern to us or you will die" tactic. Thanks

 

Ken88

[ken88]

Govt hospital or private hospital ?

 

 

Is she activiy vomiting or passing bright red blood ?

 

 

None of the above.

 

No vomiting, no blood, no diarrhea and no fever.

 

In gastric and intestinal bleeding, there would be black stool. She did not say anything about that either (She said she did not know. She did not pay attention)

 

My gut feeling is that she ate something bad and she had a tummy ache !

 

She tells me that there no govt hospitals. There may be some small clinics. But all big hospitals are private.

 

ken88

I would try to convince her to leave and go home, though this may be next to impossible to do since you are not there in person. Does she still have pain and has she shown anything that indicates she is in danger of dieing or getting real ill real fast?

 

I asked her several times to go home. She is a very traditional and compliant individual. She is hesitant to leave the hospital without the blessings from the hospital staff. More over she is brain washed; she truely believes that she will die if she leaves.

 

Ken88

[ken88]

Just me but I might consider having her check out of that hospital right away and into another if necessary. And get her or her sister to fax/send you a copy of the hospital bill ASAP.

 

Good idea Dave. I already did that! Thanks.

 

Ken88

[ken88]

Govt hospital or private hospital ?

 

 

Is she activiy vomiting or passing bright red blood ?

 

 

None of the above.

 

No vomiting, no blood, no diarrhea and no fever.

 

In gastric and intestinal bleeding, there would be black stool. She did not say anything about that either (She said she did not know. She did not pay attention)

 

My gut feeling is that she ate something bad and she had a tummy ache !

 

She tells me that there no govt hospitals. There may be some small clinics. But all big hospitals are private.

 

ken88

 

Ken,

 

Don't know if you have a medical background or not so excuse me if I'm telling you stuff you already know.

 

The black stools of GI bleeding are pretty hard to miss. They are loose but "tarry" and stick to anything. They also have a distinctive odor that one never forgets and can't be mistaken for normal.

 

I would push to get them to tell you what her Hemoglobin is. If there is more than one done that would be great. If her Hemoglobin is normal and stable, I'd feel a lot more comfortable suggesting she leave. It would be doubtful there would be any significant bleeding.

 

If there is a doctor there who speaks English and you want me to try to get some info from them, let me know. Of course, if you are a medical professional you may have already tried that.

 

I hope that things straighten out and that your wife is well but I have heard of the hospitals there running this kind of thing for money.

 

Joe

 

Thanks Joe. I am also in the medical field. But I can definitely use a second and a third opinion in this case, especially when we are making a diagnosis without seeing the patient and without knowing enough about the symptoms.

 

I do not know if you talked to chinese doctors. I talked to several, not in this connection though. There are two barriers in communication with them. One is the Chinese-English language barrier. Secondly, there is medical barrier. They are taught a mixture of Chinese and Western medicines. As I heard it, they only spent about 25% of their time in medical schools learning western medicine. For example, the majority of them do not know about diabetes, insulin or blood glucose levels. Only a small % of diabetics who need insulin get it.

 

Anyway, I hope they do the Hgb. She was told that she would die on July 23, if she did not have an operation on July 22. That did not happen.

 

I can not think of any reason why one should have an operation in one days notcie for a stomach pain. Can you? Peptic ulcer or some bleeding tumor would be a slow disease. None of these would require an overnight surgery !

 

I will just wait it out for 2 days. Your comments would be appreciated.

 

Ken88

[david_dawei]

Tell her to do two buddhist chants and call you in the morning.

 

Honestly, if her life were at stake, wouldn't it be cheaper to immediately fly out and assess the situation?

 

Seems to me that someone's trying to fool someone and it's going to come out soon enough... or later the longer it takes to figure it out.

 

I can think of a dozen chinese doctor's who can look at eyes, pulse, or even your palm to tell you the problem... seems such a simple solution to get a second opinion... but we know how hard that can be...

[jim_julian]

Not worth airline ticket ... it's clear ... Chinese doctor rip off.

[shushuweiwei]

Govt hospital or private hospital ?

 

 

Is she activiy vomiting or passing bright red blood ?

 

 

None of the above.

 

No vomiting, no blood, no diarrhea and no fever.

 

In gastric and intestinal bleeding, there would be black stool. She did not say anything about that either (She said she did not know. She did not pay attention)

 

My gut feeling is that she ate something bad and she had a tummy ache !

 

She tells me that there no govt hospitals. There may be some small clinics. But all big hospitals are private.

 

ken88

 

 

Ken,

 

Don't know if you have a medical background or not so excuse me if I'm telling you stuff you already know.

 

The black stools of GI bleeding are pretty hard to miss. They are loose but "tarry" and stick to anything. They also have a distinctive odor that one never forgets and can't be mistaken for normal.

 

I would push to get them to tell you what her Hemoglobin is. If there is more than one done that would be great. If her Hemoglobin is normal and stable, I'd feel a lot more comfortable suggesting she leave. It would be doubtful there would be any significant bleeding.

 

If there is a doctor there who speaks English and you want me to try to get some info from them, let me know. Of course, if you are a medical professional you may have already tried that.

 

I hope that things straighten out and that your wife is well but I have heard of the hospitals there running this kind of thing for money.

 

Joe

 

Thanks Joe. I am also in the medical field. But I can definitely use a second and a third opinion in this case, especially when we are making a diagnosis without seeing the patient and without knowing enough about the symptoms.

 

I do not know if you talked to chinese doctors. I talked to several, not in this connection though. There are two barriers in communication with them. One is the Chinese-English language barrier. Secondly, there is medical barrier. They are taught a mixture of Chinese and Western medicines. As I heard it, they only spent about 25% of their time in medical schools learning western medicine. For example, the majority of them do not know about diabetes, insulin or blood glucose levels. Only a small % of diabetics who need insulin get it.

 

Anyway, I hope they do the Hgb. She was told that she would die on July 23, if she did not have an operation on July 22. That did not happen.

 

I can not think of any reason why one should have an operation in one days notcie for a stomach pain. Can you? Peptic ulcer or some bleeding tumor would be a slow disease. None of these would require an overnight surgery !

 

I will just wait it out for 2 days. Your comments would be appreciated.

 

Ken88

 

Yes Ken there is a gap. I have only found that picking some parameter an harping on it, like get me a hemoglobin damn it, tends to come across. It can depend on who you get. Some have a chip and what does a western doctor know attitude but some feel oh I can talk to western doctor, maybe I learn.

 

The only emergent surgeries would be if she had a perforated ulcer or a penetrating ulcer with a severe pancreatitis. Both of those would be acute abdomen, emergency surgeries, not something you'd want to delay overnight.

 

If you can get a hgb, maybe you can convince her you have 2 opinions at home that she can safely go home.

Good luck and I hope she is well.

 

Joe