It's been rough these past two weeks and it's been difficult at the same time as well. I've got DMs unchecked and due to this, a lot of people completely ghosted me. People I've constantly curated their posts have buzzed me, wondering why I am no longer doing that these past few days, but the truth is, it's not a question of choice, some commitments take your time, money energy, and the ability to stay creative.
I've frequented the hospital a lot of times this past week, because my brother got hit by a car and suffered a severe double fracture, It's been tough on my end because the hospital is very far from my house, this isn't even the only problem, the traffic on the road is crazy, yesterday alone I spent about 7 hours in traffic, while this is bad for my health situation, sometimes being a firstborn child means you're responsible for the delinquencies of the ones who you're supposed to be older than even if it's at the detriment of your life.
Going to the hospital is something I do not relish and this is due to the fact I abhor the feeling of urgency, hopelessness, brokenness the putridity of knowing that your survival might be reliant on a person with a terrible attitude to work. I've got my health situation but, surprisingly, in 17 years I've never been to the hospital. However, this time, I've just had to, not because of myself but due to another person whose life was on the line.
Imaging of the fracture
This hospital is one of the biggest in Lagos, it's a navy-based hospital owned by the government, and goodness! Do I hate the bureaucracy that comes with being in a Nigerian hospital? We came to this hospital because the previous one was requesting over $2000 for the surgery which my brother needed to correct the fracture he had and this hospital requested about $900 to get the surgery done, but also they'll need pieces of equipment that ran up to $600 in cost, taking the amount to $1500.
Since they're a government-based hospital, they do not charge hospital bills, what they do is ask their patient to pay $15 per day, sometimes they even employ the tactics of admitting people so they could gather that $15 for days, weeks, or however that charade could go. They sold their equipment at a ridiculously high rate, their pharmacy has expensive drugs, and even If they'll not charge you for the in-hospital services like most private hospitals would, they'll make sure they get back this money in other ways, it's coy.
So the surgery was stipulated to be done on Monday, but the doctors seemed to be having a different opinion as to whether to conduct the surgery or not. Due to the severe injuries to the hand, it seemed, that the stiches to the hand hasn't healed or held firmly and it still bled at some certain point.
However, the surgery date seemed to have shifted now, and they'll have to do it in two weeks. The problem is that we were hoping to get the surgery done to prevent tissue issues with the bone and also to start up the rehabilitation and healing process.
They said he was going to get an implant to hold the broken bones in place and maybe after 6 months he'll come for another surgery to get the implant finally removed, this one might cost up to $500 or a little bit more, I cannot tell, but then the aim is to get the hand up and doing again.
It's been crazy, I can feel my anemia showcasing itself, it's been a torrid time and it's been difficult. The bureaucracy and the lack of empathy from most Nigerian medical practitioners can be appalling, but then I could attribute this to the entire country having a broken and nonfunctional system in general.
The person in question (my brother) ran a lucrative business, but he seemed absent-minded. He said he was in debt before the accident and it was difficult for him to raise any amount of money for his medical bills.
A lot of people underestimate the importance of emergency funds, it could save one in grave situations. He'd totally ignored all my advice before now and this is the consequence. It's had a dent on mine because I've virtually emptied my savings. Nevertheless, I hope these moments will pass and he'll live to tell the story
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