A Long Day

History:
Beth spent the night with me on Sunday. Monday morning, this usually active girl would not even get out of bed. She said her legs, head, and stomach hurt. I left her in my house while I ran to work. I checked on her several times throughout the day, but she never rose from the bed.

She was in so much stomach pain Monday night after I returned from Bible study that I chose to take her to the emergency room at Kijabe Hospital. Thank God I live near the hospital. I left my house at 10:30pm. I did not know how long it would take so I brought along my bag from Bible Study (Study Bible, Water bottle, Phone, I-pod, etc).

The emergency room at Kijabe Hospital is very small. A 6-foot long bench is all there is to sit on in the department. When we got there there was just enough room for Beth to sit but not me. Everything seemed disorganized, but maybe that was just me.We were back at my house by 1am. The doctor (or clinician) gave her a shot for pain and sent us home with an anti-acid. They couldn't do any other tests at time, so they told us if the pain doesn't get better or if it gets worse to come back to the Outpatient clinic (OPD) in the morning.

We woke up at 5 am Tuesday so I could help her prepare for school. She seemed a little better Tuesday Morning when she left for school, but with in 2 hours she had come back to me with more pain. Since her brother was at school and her father was unavailable, I took her to the clinic myself. That was 8:30 am. The OPD was already full and we waited 1 hr before Beth's vitals were taken and another 2 hours before she was called back. Another hour later, she was finally seen by the doctor and he ordered some tests. The tests were the easy part. I took about an hour to get the blood draw and ultra-sound done. Then, more waiting. 2 hours later, Beth was called back to see the doctor again. I had stepped out for some food and when I got back she was already through seeing the doctor. Next, came discharge. You would think that this would go more quickly, but no. We waited another hour before we were called to pay. Then, we waited another hour for the pharmacy to fill the prescriptions ordered by the doctor! We finally got out of the hospital at around 4:30 or 5 pm. LONG DAY! Especially on 3-4 hours of sleep.

Today, Beth is doing much better!

My Tuesday plans had not included accompanying a 16-year old young lady the hospital all-day. I know God is in control. It would have been much harder on Beth if this acute attack of Gastritis had happened in her home, a long walking distance from the hospital. Plus, God knew that I could understand her fear and anxiety when it came to going to the hospital and being poked with multiple needles (2 shots and a blood draw). Beth's Mother died many years ago and she has been the only female in the house for the last 7 years (since her sister got married).

Please pray for her!

Thank you!