Healthcare in Iqaluit

This week I am in the unfortunate position to be blogging about my first hand experience as an end user of the healthcare system. I use the term unfortunate because of the pain, not because of the system.

Last Sunday we were out on the ice enjoying the fresh dump of snow by spending the afternoon zipping around on the snowmachine. The light was very flat and it had been windy so the once smooth road on the ice was hard to see and covered in snow dunes. Blaine failed to see a particularly large dune and we flew over it , landing with a bang that jarred my lower back. It wasn't painful at the time and we carried on with our day, including coffee at the fire hall because you can drive the snowmachine right up to the front door.

Back at home I was pottering in the kitchen when my back just went so I put myself to bed with some drugs. Monday morning it was not too bad so I drove the quad to work but had trouble sitting down for long at my desk. Gerry made me an appointment with a Registered Massage therapist, the soonest one available being 1pm on Wednesday. Tuesday morning I could barely get upright but after an hour of gentle stretching (much to Johnny & Sage's amusement) I got moving and walked slowly to the office. Wednesday morning it took me so long to get moving that I didn't get to work until 0945. My boss mentioned that to reclaim the massage on our healthcare plan you need a doctor's referral.

There are no GPs up here. You can go to the clinic in the old hospital building at 0830 and wait for a same day appointment or phone for an appointment, I was offered May 26. You can go to the emergency room. Or you can make an appointment with a Nurse Practitioner at Public Health which is just at the end of our road. I secured an appointment at 1500 which fit neatly after my 1300 massage. A one-hour massage set me back $140 and brought some relief. The nurse prescribed me some drugs so I dropped off the prescription at North Mart and went home to lie down. Blaine picked up the drugs for me and administered them and put me to bed.

Thursday morning I was able to move more easily and drove to work. I was very good about getting up and moving around every 20 minutes but was still in a lot of pain. Taking my jacket off the coat peg at lunch time almost made me cry and I shuffled to the fire hall for my lunch and put an ice pack on. The ice helped and I went back to work where I resumed my 20 minute seated, 10 minute standing routine. At 5pm I left the office and drove home to get supper on as Craig and Linda were coming over at 6:30 for a curry feast.

Blaine walked in the door a couple of minutes after me to find me pacing the living room distraught and unable to get comfortable. Suddenly I was overcome with the most incredibly painful spasms in my lower back. I have a very high pain tolerance, my tattooist Jay will vouch for me on that, so for me to be screaming out loud this was some serious pain. At 5:20pm after a couple of minutes of non stop spasms I collapsed on the floor on my back with my knees pulled to my chest. Blaine administered the drugs that I was prescribed the day before and held my hand as I writhed and screamed. He tried desperately to find me some relief, feeding me ice cubes and Hydromorphone, stacking pillows under my legs, stroking my hair and telling me distracting stories.

At 8pm we admitted defeat and phoned for an ambulance. There is no 911 in Iqaluit, you dial 979 4422 for fire, ambulance and bylaw, 979 1111 gets you the RCMP. A-shift arrived and set about getting me onto a clamshell to get me out of the house, the poor guys did a great job of being really careful and trying super hard to not cause me anymore pain. Inevitably there was some screaming but with some muscle and clever improvisation they kept me in my fetal position as they carried me down the stairs and across the ice field that forms out front doorstep. The roads are currently more pot hole than tarmac and Travis did an amazing job of driving the ambulance around the obstacles. Blaine rode with me in the bus and had little Blaine follow in his truck, Walter took my vitals and other paramedic stuff. The ambulance ride costs $800 and is covered by my extended heatlhcare plan at work, as are my prescription drugs.

I was carefully wheeled into the hospital where the doctor kindly had the nurse inject me with some drugs before he attempted an examination. My pain had not subsided so I got another shot, this time some more  hydromorhone which eased the pain somewhat, but not enough to facilitate the use of a bed pan so I had to have a catheter. Back spasms and a full bladder are not a good combination so the relief of finally being able to pee was phenomenal. Sometime around 10pm I was able to slowly lower my legs until I was lying prostrate for the first time in almost 5 hours. The doctor examined me and, satisfied that the injury was muscular, announced that his goal was to get me ambulatory which involved writing out a prescription for lots more drugs. My first attempt at sitting upright resulted in me almost fainting so I lay back down and we resorted to using the hospital bed to slowly elevate me into a seated position. Wisely agreeing that caution was the best approach, Blaine got me into a wheelchair and pushed me to the truck where he carefully helped me in. Back at home Blaine carefully arranged me in bed (with a complex arrangement of pillows to keep the pressure off my lower back) where I quickly slipped into a deep drug-induced sleep.

I am writing this on Sunday morning in a semi-seated position on the couch. I spent all day Friday in bed, Saturday I alternated between bed and the couch. Last night in bed I was able to roll onto my side by myself whereas on Friday night I had to wake Blaine to roll me. I still cannot get up or sit down unaided, Blaine has to lift and lower me and fetch and carry every little thing. I am eternally grateful that my husband is so strong and so gentle, kind and patient - thank you baby :-)

The days are a little mixed up, I think it was on Friday that C shift delivered a bouquet of tulips in a pretty vase, thank you boys.