Under the Knife

As I mentioned in the last post, I recently was diagnosed with appendicitis, which was something of a surprise to me because after my first episode of pain I didn't have any problems.  Nevertheless, the diagnosis required me to check into Panti Rapih hospital in Jogjakarta for surgery to remove my appendix.  Pretty much on cue after the diagnosis my appendix area started hurting pretty bad, and for the 2 days before the surgery I was in pretty constant discomfort.  So all in all it's a good thing I decided to get it checked out, because from what I hear the next phase after what I experienced is full-on rupture, which is bad news.

As I mentioned in the previous post, Panti Rapih hospital is quite nice.  It's clean, orderly, and efficient, and it runs the way you would expect a hospital to run.  Part of the reason for writing this post is to address concerns of any foreigners googling "Panti Rapih" in consideration of treatment there.  I had a really smooth experience in the two days I was there and would recommend the hospital to anyone, at least for an appendectomy.  My very competent doctor gave me a choice of two procedures: conventional or laparoscopy.  I told him that I wanted the one that would give me the biggest scar; if possible it should look like I'd been cut in half by a cording saw and then stitched back together.  He asked me why and I told him "because chicks dig scars, doc".

I signed up for a second-class room because my insurance requires me to get a semi-private room.  Since it's hot and humid in Jogja I asked for an air-conditioned room, which will cost my insurance company another $10 for two nights.  When I checked in the room I met my roommate, who was from the island of Sumba in Nusa Tenggara Timor.  He had been in the hospital for two weeks and his wife was taking care of him.  During the entire stay we didn't use the air conditioner, because they didn't have it on and I figured there was a reason for that.  I also knew that if I asked for it to be turned on my roommate would tolerate it, but since he was sicker than me I decided to prioritize his comfort.  When it came time to go to sleep I noticed his wife unrolling a mat on the tile floor to sleep on.  I told her that she could sleep on my bed and I'd sleep on the floor, since I'm used to sleeping on the floor on Sumatra.  She refused, though, insisting that I would get sick if I slept on the floor.  But from this point on we were friends and they invited me to come to their village and see the annual horse races, which Sumba is famous for. 

During the night my roommate moaned a lot from pain.  I thought about his wife sleeping on the floor, either out of devotion or to save money on accommodation or a combination of the two, and it made me happy that I've been able to travel around a bit and see the stoic persistence with which about 80% of the world's population deals with difficulties that would seem insurmountable to your typical westerner.  It makes it easier to deal with most problems I encounter.  Later the anesthesiologist came to visit me to talk about options for the surgery.  We decided that it would be best to use a local anesthetic rather than putting my under.  The next morning during the prep he came to talk to me again.

"How is Mister Keet this morning?"

"Well, I've been thinking a lot about my life.  There've been ups and downs.  I've sinned, but I've also done good deeds.  I've seen some wondrous things.  All in all I'm satisfied and am ready to meet my fate."

"What medication are you on?" he asked.

"None", I replied.  "Why do you ask?"

"Because usually when someone starts talking like that it means their dosage is too high.  Either that or they need to visit they psychiatric ward.  Now are you ready for me to stick this big needle in your back?"

"Let's rock and roll."

They wheeled me into the operating theatre and got all the gear ready.  I gave one of the nurses my camera so she could take the pictures you see here.  When I was looking at the pictures she took I noticed she took a full on naked shot of me, which is pretty dirty but in a hot sort of way.  Before the procedure began the doctor checked how I was reacting to the anesthetic.

"How are you doing, Mister Kate?"

"A cold black cloud is comin' down, Doc.  I feel like I'm knockin' on Heaven's door...."

"Huh?"

"There's a light, Doc.....it's calling me.....it's...it's....it's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen....."

"I see.  You are funny.  Maybe I give you orchidectomy for free," he responded. 

The culprit.  As you can see it kinda looks like a giant prawn.

The procedure went pretty smoothly and after about an hour in the half in the recovery room they wheeled me back to my room, where I went to sleep for a while.  They said I had to stay in bed for 12 hours after the surgery, and so I set my clock to buzz at escape time and set in on the Philip Caputo novel I bought from the cheap bin at one of Jogja's bookstores.  I was feeling pretty good considering I'd just had part of my insides cut out, and so at 11pm I slung my IV bag over my shoulder and headed out of the ward to the donut shop.  I came back to the room and went to sleep amongst the howls of someone down the hall that seem to be experiencing some pretty excruciating pain. 

My Souvenir  

The next morning I woke up feeling pretty good.  After my breakfast some friends that had heard about me being in the hospital came to see me, which was quite nice because here I was thinking I was all alone in the world.  They brought me some pastries and we chatted for a while until it was time for them to go back to work.  For the rest of the day I took it easy, waiting to be discharged.  At about 4pm they let me go with an appointment to come back for a checkup in a couple of days.  The whole thing, along with the initial consultation and tests, cost right around $700, which will be covered by insurance.  Right now I feel great, and I think it's due to the excellent care at Panti Rapih.  

A Little Lagniappe....

This next picture is one I took just outside the hospital.  It's a sign advertising a circumcision package for Muslim boys.  I thought it interesting because Panti Rapih is a Catholic hospital.  Though I wouldn't exactly call Indonesia a poster child for religious harmony, from all I know about Jogja the people of various faiths get along pretty good here.