Monday, July 11, 2011

Medical Sleuthing

For the past two days, the Gan has called me in the middle of my work day with patients, asking me to take Raphaela home because she had one episode of a runny diaper.  The Gan's major concern involves one those Viruses of the Month that is currently circulating, and justifiably so, they do not want the other kids to spread it around. 

And so I drop everything, re-arrange my day and pick her up, and lo and behold, she does not have diarrhea for the entire time she is home with me, and behaves like the normal happy child she is.  As well, there are no other signs of an illness, viral or otherwise, which leads me to believe that there is a specific food that Raphaela eats at Gan, in the morning, which causes this event.

I am grateful that the Head Nursery Teacher attempts to prevent the spread of illness among the children, but I feel that she is ignoring the obvious:  the kids, and some of the other staff, only have diarrhea during the day at Gan.  Is it the food service? Is it the air conditioner, which has been constantly running since the start of the heat wave here in Israel?  Do the kids wash their hands often enough?

I received permission from the Head Nursery Teacher for Raphaela to return to Gan as normal this morning,  and when I dropped her off, I explained that her diapers had been clear, but that Raphaela had been coughing during the night;  a fact I attribute more to her sleep apnea issues, which will hopefully be resolved  with the surgery.  The teacher's response was, "I don't know, Raphaela looks a little pale..."

My great prayer is that Raphaela stay healthy enough to undergo the surgery next week, so that she can enjoy a higher quality of life.  I hope that once Raphaela's breathing is full and deep and efficient, it will also strengthen her overall immunity.

2 comments:

Nicole said...

why don't you meet with the teacher to go over their food menu, and see if something stands out? I remember this happened to my DD at about the same age, and I requested they take her off all dairy for a couple of months and it really helped. Then I slowly reintroduced the dairy and she was fine. Our pediatrician said that sometimes lactose intolerance causes diarrhea and a temporary break from dairy can clear up all issues.

Doc said...

They know that Raphaela is not to have any dairy there, and as far as I know, they have observed that rule. She eats very little dairy in any case, a yougurt here and there, but no hard cheeses.