by It’s called MRSA, a drug-resistant strain of staph that is getting out of control in U.S. hospitals. Check this article out in it’s entirety for a sobering read, and then Google “MRSA stay out of hospitals” for more. This is precisely why I don’t want my daughter’s inch long sliver cut out of her foot in a hospital:
“If you are an American admitted to a hospital in Amsterdam, Toronto, or Copenhagen these days, you’ll be considered a biohazard. Doctors and nurses will likely put you into quarantine while they determine whether you’re carrying methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, a deadly organism that is increasingly common stateside, especially in our hospitals. And if you test positive for methicillin-resistant staph, or MRSA, these European and Canadian hospital workers will don protective gloves, masks, and gowns each time they approach you, and then strip off the gear and scrub down vigorously when they leave your room. The process is known as “search and destroy”—a combat mission that hospitals abroad are undertaking to prevent the spread of germs that resist antibiotics. Our own health authorities, meanwhile, have been strangely reluctant to join the assault.”~excerpt from Squash the Bug by Arthur Allen
He goes on to say:
“In the United States, MRSA kills an estimated 13,000 people every year, which means that a hospital patient is 10 times as likely to die of MRSA as an inmate is to be murdered in prison.”
Now, fear and worry are sin, and God hasn’t “given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7) And as hard as it is for me to imagine that my 7 yo daughter’s 1.25″ (3.6 cm) sliver is okay just “stagnating” in her foot, it’s even harder for me to blithely drop her into the hands of a hospital surgeon and pretend that it’s not a big deal.
The alternative therapy lady we visited ended up practicing Applied Kinesiology on 7 yo. It’s a little weird, even for a “wacko” like me who relies more heavily on her chiropractor than her medical doctor! Even so, I was impressed at this doctor’s knowledge and advice. She says that 7 yo is fighting several infections in her lungs, kidney, liver, etc. But dh and I still don’t have clear direction on which way to go.
Podiatrist says the sliver must come out. The Alternative Doctor says we can fight it out with nutritional supplements.
What to do? Any input? And believe me, I’m not trying to be an alarmist about the MRSA. Do your own research, or better yet, share your story in comments.
I tell you what my hubby would do- he’ld take it out himself. Little proxide and a sterile tool of some sort and “this will just take a minute”. He is not a e.r., doctor, or hospital kind of guy. Me- I was raised at the doctors office. My mother is obsessed with being ill. Just the other night she went to the e.r. just for a 101 temp.
Bethanie’s last blog post..Happy V-day!
Who is your podiatrist? Is it Watson from E?
I can’t believe this. A gal who lives in western Kansas that is on my msn mom’s group just wrote that her little baby has this in his ears. I don’t understand why people are just wanting to pretend this is not a problem. For years antibiotics have been abused, and the bacterias just kept getting stronger and stronger. The medical community has known for years this was going to happen. It is very scary stuff. I would try to see if there is another way to deal with your little girls foot. Have you tried going to a natural pathic doctor? I guess just pray and let God lead you on the path that is meant to be taken. I will pray for you too. God bless. Juli
Well you know how committed I was to a hospital and medicated birth. When we became pregnant with #4 and I started researching home births, the information on infections spread to healthy moms and babies in hospitals scared me to death. Home birth is SO much safer in so many ways for this exact reason.
I appreciate everyone’s feedback, you all are good to come around me so!
Bethanie, my dh is so much like yours…he would do this if he could, but it’s way too deep and surrounded by cysts, in fact, it’s completely encapsulated by them. Plus, our pediatrician has already dug around in there twice and didn’t even SEE the sliver! Needless to say, we’re going to need a wee bit of painkiller next time!
Andrea, it’s not Watson, it’s one our local hospital recommended in T, and he seems wonderful, we don’t have a problem with him. I don’t even know that MRSA is a problem at T’s SV, but it bothers me. Realistically, I know this staph can be picked up anywhere, not just hospitals, but…
Juli, I know. My sil was just telling me she knows personally 10 people who have it, and it’s a horrible condition to live with, if you live! She told me of two that died. They get a high fever and are gone in two days. Makes it scary to think of in light of my own personal view of fever being a “good thing”. How are you to know, unless God intervenes?
Jana, I do remember! We were both pretty committed to hospitals, weren’t we? And for you to go to home birthing, wow. I’d love to do that someday, except I really love the midwife we had with my youngest, and she is so busy at the birth center that she doesn’t travel to homes. 🙁
Here is the plan my hubby and I decided on tonight, after much prayer and consulting a beloved and wise chiropractor friend of our family…Jana, you’ll remember going to this woman when you were visiting and you and my oldest gave each other goose eggs on your foreheads? 😉 Anyway, we feel that a splinter that big isn’t going to just disappear very quickly. So we’re going to follow the alternative therapy lady’s regimen of nutritional supplements and really build up our daughter’s immune system for 5 weeks, and then trust God to protect us through the surgery. Kind of taking a little from both practices and a lot of trust in God. 5 weeks is enough time to show us if we should put off the surgery again…but for now we’ve decided I should call in Monday and have the podiatrist go ahead and set us up for it.
