2nd Hep B jab

Poor little Ellie got her 2nd Hepatitis B jab today at Choa Chu Kang Polyclinic.

The overall waiting time was bearable, all because we made an appointment. CCK polyclinic belongs to the National Health Group. Initially, I do not have very good impression of polyclinics. I always thought building structures, furnitures are old and always packed full of patients. I was right, and wrong, on one count each. The building was so-so, ventilation was better than what I expected. The number of patients there is appalling. Walk-in patients got to wait from 2 to 4 hours just to see the doc. There's more waiting to welcome you at the Pharmacy where you get your medication.

For Ellie's case, her appointment was at 1045hrs. We registered at 1015hrs and everything was done at 1120hrs. We registered, saw the nurse who evaluated Ellie's condition, saw a doctor, back to see the nurse again for the immunisation jab. So, our first visit to the polyclinic wasn't so bad.

While waiting for the injection, Ellie was hungry so we fed her but her name was called when she was two-thirds done with her milk mix. So we had to stop her feed, knowing she'd be annoyed but we had to go in, if not, our turn would be skipped.

What made my heart ache was during Ellie's injection. The jab site was on her right thigh. Her innocent look on her face showed she had no idea what was coming. Poor Ellie. When the nurse inserted the needle, she didn't cry. I was almost surprised. Almost. At the moment when the nurse retracted the needle, Ellie wailed so loudly that my heart ached. Magazines' articles wrote about the 3 different 'cry patterns' of infants rang a bell. Ellie has a different cry pattern when she's hungry, frustrated (for various reasons) and in pain.

The only way I could think of to soothe her was... well, let her finish her milk. The second we put the bottle to her contorted lips, she miraculously stopped crying and began sucking on her favourite drink. I was elated. We left the polyclinic 15 minutes later.

I only go to the polyclinic for one reason. Cost. Going to the paediatrician would cost us 50% more for immunisation jabs. Ellie's next appointment at the polyclinic is 2 months later. The jab she's going to take is those 5-in-1 jabs. The cost would be SGD294. Yep, that's the price even for polyclinics. Imagine the cost if we were to bring her to a paediatrician.