We picked our children up from school on Wednesday September 23, 2009 at 3:05p.m. and our 8 year old son was his usual healthy, frisky and bubbly self. Within one hour of schools end, he began complaining of a bad headache. Shortly thereafter he said his throat was hurting. Less than 15 minutes after that he looked lethargic and had a bright red cherry face, the kind that lets you know they have a high fever. I felt his face and he was burning up. A quick check of his temperature revealed that he was already up to a 102.5 degree temperature. He was now also complaining that his legs hurt so bad that he could barely walk, and was holding on to things to keep himself up. As I was putting the thermometer away he began coughing. It was one of those deep, ugly, dry, barking type coughs; the ones where the child can’t seem to catch their breath and makes a mother cringe. All of this had hit him in under one hour and thirty minutes, when he had been healthy as a horse at 3p.m.

Instinctively, I knew that my child needed to be seen by a doctor; although it may be possible that my previous medical background told me it was probably not good. I immediately gathered my son and headed to the closest urgent care that is covered by our insurance of course. When we arrived I explained his symptoms to the person at the desk. She said it sounded like Swine Flu also known as H1N1. She then kindly advised me, “If it is we can’t properly diagnose or treat him and will end up sending him to the emergency room.” So we left and headed to our local hospital. When we arrived the hospital had up a sign requesting that anyone with Swine flu symptoms put on a mask and use hand sanitizer, located immediately inside the door. I complied and had to force my already crankily sick child to put on a mask.

The doctor examined my child and ordered a battery of tests. He ordered a strep throat test, and chest x-ray, and a swine flu test. The strep test and x-ray were easily performed. My poor baby screamed and thrashed and had to be held down in order for the swine flu test to be performed; this made and uncomfortable test even worse. It even made his nose slightly bleed out of the nostril the test was done in. The doctor advised us that the strep test was negative. The Swine Flu test results would not be completed until late the next morning. The doctor said that my son had a least the flu, if it was not the Swine Flu. He prescribed my 8 year old child antibiotic which I readily agree that he needed. In fact they gave him his first dose while we were still there. The doctor wrote my young son a prescription for promethazine with codeine.

By the time we left the hospital it was very late, my son and I were both exhausted. He was furious at this point especially with the mask he had been required to wear. I knew he had been given the antibiotic that he needed for the day, and I was not sure if I was comfortable giving my child the strong prescription the doctor had ordered. So, I decided to put off going to the pharmacy till we all had a little sleep.

Obviously, he was not going to school, so I called the school and told them he would be out for a few days. The next morning I decided that we needed to follow up with my son’s primary physician. First of all I was really still not comfortable with the cough syrup the E.R. doctor had prescribed, plus my son was “sick as a dog.” We could not keep his fevers under control ever alternating Tylenol every 4 hours and Ibuprofen every 6 hours.

We headed in to our primary’s office I explained the whole scenario and she immediately went to have her nurse get copies of all the tests that had been completed the previous night. The doctor then advised me that she did not want me giving him the cough syrup, that she felt it was much too potent for a child his age and size. I was glad that I had not given the medication to my child with after careful thought and consideration. She got the x-ray results and advised us that my son had pneumonia, the Swine Flu test results still were not back. She told us to keep him hydrated, lots of fluids, to include juice, popsicles, chicken soup, cool wash clothes and the fever reducers, and to use the antibiotic previously prescribed.

At almost 7:50 pm that evening we received a call from my child’s primary care doctor. She had called to advise us that the test results were back and that it was a Confirmed Positive Case Of Swine Flu (H1N1.) She told me that because my son was an otherwise healthy child she would not give him Tamiflu. This further increased my nervousness and my baby was still a hot mess.

The next morning I immediately advised my children’s school, which is in the Beaverton School District, that my son had a confirmed positive case of Swine Flu. Their attitude was so nonchalant I sensed they were going to tell no one. They said they would have to wait and contact a bunch of people to decide how it would be handled. I was outraged. How could they withhold this important information from other parents? They notify us when a child has lice, which is contagious but not deadly. Swine Flu is highly contagious and is deadly. Our school, like most schools, have children that are medically fragile and have compromised immunity. It is an outrage that this information was going to be withheld from the parents of these children. This in essence meant that the school was making medical decisions for parents regarding their children. This practice is rampant in many cities across the United States. Please don’t panic though; most people who are healthy will survive Swine Flu.

Most importantly as parents we need to know, Swine Flu is generally spread by coughing or sneezing. It is imperative that we teach our children and ourselves that regular hand washing and covering any cough or sneeze are essential. Teach your children not to share food or drinks with their friends. It was a rough week for my son but made it through. Somehow, even though our whole family was holed up together in the house for a week, thankfully none of the rest of us got it. In conclusion, take care and stay healthy, and practice incessant hand washing during the flu season.