15TH APRIL 2020
Last night my doctor sister in Madras ( Surgeon) wrote her classmate in London a Doctor had died of Corona. Her friend had retired two years ago and was locked in at home so no one knows how she picked up the infection.
Mithu wakes me up early to say she is fed up with this life being locked in and this week she is going to Pathology for Blood Tests, and seeing her Retinal specialist and her Endocrinologist and I was not going to stop her.
I have some fleeting memories of the past in year 2006
Agree she has had six eye surgeries and the doctor another God Send saved her vision in 2006 that was 14 years ago. I played a major role is getting her away from quacks she was seeing. I had gone to Madras as my sister wanted to celebrate my 60th in a Traditional style and Mithu was to join me later. Two days after I landed in Madras I get an SOS saying she is bleeding in Both eyes from Retinal Detachment) I took the flight back that night and landed here on saturday morning. she had made an appointment to see a Dr Sarks an Eye Surgeon at Strathfiled on Monday when he was going to give her an eye injection, a cancer drug that cost $750 a pop that was being trialled. so she was a guinea pig iMHO but I did not say anything as I am not a doctor. I accompanied her and the doctors wife injected the eye and bandaged it and told us not to remove the bandage for 48 hours. On wednesday Morning I took the Bandage off and was shocked to see that the white of the eye had turned black. I phoned for an appointment and receptionist said I cannot see him for a week. Usual bull shit. I told mithu to get into the car and went straight to the clinic,
The receptionist stood her ground and was raising her voice telling me off as if I was an Indian who did not understand English.
I raised my voice so all the patients in waiting could hear and this is what I said to the bitch
"Shut the Fuck up and Tell the Doctor I have to see him now as MY wife cannot see anything with the injected eye." She threatened to Call the Police and I said I will call the Police myself to see what shit was going on in this practice..
Hearing the Commotion the Eye surgeon Dr Sarks came out to see what the trouble was and guess what I was shocked to find the man had only one hand.
He said to me "Sir, Calm down, I will see your wife as soon as I am finished with this patient and he told the secretary off.
He looked at her eye and panicked and his hand was shaking and he is looking again and again and then he says she has retinal detachment and I am not a retina specialist I am a Macular specialist and she has to be seen by a Retina specialist. I can call him now and make an appointment and he did. What I did not realise on that day was the retinal specialist was sitting in the next bloody room. I butted in and asked him why he had given her the injection? He did not answer.
Anyway went see this specialist the next morning at 9.00am. Dr Capon. an absolute arrogant bastard. I was being polite and stood aside so he could slide into his seat in his tiny kennel and he tells me you either come in or get out I have no time to waste. Great start I thought.
He looks into Mithus eyes and says Bloody hell this is stage three and both retinas have torn badly and need immediate surgery. It was the 27th of November and he says I am going away on christmas holidays and cannot operate until 16th of Feb next year. so see my secretary and make an appointment. I politely asked him Doctor is that not a big risk leaving it until February. He said "Not much I can do about that Can I ?" ( Another fuckingbastard who was there to make MONEY and not TREAT PEOPLE)
I left this Morbid Clinic Thinking OMG this is Place worse than the "Adams Family of Doctors"
Mithus eye recovers slowly and she has booked herself in for a spinal surgery on 16th December.
My 60th B Day was on the 10th but that was the furthest on my mind..On the 7th I found my sister acting suspiciously. When I wanted to ull up and see her she said she was busy and she would come and see me the next day. Totally out of Character so I pulled up any way and I had a gut feeling she was trying to spring a big surprise on me. I was right. my three sisters and two nieces had all come to celebrate my B Day. Celebrate we did in a small way as the Big woory was Mithus eyes.
I had to take charge and handle this complex situation. I decided that she should stay put at home and get her back operated as that would give me time to investigate and find the right Retinal surgeon. We phoned around and culd not get an appointment. After the spinal surgery I asked the surgeon who he thought was a god Retinal specialist. He was being politically correct and said it was not appropriate for him to recommend a surgeon.
Mean while our God Send Friend Dr Vimala Nayanar, who was head who Radiology at Royal Prince of Wales Hospital (She is No more, May her Soul Rest in Peace) suggested two names Dr Andrew Chang and Dr John Downie both rated as top Surgeons.
Mithu was discharged on 18th Dec and I was lucky to get an appointment to see Dr Downey on the 21st of December. I told Dr Downie we had seen Dr Capon and were there for a second opinion
He examined both her eyes for a long long time. The Longer he took the more worried I was getting.
He said she needs surgery and that Dr Capon was an extremely Capable surgeon and you are in safe hands.
I am pretty good at reading peoples body language facial expressions which is often the index of the mind. I felt this man was very good and genuine.
We were almost out of his room, when I paused turned around and asked him. Doc to be honest with You I don't Like Dr Capon and not sure if we can wait until 16th Feb for the surgery. Would you kindly consider taking her as your Patient. I dont think Mithu fully approved this.
Dr Downie said Since you put it this way, I have to tell you that she needs Surgery to Both eyes immediately as she could lose her vision in both eyes.