In the meantime, we just pray that the infection from it being in her foot doesn’t cause more problems.
Hi Mary. I hate that you’re going through this and having to make such a difficult dicision.
When I was in nursing school (only like 3 years ago) I had a patient with MRSA and my instructor actually made me throw my pen in the trash at the end of the day. The interesting thing is the “real” nurse the patient had that day was pregnant and practiced NO precautions…not even regular hand washing when she entered and departed the room. So not only is MRSA so resistant to meds, but some nurses are not even very knowledgeable about it! Scary! On the bright side, the nurse and I both were fine after coming in contact w/ the patient.
In your situation, your plan sounds like what I would do. I would want my daughter to be as healthy and strong as possible going into surgery…that’s going to give her a lot of protection. I would also be too scared to just leave the silver.
At least our awesome God is stronger than MRSA! I’ll be praying for you guys.
Oh Mary I feel for you. As a Mother, all we want to do is lift the burden and pain from our children’s shoulders and place it on our own…or rather it is on our shoulders whenever it is on our children’s. I am praying for you and your daughter (and family!). Such difficult decisions with so many factors it boggles the mind.
On another note, I didn’t realise so many inmates were murdered in jail! That line in the article:
“In the United States, MRSA kills an estimated 13,000 people every year, which means that a hospital patient is 10 times as likely to die of MRSA as an inmate is to be murdered in prison.”
I never realised that happened! Wow now I feel very sheltered lol…I guess I never really thought about it. But that is scary for sure. I always hate giving antibiotics unless necessary, for the fact that they are becoming so common that our bodies are no longer able to fight off simple things…not to mention the “super-strains” the article talks about.
Hugs Mary!
Mary, I changed blogs and I wanted to give you my new addy.
http://leticiasworld.blogspot.com/
Leticia’s last blog post..So I moved….
oh yeah…we see news storys quite a bit here in NZ about the MRSA bug. Quite a common thing. About the anti-biotics, I feel that they should only be used when we have tried to let our own bodies fight with the immune system first otherwise I would think we naturally build up a resistance to the medication.
Amy’s last blog post..Sssh?
Mary, I’m glad you and your hubby came to a decision. I’ll definitely add this to my prayer list!
Amy M, my niece is a nurse who is going through something similar right now. They just had a big nurse staff meeting, detailing how dangerous and contagious this MRSA is, and all because one of their patients has a heavy case of the stuff. I think in the medical field’s caution over causing a panic, many more people will be infected out of ignorance…and you are right, God is not challenged one little bit by MRSA… 🙂
Geri, I once read a non-fiction article about all the horrendous things that go on in jail among the inmates. It’s a wonder any of them are tough enough to survive the gangs. And the weapons they make out of ordinary things, yikes! Thank you so much for your prayers, I really feel them. I wrote this post yesterday after a really challenging afternoon of feeling no clarity on which way to go whatsoever…and just in one evening, dh and I feel very secure in the plan at hand. Of course, it could change, if God closes a door.
Amy, I agree. Anti-biotics are way overused. Everyone is too “busy” with too many real commitments to let illness run its course.
Thank you, Colleen, that means a lot to me and my man!
Leticia, I just now checked my moderated comments and saw that you’d moved sites! I have my settings for first time visitors’ comments to sit around in a moderation queue until I can make sure they are legit–this keeps a lot of spam from posting! I can’t wait to see your new home!
Mary,
I think you and your husbad are doing all that you can for her, and now you must have faith in God to take care of her. (and he will.) I pray for you and your family that your faith will give you peace while awaiting the surgery.
Thank you, Juli, I do have a peace about it. I think my biggest anxiety was not “knowing” what to do. Now that we’ve decided, I feel so much relief. I know much of it is from all the prayers!
Hey Mary,
Very troubling indeed! I think you might see some good results in five weeks….I’ll pray so, anyway!
Have you considered doing a “drawing” poultice of any kind? I don’t know much about them, but that is what came to mind.
Hi Holly,
Thanks for commenting…yes, we’ve looked into it but not until recently. Way back when, after the first draining of the cysts we did ten minute soaks in Epsom salt water twice a day for a week. Now that there is no “opening”, I’m not sure if a drawing poultice would work. The splinter is so deep, and the cysts around it are hardening.
🙁
Finally explained to 7 yo that we are going to do surgery, and she broke down. We were all soo hoping that we’d find an alternative. Plus, she’s always been my fearful one…it seems like God’s been working away at her fears the past two years. Kind of scary as her mama, to wonder what He’s building up to, but I’m glad He’s allowing it.