wrenching experiences parents can go through is to see their children sick or in pain. It started with my daughter running a mild fever that we did not take too seriously. Right away I made Aya, our seven-year old-daughter get comfortable in bed with lots of rest and quiet time. We gave her the usual remedies: fever medication, fluids, chicken broth, and vegetable soups. At around two A.M. the next morning, when the whole house was asleep, I was awakened by the sound of Aya vomiting. When we rushed to her side to hold her and clean her up I noticed that her body was extremely hot. I immediately gave her fever medication but she vomited that too. My husband bought suppositories from the nearest pharmacy to give her and we rubbed her forehead and limbs with cold, wet towels. The next day Aya kept vomiting and I was afraid she would get dehydrated so I took her to the hospital. The doctor advised that I continue giving her Tylenol suppositories and additional suppositories to stop the vomiting and to run a stool analysis to detect any intestinal bacteria or parasites. At home we continued with the prescribed treatments but she was just getting worse. She was exhausted and her fever persisted even after we had given her two suppositories to bring it down. I took her back to the same hospital the following day with her lab results. The doctor said her stool analysis test was completely fine and they could not detect any intestinal infection. When he checked her and found that she had nasal congestion and a sore throat he told me to go the main lab and get an A (H1N1) - or swine flu - test done. When I heard that my heart skipped a beat. A thousand thoughts raced through my mind as I started blaming myself and questioning where I took my children. I let them go to the beach and play and swim, I took them to a pet store. Could she have caught something from there? The doctor told me not to worry and to take the test to be on the safe side. I obediently took his written request and held Aya's little hot hand and took her to the main lab. The lab technician told me to go home and come back next morning. I wanted to yell at him that I had a sick child and needed the test done now but I controlled myself and weakly asked him why. He told me that they did not have the tubes needed to take the test and that all their patients were sent away that day. When I asked how long it would take to find out the result of the test I was informed that it would take three days. I was appalled at the lack of services at one of the biggest and most expensive hospitals in Jeddah. I was extremely worried about Aya and terrified that if she had swine flu she might pass it to our seven-month-old baby at home. But no one at the hospital seemed to understand or care. As a worried mother I thought I would lose my mind in the three days before the results would be ready. Waiting three days would waste precious time to give necessary treatments to patients who really did have swine flu. We carried Aya to a separate room at home and gave her suppositories to stop the vomiting. I forced her to drink a little water because it had been two days since she had ingested any food or drink. After she vomited yet again, I could not bear to watch her suffer anymore. We finally decided to take Aya to the International Medical Center (IMC) where our reception was in sharp contrast to our previous hospital experience. The nurse quickly took Aya's vital signs and we were seen momentarily by the doctor on call in the emergency room. The first step the doctor took was to hook Aya up to an IV fluid to replace body fluids lost from vomiting. Through the intravenous tube they gave her medications to reduce the fever and vomiting and also antibiotics. I was relieved that my daughter was getting the care she needed. The calm and reassuring doctor requested a couple of tests, one of them the swine flu test. They took the test within minutes and the result came in after only one hour. We were lucky that Aya's swine flu test was negative. We stayed in the emergency room until Aya was given a bottle of IV fluids and completed all her tests. We could then go home after collecting her prescription medications. The doctor at IMC told us that you could only contract swine flu in a closed, crowded place and if you came in direct contact with someone already infected with swine flu. Treatments include Tamiflu (oseltamivir) or Relenza (zanamivir), both of which are available at the IMC and King Faisal Specialist Hospital in Jeddah. Some precautions we could take include avoiding crowded and closed places. If you do have to go to congested places wear a face mask and wash your hands frequently. If anyone at home tests positive for swine flu, keep them in a separate room, wear a face mask when coming in contact with them, wash your hands and do not let anyone use the same eating utensils or towels as the patient. Aya had suffered from a sore throat and gastroenteritis and is back to her normal cheerful and talkative self. She is excited to be healthy once again and insists on fasting too! We wish you a healthy and happy Ramadan. – SGNot every child with a runny nose, sore throat and fever has swine flu, but the symptoms below may be cause for caution: • Fever, which is usually high • Cough or sore throat • Runny or stuffy nose • Head and body aches. • Chills, and extreme fatigue • Diarrhea and vomiting A child would need urgent medical attention if any of these symptoms were present: • Fast breathing or troubled breathing • Bluish or gray skin color - Not drinking enough fluids • Severe or persistent vomiting • Not waking up or not interacting • Being so irritable that the child does not want to be held • Flu-like symptoms improve but then return with fever and a worse cough __
