A Patient's Perspective (2)- The Story of Oleg

Source: EnglishRussia.com

Oleg was born in the city of Omsk on a warm summer day in Russia twenty years ago. His parents were poor peasants who worked hard and saved some money to send their son to school. His dad worked in the lumber company in a nearby town while his mother taught in the local elementary school. He was the second child but his birth was celebrated with much pomp and pageantry in line with local customs, almost as though he were the first child. This is because he was born seven years after his elder brother. His naming ceremony was attended by almost everyone in the town and he was showered with gifts by so many well-wishers.

Oleg grew up with his mother and father doting over him, but at about the age of five years, he was sickly and was not allowed to play with the kids for fear of “catching a fever”. Everyone thought he was just spoiled silly, but his parents suspected something was wrong. They had gone to the local doctor so many times but he assured them that Oleg was fine and that he was only passing through this phase.

The Road from Omsk.
Source:omskcityblogspot

Then one cold December morning, Oleg complained of weakness of his limbs and for the entire day, could not move his legs or arms and was crying due to the excessive pain. Panic-stricken, the parents rushed him to the local doctor who was at a loss about what to do. The primary care doctor could only guess what this strange condition was- he had no way to test the child in order to make a diagnosis, he did not even have painkillers strong enough to stop the pain. He tried calling the hospital at the next town but there was nothing they could do- they had to try to bring the child to the hospital the next morning. At dawn, the parents and the family doctor set forth to go to the hospital, four hours away by road - the child cried all the way to the hospital.

At the local district hospital, the doctors succeeded in giving the child some very strong painkillers and he slept fitfully- for the first time in 2 days. Alas, the hospital did not have the necessary equipment to diagnose the condition and they had to refer to the specialist hospital in far away Moscow. Could they call the doctors over there so they could have a discussion about the case? Yes but the phone call was limited because the specialist could not see the patient- he could only rely on what the other doctors said.  Finally, they agreed to send the child to Moscow but the parents refused. They had no money. How could they fly their son to Moscow? How could they even afford his medical bills? There was simply no way. Sophia, Oleg’s mother wept bitterly.

Russian Specialist Hospital
Source:Indiabizclub

The people from the town took a collection for the family and they were finally able to send Oleg to Moscow for specialist care. The tests were done and the doctors argued bitterly over the possible diagnosis. Lou Gehrig’s disease? Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis? Guillain Barre’s syndrome? They finally had to make use of the hospital’s newly installed Clinical Decision Support System to make a final diagnosis in line with current evidence based research: Multiple Sclerosis.

The clinicians were glad that their multi-million ruble electronic medical record fitted with a state-of-the-art clinical decision support system was finally yielding dividends. However, the battle for Oleg’s life had just begun…