Boys Will Be Boys

After Ben thought he could fly like Spiderman and scraped the side of his face and forehead, we thought he may have got some more sense, but that was not to be the case.

 The other day while sitting in the living room, he placed a small watch battery in his ear. Xiaohua tried to get it out with tweezers, and then I tried with a magnet, but to no avail.

He told us he did it because he thought it would go from his ear to his stomach and give him more energy!!!!!

 So it was off to hospital – it was a Saturday (this needs to be stated).

Firstly we took him to the Children’s hospital only to find there was no one there to help as it was a Saturday. So then it was off to Ma Steel Hospital, owned by the local steel company, the second largest in China. We saw the on duty ear, nose and throat specialist.

She tried and tried to get it out and with Ben squirming and screaming, it just made matters worse and the battery moved to his inner ear and lodged itself again his eardrum.

She wanted to keep trying, and then I suggested two ideas. 1. Give him a local in the mouth like a dentist – that has always numbed my ears or 2. Give him a general – well the doctor on duty did not really like either suggestion.

 We then took him to the People’s Hospital and the doctor there said they could do nothing until Monday and that we should admit him, they would convene a meeting to decide what to do and would operate on Monday as it was a Saturday and the specialists were all at home. I did not like this, firstly if they had to have a meeting to decide what to do, in my mind they had no idea and secondly I did not want a cadmium battery in his ear for a couple of days.

 So it was back to Ma Steel Hospital. We waited for the Director of the department to come in and she agreed with my earlier second suggestion – give him a general anaesthetic and get it out.

So at 3pm (6 hours after it happened) we had to sign papers agreeing that they could do it and that they would take all care but no responsibility – well that rang some bells in my mind. Then they proceeded to tell us there was a small risk that he might have adverse reactions to the general anaesthetic. As a parent I was worried, then when I had to hand Ben over at the threshold of the operating theatre Ben just cried out “I want daddy mummy – daddy don’t leave me” it was so heart breaking it brought tears to my eyes. I was the longest hour I have ever had.

They came out with the battery in a bag and said it had been extremely difficult to remove. Ten minutes later Ben came out still asleep. I transferred him to his bed in the ward he awoke and mumbled “daddy I love you” and then went back to sleep.

 After about an hour he awoke, very groggy. After two hours he was almost back to his normal self, cheeky and mischievous, although his eyes looked very sleepy.

He remained in hospital until Monday, we wanted to check-out on Sunday but we were not allowed to as it was Sunday!!!!!

 His hearing seems to be normal now, but it certainly gave us a big fright.

 I must say that out of all the hospitals I have been to since being here in China, this by far the best, the staff were mostly friendly and they seemed to know what they were doing.

Taken half an hour after comming out of the operating theater. Hooked up to a heart monitor and an oxygen tube into his nose.