How soon can you operate Doc I asked. He said Tomorrow. Let me see my schedule. He said this is a complex case so I prefer to perform the surgery at the Sydney Eye Hospital and not a Private Hospital as the registrars there are fantastic ( That the registrar turned out to be an Indian is another story)
He said Lets do it on 23rd Dec. Surgery on 23rd was aborted as it was 4,00pm and he had been operating all day. So Dr Downey says, I am sorry I am feeling buggered and dont want to make mistakes so lets do it first thing Tomorrow when I am nice and Fresh. I said Doc it is Christmas eve. He said that hardly matters. He did perform a vitreoctomy on 24th and n Christmas Day he was there at 9.00am at the Hosiptal to check Mithus eyes..
Since then she has enjoyed life with good vision except at night when I forbid her from driving for her own safety plus others on the road. With laser surgeries one side efect is that it creates scar tissues.
I know as in 2002 my sister complained about my snoring as she could not sleep and made me have a laser surger to my palate called uvulo plasty against the recommendation of her Specialist friend. Was extremely painful for the rest of my stay in London. But I could not even mimic the snoring sound. Today when I see ENT surgeons the first question they ask me is which Idiot butchered your throat as the scar tissue has grown back with a vengeance and my snoring shakes the house.
Mithu's scar tissues in her eyes that have had umpteen laser surgeries are the same. so for three years Dr Downie was giving her an injection in the left eye every month. Each injections costs $750. and every visit he say's nothing much has changed from previous months and I am not sure if the injection is helping.
I was just a silent observer for months as Mithu insisted she wanted the injections and he kept putting off the eye surgery saying it is not necessary yet as the scar tissue is not pulling the retina away from the wall, yet she kept pushing for surgery as if it was like getting a botox injecting for sexy pouted lips..(ugly in my Opinion)
Last September I had to open my mouth and said "Doc we are for even indebted to you for saving her vision ins 2006. You are saying you do not think the monthly injections are helping? so why continue as I am sure there are risks associated. He agreed to stop injections to my relief and said I will see you next month. which we did no change and nothing was done so he said I will see you in a few months time.
It happens to be now and she insists that she had to see him and get her eyes tested as her vision was getting worse. A bit of BS, and I said "NO it is not a matter of life and death and you are not going blind and if your eyes are in trouble it is because you are doing instagram on mobile all day and blue light from phones have damaged many peoples eyes". she says Bull Shit. I am going.
So I told her if she brings Corona home and infects me I want to be locked up in my bed room and will not go to a Hospital Emergency and get dumped in ICU on a Ventilator and suffocate and die. I will fight corona my own way and if I die just send my body for as public cremation.
She got extremely angry and stomped out. Then she complained to Babu that I want to be locked up in the bed room and allowed to die..( I overheard that bit)
Think it back fired as he told her, I agree with Dad. Your Life is more important that better vision and you are definitely not bleeding in the eyes and going blind. (I am guessing but I know my son is very logical unlike my wife)
I also told her that Babu Jess and She were taking unnecessary risks going out to Homebush chinese shops and restaurants and constantly ordering Uber eats as we do not know who cooked the food, who coughed and sneezed into it, who packed it and who delivered it.
People have died in New York even though they did not go out but just went to the mail box to pick up mail and parcel from Amazon. On Cardboard the Virus can remain active for 28 hours ( I am not saying stay alive as Virus has no life of its own).
She just walked into my study and tells me OK both my doctors do not want me to come and will talk to me on the phone. She is angry that her outing got cancelled so she is making a lot of noise in the kitchen banging pots and pans . No she is not cooking.
I have a bone marrow disorder called Myelo Fibrosis where bone marrow is producing too many blood cells and pumping them into the blood stream; immature blood cells and my haemaglobin cells cannot absorb and carry adequate oxygen to all the organs and muscles. it is a Form of Blood Cancer if untreated could become full fledged Leukemia.
Trust me I am not scared of death but am not going to allow stupidity on others part to end my life...
She is now jumping up and down that she has to go for blood tests.
I had to see my Cardiologist last week but cancelled it and the receptionist said "I agree don't come unless you are having problems as this is just a routine consultation".
My Oncologist said Ram you have too many co morbid conditions stroke, hypertension, pace maker, wheeze and shortness of breath, metabolic syndrome or Type 1.5 diabetes, sleep apnea, GERD.
Please promise me you will not go out of the house until this Corona Rubbish clears as Your Body cannot fight Covid 19...
Mithus blood tests are a routine three monthly and she has been a diabetic for 53 years and waiting for another three months is not going to kill her.
Now that the entire population is locked in there is the new realisatin that the doctors meaning Specialists in OZ are pushing drugs so patients keep coming back raising the doctors personal fortunes. My chemist tells me that he is shocked to see that almost all seniors are on atleast half a dozen medications and many like me on as ten different medications.
I have no choice but to allow her to go to a Pathology Clinic and get her blood tests done.
I woke up with a long list of To do Items and put it all aside and had to key this in to vent my feelings. I am trying to protect the family as always but my wife sees me as a Control Freak. So be it.
It is a No win situation as If I say something she does nt like I am a Control Freak and If I dont say anything then I don't care shit about her welfare.
Damned if you do and damned if you don't.
Now I know why so many men as they retire want to be come hermits or hit the Bottle
