“OH SHITTTT”…
June 15, 2016, 8:00 AM
That’s what I heard. It wasn’t the usual ‘oh shit’ or ‘ohh shit’ from Jaisha; I knew what those meant. This one had a cry in it... I was in bed, lost in some dream, when I heard it. I knew something was wrong, really wrong. I threw off the blanket and ran towards the kitchen. There, I saw Jaisha and her mom crying, and Neeruttan was on the floor, screaming. He had pulled the coffee mug off the kitchen table, and hot coffee had spilled all over him…
I know there’s no point in writing this, as no one wants to hear tragic stories about kids. But for the last year, this memory has kept haunting me, and this is an attempt to recollect what happened on that messed up day. Maybe it will haunt us for the rest of our lives, though luckily, Neeruttan has forgotten everything.
Jaisha removed his shirt, and at first glance, it all looked fine to me. I thought maybe nothing had happened. But that wasn’t the case. The first thing we did was apply some ointment for burns. I heard Amma crying again and saw that Neeruttan’s skin was starting to peel off. There was no time to waste. We immediately called a cab and rushed to the nearest hospital, Ramakrishna. Neeruttan was really in pain, rolling in the seat, unable to sit properly. I tried to hold him, but the burn was too severe for him to bear. I saw that the skin from his shoulder and chest had come off in my hand, exposing his flesh.
We reached Ramakrishna Hospital in 10 minutes. The doctor applied some cream and gave him pain medication. I thought that might do the trick. But no, the doctor said we had to take him to Fortis or Narayana. Considering Bangalore’s morning traffic, going to Bannerghatta was out of the question, so we decided to go to Narayana at Hosur. (Yeah, no one mentioned an ambulance, and we weren’t in a state to think about that option.) By 9:30, we were stuck in traffic, waiting for about 20 minutes, with the sunlight intensifying the pain on Neeruttan’s body. I saw a policeman trying to control the traffic and ran towards him. At first, he didn’t understand what I was saying. I cried and begged him to come to the cab and see for himself. He came, saw Neeruttan in the temporary bandage covering his upper body, and immediately stopped all the traffic. (Believe me, that was a massive bottleneck where we got stuck.) He ensured that our cab could get through within minutes.
We reached Narayana around 10 AM. I realized there were other buildings behind the main hospital. We went straight to the emergency side of the Mazumdar Shaw Hospital wing. Jaisha ran into the emergency room with Neeruttan. There was a duty doctor and some junior doctors, I believe. At first glance, they said there were 1st and 2nd-degree burns. They called the plastic surgeon, Dr. Sachin, who confirmed the same and started the first step—cleaning the wounds. We removed the temporary wrapping and saw that the burns were on his chest, stomach, both shoulders, chin, and two drops had fallen on the back of his left shoulder. I don’t know how Jaisha and I managed at that time. She had held him the entire way. When they started cleaning, the doctors asked me to hold his hand. Neeruttan looked at me, screaming in pain. I didn’t realize he had burns on his hand too. Wherever I held him, his skin turned black.
The duty doctor approached us, and Dr. Sachin also arrived. They said they would first wrap his entire body with bandages after applying medicine, giving his body time to heal. The duty doctor informed me that their hospital doesn’t typically take burn victims, but since this was an infant case, he made arrangements to admit him there. (By the way, in case you didn’t realize, this doctor was an angel. His strong decision saved us from having to take Neeruttan to another hospital in that condition. There have been similar cases in our family where my cousin had to visit 3-4 hospitals.)
Dr. Sachin told us that there were first-degree burns on his face and tummy, and second-degree burns on his chest. He reassured us not to worry but said we needed to monitor him for infection and skin regrowth. By 12:30 PM, if I’m not mistaken, they moved him into the Step-Down ICU for kids. It was a very delicate place, as they were treating children with multiple issues. Neeruttan’s bed was in one corner, and Jaisha held him in her arms since he couldn’t lie down. Some of the nurses were Malayalis, but none were experienced in handling burn cases, as I mentioned earlier. I had to step out since they didn’t allow visitors there. Whenever Jaisha needed a break, she called me, and I went inside to take him in my arms.
Earlier, I saw Jaisha calling her sister, and I overheard her saying she couldn’t bear to see him like this—it was really bad. Vinsha and Rejeesh immediately planned to come, later confirming they would arrive by Thursday. I called Aruchetan, who I believe was heading to work. I told him not to worry and to inform Amma, as I wasn’t in a state to talk to them. Chetan called back, saying he was coming on the next flight. There are moments in life when you realize how close your family and friends are. By evening, Ammayi and Maman had also arrived. I had told everyone not to come since they couldn’t enter the ICU or even see Neeruttan from outside. But they all came, and yes, it was a big relief.
