I am at my parent's house and see Molly our family cat scratching by the door to be let in. This was a normal thing for her. As soon as she gets in the house, I hear what seems to be a tomcat. A cute, fluffy, tan kitty scurries up to me. I reach down to pet him (as one does) and he attacks me! He bites my legs but I don't feel like it punctures the skin. However, he ends up digging his claws into my arm. The holes are VERY deep. I can see well into the tissue. Blood seeps up toward the top of the holes. I run inside the house to call Robert. He's a doctor and can keep me from overreacting about this situation.
I am unable to capture the cat but I know I should consider getting a rabies shot. After all, domesticated animals are the number one cause for human infection! I pull out my phone which appears to be as large as an iPad. I can't find the phone app and nothing looks normal. Thankfully, Marie calls me while I'm fiddling with it. I tell her what happens and she tells me to go to King's Daughters, a local hospital.
I bring Michelle with me because I need someone to keep me calm. The bite wound has me in a panic and adding needles into the equation definitely doesn't help. A nurse brings us to what appears to be an office/hospital hybrid. There are sharps containers and a tiled floor that reminds me of most hospitals. Yet there are wooden executive-sized desks surrounding the room. A woman enters the room. She has a brown bob and a long, white coat. She pulls up a rolly chair to one of the desks and prepares me for the shot. She is my doctor, I'm guessing. She informs me that the rabies vaccine is a Tier B vaccine (???). This means insurance won't pay for it. It would be cheaper to do a total blood transfusion.
Obviously, I don't want a blood transfusion. I tell her that I consent to the vaccine because my life is on the line and I'll deal with the cost later. Against my wishes, she sends in a tall, scrawny Indian boy about my age. She brings in a nursing student to do the blood transfusion. I explain to the doctor that I don't feel comfortable letting someone untrained in such a risky procedure perform the transfusion. The doctor tells me the nursing student has to do it because she (the student) hasn't performed one yet and needs the practice. The nurse stabs me in the arm with a blood-filled syringe (I guess this is the transfusion). I can feel the liquid going into my arm. The student tells me she now has to give me to additional shots because the donor tested positive for "Gandhi." I'm confused and try to figure out what they're talking about.
The boy tells me his dog had a lung tumor that got biopsied. The tumor was FILLED with "Gandhi." I ask if he means Toxoplasma gondii? He nods. I tell the doctor that this new vaccine is unnecessary because 1) there's not vaccine for toxoplasma and 2) I'm healthy and not pregnant. I'm fine with the rabies situation now so I want to leave. She tries to explain toxoplasmosis to me. I inform her that I'm familiar with this information thanks to my line of work and that she can just give me a sulfa-drug if she's that concerned. But again, she emphasizes that this nurse needs practice.
Michelle sees my distress and sits next to me. She holds my hand while this nurse preps to administer this vaccine. She has a GIANT needle and stabs it directly into my arm. She pushes the needle harder to make it go deeper. The pain is excruciating.
I begin to cry because it hurts so bad. The doctor comes to observe and tells the nurse she missed my vein and must repeat the procedure. After repeating it, she informs me that she has to go and prepare the 2nd dose. The vaccine is a two-shot series with 30 minutes in between each dose. I want to leave. But the doctor and her brilliant ideas brings in a resident to help ease my concerns. He's wearing a caution yellow-colored shirt (fitting for his presence) and blue jeans. I'm getting red flags here because what is this dude doing in a hospital during his work hours win jeans. He sits next to me and puts his arm around me. Ol' dude is putting on ALL the moves. I am repulsed.
I tell him to back off. This is just making my situation much worse. He tells me he'll protect me and keep me calm. I do a HUGE eye roll. I explain to him how inappropriate this is because 1) I have a boyfriend 2) I'm a patient and 3) Michelle can comfort me if I really need it. Of course he pulls the "I'm a doctor" card to impress me (as if that works on me at all). "That's cool," I say, "You're really making this situation worse for me so I'd appreciate you leaving unless you have something of worth to say." Michelle demands that he leave. There are multiple medical students in the room watching the scene play out. They laugh to themselves. I do feel better knowing Michelle and I won our argument.
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