Sick and alone

[Arizona Kid]

7 minutes ago, hk blues said:

I bet your name isn't Arizona Kid! 

How much?

[hk blues]

1 hour ago, Arizona Kid said:

How much?

Not enough! 

[Jack Peterson]

8 hours ago, Tommy T. said:

Perhaps take it one step further and, if you get a helper, pay a little to have them trained by Red Cross as First Responder and make sure they have a driver's license or at least means to get transportation if necessary?

 Tom do you think we have not done that, Granny and Eggs comes to mind 

[Tommy T.]

26 minutes ago, Jack Peterson said:

 Tom do you think we have not done that, Granny and Eggs comes to mind 

Well, that's good! My suggestion was for RBM as he was concerned since he was home alone. We will take our own advice and do the same.

Re-reading my comment, I can see I did not state that thought correctly - sorry.

Edited September 6, 2019 by Tommy T.

[Jack Peterson]

12 minutes ago, Tommy T. said:

Re-reading my comment, I can see I did not state that thought correctly - sorry.

 Tom there are times when it is a Good Idea not to keep adding your somewhat superfluous and   unnecessary  Comments to every Post you read It can Rattle people, we are in control of our lives  my post said enough for most 

Edited September 6, 2019 by Jack Peterson

[Old55]

Glad you feel better now for sure what you experienced must have been frightening.

We all know Philippines lacks effective EMS services and dependable medical emergency care. It’s a risk all Expats live or die with. 

Edited September 6, 2019 by Old55

[RBM]

9 hours ago, Old55 said:

Glad you feel better now for sure what you experienced must have been frightening.

We all know Philippines lacks effective EMS services and dependable medical emergency care. It’s a risk all Expats live or die with. 

Correct,  plus one of the points I was trying to emphasize was it should be a consideration to guys in their senior years moving here, living alone. As bad as mild food poisoning is it's nothing compared to a stroke or heart attack, this most probably would be fatal for those alone. 

Never heard of medical warning devices here although perhaps in Manila available, still by the time serves plough  through traffic probably to late.

[GeoffH]

Lack of EMS is a real issue here but another one is the fact that even at hospitals you may not be able to get treatment..  

I got sick last year (luckily the chest pains turned out to be extended angina not a heart attack) but there were some potential problems problems we became aware of.  

Our room is on the second floor and there is a spiral stair case to the ground floor (difficult to get down, impossible if I was really sick) and then I have to get to the Innova (I’m too heavy for SWMBO to lift, maybe her papa and brother could manage if they were here but they are often not).

So I’m in the Innova and we drive to the close private hospital (no Doctor it’s a holiday), then we drive to the larger next nearest private hospital.  It is open but the specialist who I’ve seen before is not there (holidays) and there isn’t anyone else who I can see.  A whole floor of specialists in various areas and they’re ALL not there.  Just nurses and reception staff and the pharmacy.

Since then we’ve talked about swapping rooms with SWMBO’s mama and papa but... that leaves them on the second floor which isn’t ideal either (although they’re at least lighter than me).  And I’ve bought a decent BP tester and a Kardia single channel ECG Bluetooth device and I keep low dose aspirin here and SWMBO knows what it’s for and where it is.  We’re going to see about some first aid training as well.

But honestly, first aid isn’t going to help if it’s a serious problem and that’s something I think we have to consider when living here.

 

 

 

[Jack Peterson]

1 minute ago, GeoffH said:

But honestly, first aid isn’t going to help if it’s a serious problem and that’s something I think we have to consider when living here.

How so very true Geoff Forward think is the way to go, Should my wife not be here if anything happens, Our helper and our Daughter have a list  of what to do and Phone numbers to ring I can be in Hospital in a short while if the Plan is Followed But................. I truly envisage a mishap on that occasion Negative thinking on my  part  What more can I say, I Tried to get it right as I am sure most of us will

[Tommy T.]

3 hours ago, GeoffH said:

And I’ve bought a decent BP tester and a Kardia single channel ECG Bluetooth device and I keep low dose aspirin here and SWMBO knows what it’s for and where it is.  We’re going to see about some first aid training as well.

But honestly, first aid isn’t going to help if it’s a serious problem and that’s something I think we have to consider when living here.

 

First off, I am pleased that RBM seems to have recovered fully. Nothing scarier than to be sick alone - it's happened to me a few times...

That's a great start, Geoff. You are well on your way to taking care of yourself if/when professional help is not readily available. I hope you don't have returns of your issues. There are actually a lot of things you can do to prepare yourself for medical situations...

I will just add that, for a long time when sailing, my ex and I had nobody to rely on but ourselves. That taught us a lot and I try to carry that forward to the Philippines. When 2,000 miles away from the nearest land, you don't call 911... So we trained up on everything except actual medic training, but came very close to that. We carried a comprehensive medical kit including medication for infections of all kinds, all sorts of bandages, serious pain killers, everything but a defib kit - since the "home" versions weren't available yet. I was lucky to find doctors willing to prescribe virtually any medication I requested. I also bought several medical books and guides and set about trying to educate myself. We learned self-sufficiency and that is what I am trying to encourage here. For us, it was our only choice to try to be safe.

I assume there are few enlightened doctors here who will prescribe medications when you are not ill, but maybe it is worth a try to see if you can? Especially for anything related to your heart?

Take care to all of us...

Edited September 7, 2019 by Tommy T.
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