In China with a broken leg...

There I was in a foreign country, China, could only manage two or three words, with a broken leg and only knowing a few people there. To say that panic didn't go thru my mind once or twice an hour [or minute] was not true. But even though I was on my back with a huge fracture of my femur [thigh bone] it seemed though I had plenty to do.

At first in the Shenzhen hospital it was about making sure I had enough money for the doctors and surgeons to keep performing and making sure my leg and health were on the right path to get well.

Then it was just living in a Chinese hospital. The nurses and doctors only do what is required to manage the health of the patient. The only orderlies there provide the drinking water and move the beds and patients around. There is no other services provided, like food and meals or washing and cleaning of the patients. All this is done by the patient family. Every patient has a family member with them night and day, 24 X 7. The family take it in turns to provide round the clock care in shifts and they provide the meals as well. A lot of the meals were by take-a-way as well. Around every meal time there is a throng of delivery people bringing the latest meals for the patient and the family members aw well in some case.

When evening comes, there are camp beds brought out from hidden closets for the family member, who is on shift, to lie in. These were placed in-between every bed.

To say the was a culture shock etc is an understatement. Because with out my friend and wife to be, Lianny, I was completely on my own, without any idea of what was what. And of course no real way of conversing.

But I survived, with Lianny's 100% care, help and being with me 24 X 7. To say I was amazed was an understatement again. I could only offer a somewhat tear jerked 'thank you' every time she performed any task like to wash and feed me. Lianny's reply was, stop saying thank you, we Chinese do this and we have to. It is in our culture to act this way. If we didn't, every one would think we are so bad. But we like doing this. We like caring for family and friends.

After a three days in the hospital, the operation took place. It took nearly six hours, but it went ok, according to the surgeons. However, Lianny told me later she was very worried after about 'programmed' three hours were up and the doctors would not tell anything. It appears the surgeons had a difficult problem with the fracture and how to stop the leg being short. In the end they could do much about it. I awoke to find my damage leg some 4 inches [in the old money] short.

After another 7 days I was permitted to go home. The trouble was my home was 12,000 kilometers away. But Lianny came to the rescue once again and said, you are coming back to my home and that is where you will stay!!! So I did that...