Jaisha told me that the ICU was a bit of a nightmare, as other kids were also in immense pain and cried all night. I was sitting outside and saw another child, around 4-5 years old, holding a urine bag connected to his body, coming in with his mom. When the doctor called him inside, he was crying and begging not to go in. I was already in a half-dead state after seeing Neeruttan in pain; these other sights only added to it. In between, Jaisha called me inside so she could take a break. When Neeruttan saw me approaching, he tried to stand up and raised his hands, gesturing to take him back home :’( :’( :’(
Jaisha stayed up all night, while Neeruttan managed to sleep a little. I was outside on the ground floor, where some seats were in the waiting area. People were sleeping in chairs, on the floor, wherever they could find space. Luckily, I found a chair and could sit. I went into the ICU 2 or 3 times so Jaisha could take breaks. In between, I saw Brion Aliyan online, pinged him, and talked for about an hour. Believe me, in these kinds of situations, the only things that help are a good coffee and talking to someone. Brion, as always, made sure I was okay, saying he would keep checking in on Neeruttan’s status. (He kept his word for the next five days.) Another thing I realized was how strong Jaisha was. She couldn’t sleep at all because Neeruttan kept crying, but she showed immense courage for his sake.
The next morning, Vinsha and Rejeesh arrived, and Aruchetan also reached by that time. Vinsha stayed with Amma, and Rejeesh and Chetan were with us the whole time. To be honest, I don’t remember much of what happened on Thursday and Friday. We moved to a room. That night, Neeruttan had a bit of chapatti. Since he had burns on his tongue, he hadn’t eaten anything for the last two days, so it was a relief to see him start eating again. The doctor said we needed to remove the bandages and clean his wounds on Saturday. Normally, nurses help in these situations, but here, no one knew how to handle burn victims! So Jaisha and I carefully removed the bandages. (Did I mention the nurses running around because they couldn’t find proper scissors? Yeah, that happened too!!) Jaisha gave him a quick bath. I won’t go into details, as it was really painful. The skin hadn’t settled yet, so it was a bit of a horror scene. After that, the doctor came and bandaged him. He said we could go home that day itself. But Jaisha mentioned that Neeruttan was in a lot of pain because of the bath and bandaging, so it would be better if we stayed for one more day in case he needed medicine that night. I’m glad she said that; he was in more pain and needed painkillers that night.
On Sunday, Neeruttan was discharged. As the doctor had confirmed on Saturday, we were supposed to settle everything and leave by 10-11 in the morning. Thanks to the staff, unnecessary confusion arose, and we finally left by 4 PM. Not complaining, but we heard from other patient families that this was quite normal there. We reached home, and it was actually funny to see Neeruttan running around in those bandages.We thought he wouldn’t go to the kitchen again, but the moment we arrived, he ran around to reclaim his territory, including the kitchen
He was just 1.4 years old at that time, and the good part was that he doesn’t remember anything. The marks on his face healed within a week. The chest was more difficult due to the 2nd-degree burns, but the doctor assured us that the color would eventually return and there was nothing to worry about (it did).I can’t conclude this small note without a session of thanks. Obviously, our family and friends were with us the whole time, making sure we were all okay. Vinsha, Rejeesh, and Aruchettan were there constantly. Brion kept checking in on us every day, making sure we were holding up, offering any help we needed. I want to thank the duty doctor, because of whom Neeruttan didn’t have to face traffic again or endure a long wait for treatment; Dr. Sachin, who carefully treated him and handled everything so well, even WhatsApping me to check on Neeruttan’s status and progress; the ICU doctor who spoke to Jaisha about how to handle the situation and not blame ourselves for what happened—his words were a huge relief, as he must have seen these kinds of cases often; our watchman and Sunil, the next building’s watchman, who came immediately with a bike when we left the house; Jai Sir, who helped me with the company medical formalities; his friend Praveen from the CAG team, who quickly passed my insurance details; the policeman who helped us navigate that bloody labyrinth of a traffic block; and all the hospital staff who assisted us…
Life always gives us shocking moments to remind us that it’s not always a joyful ride. It’s up to us how we overcome them. In these moments, we realize how close we are to our family and friends, who stand by us and extend a helping hand. Even words or simple gestures are powerful enough to give us the strength to take the next step.
So, long story short, Neeruttan has fully recovered, is happy, and is running around with more mischief, making sure we are always on the edge of breaking down.. :)