The Immigrant

You might think I hate immigrants .... I dont.  My mom was an immigrant, my sister didnt even know she wasnt an illigal immigrant until she graduated from h.s. I still have family in Mexico.  But there are borders and at some point in time one has to decide what side they are on. 

Some people believe that immigrants come here for the American Dream ..... I dont believe that, in fact I know that many come to the US to exploit the freebees.  They bring an old lady in her 80's, make her a citizen and file for social security.  The ones that really bothers me are those that want to be citizens but not serve in the armed forces.

I have visited people in public housing and believe it or not sometimes their apartment is better than mine.  They come with refrigerators, stoves, everything.  I get a refrigerator once every 15 years, they get one every two.  Apparently their appliances are not as durable as the ones we buy.

But today I will discuss one immigrant. I first saw her in the ER holding the baby and I knew immediately that he was very sick.  He had chicken poxes or Varicella. 

The disease kills about 39% usually from pulmonary complications.  But it is a virus and once in your body it will never go away, it will wait for you to have a bad day and show its ugly face again, Shingles.  This is a painful disease and it requires medical intervention.

Many americans, the stupid ones, dont vaccinate their kids in the land of the free, they are afraid that the kid will become autistic.  Or they are just negligent and send them to school anyway to infect your children. 

The mother of this kid failed to get him vaccinated, the damn things are free so go figure.  She had her own plan, wait until the child is very sick, full of lesions, toxic and then take him to the hospital ER.

She picked one of the finer hospitals and took the kid in, well you know these corporations they are about money ..... so they gave her some prescriptions and sent her home ....because they had no insurance.

The women had no money and the child got worse, she waited another day .... then she took him to the county hospital.  She was an illegal as was the baby, so they gave her some prescriptions and sent her home.  She still didnt have any money and again did not treat the baby.

Finally late at night she brings the child to ER, half dead.  He was about to become a statistic.  He had so many lesions that I was sure that I would not be able to start the IV.  We gave him oxygen, took his vitals and his vitals were not representative of his condition, he was still compensating.  I got the IV in, drew blood for his labs, then got him a lady pediatrician to admit him.  I called report to the pediatric floor and gave report, she came downstairs and took him in mothers arms on a wheel chair up to the Pedi ICU. 

Within the hour the Code Blue is heard over the intercom,  the pediatric nurse calls me and I tell her, that she has to call the pediatrician for orders.  The ER doctor went to see and the nursing supervisor was on hand.  No code steps were followed even though the baby had a heart rate of 160.  The doctor called and asked for the ER doctor to see the baby, and ordered blood gases without oxygen.  The respiratory therapist, did just that, he cut the oxygen?  The nursing supervisor tried to intervene .... but the respiratory therapist stated that he was following the doctors order.  Of course the baby died.  Now begins the search for culpability.

When I got to work the next day I was called in to answer for the alleged blunder.  The ER doctor came and spoke in my defense. 

I hated this kid, he ruined my day.  Little did I know he was going to come back to haunt me. 

Months go by and I am called to court for deposition, apparently the mother blamed the hospital for her sons death.  Yes, its true the nurses were incompetent and were not good at the code, some of them didnt speak English, damn immigrants. 

I was not sued, not yet, apparently I didnt have enough money.  But the ER doctor was, and the pediatrician was, and the hospital was but I was an afterthought.  All the representatives were at the deposition, lawyers, lots of them.  I brought my own lawyer and he sat behind me.  The pedi nurses were there and they were asked if they were comfortable speaking English and they requested translators.  Then there was the court reporter.  I was asked if I wanted a translator but refused their tender offer. 

The first questions came to me, I was the fall guy.  You know these lawyers will say and do anything to defend their client and not pay the award, and they will do what ever it takes to keep the dollar amount small. But figure the court cost, the very large meeting room, my time, the three clients, hell it must be a lot of money.  Then their is the behavior .... well if we sue and they surrender, then this will be our strategy from now on.  However dead babies are not worth very much in dollars .... I dont make the rules.

The attorneys decided to settle rather than go to court and somebody had to pay for all of this .... yes you taxpayers.  I just know that you thought less of me, when I said I hated the kid. 

But here is the thing, that kid was so sick, that even under the best of circumstance, with the best doctors, the best equipment, the best staff his chances of coming out alive were very small.  The baby did not die by our hand, the baby died because the mother could not fill the prescriptions that were given to her a week ago.  Yes the hospital staff was sloppy, nursing and respiratory, the doctors were right on the money.

So this illegal walks out a rich lady, everyone is upset, hell they wont even speak to me.  But her illegal status and the babies illegal status were never brought up.  This was a  case of charity, philanthropy at its best.  But the American taxpayer had to pay. 

RIP baby, and mom you are going to hell because you did not vaccinate your kid.