A night odyssey through healthcare with an important lesson

 Dear all,

today I write as Valentina because I want to share a story happened to me last night. It's something that I think will help and warn all of us when it comes to the emergency services. We need to be careful in choosing what to do during unexpected circumstances.

If you don't have time to go through my story, at least save in your phone this number:

Israel Poison Information Center

+97247771900

Now let me tell you what happened. Yesterday night I was about to fall asleep when I had a sudden flash in my mind. A thought went through and bothered me for a few minutes, because I was not sure whether I took my daily medication or not. And I can tell, it's terrible going without for me.

In a few seconds, I decided to go to the kitchen and check in the box where I keep the pills ordered by the day of the week. I checked on Saturday, and the pills were there.

"Uff, stupid me... I must have forgotten earlier!" I thought, and I swallowed the first pill. I went to the trash bin to throw the casing of the pills, and while I am putting the second pill in my mouth I realize that the casing of the previous pills were already there.

Since my boyfriend threw away the trash before dinner time, seeing the aluminum pockets at the bottom of the trash bin got me very worried. "I've mistaken the day in the medicine box. I already took the pills today!" I whispered. I spat the pill I was chewing, but the other one was already gone. I immediately looked for the instruction manual of the pills and I got to know that "If you took more than the recommended dose, immediately look for medical support". Damn!

It's 2am and I didn't know what was going to happen to me in the next half hour. My nervousness and tension grew fast. "What should I do now?" I kept asking myself. 

I checked on the papers of my insurance (I have Harel Clalit), and there were a few options:

1) ambulance and first aid

2) 24/7 clinic in Bnei Brak

3) doctor at home by Bikur Rofeh

Luckily, my boyfriend was with me, so we considered and valued all of the options. 

If I called the ambulance, I would need a referral from my insurance company to avoid paying the expenses of my rescue. And plus, was the emergency number the right one to call? I was not feeling bad at all, for the moment. What if I was shooting a fly with a cannon? If the emergency is not a real life-threatening emergency, the insurance would not pay.

Maybe I needed to go to the 24/7 clinic in Bnei Brak. Which means to get out of bed, get ready, take the car, go to the acceptance desk, explain the whole story and hoping that I could go into the ambulatory immediately. Would I still be able to do it in half hour? Would it go the way I expected?

A more appealing option at this point was the Bikur Rofeh service, which I could interact with by phone, and with less pressure. We decided to call it

(by the way, the number is 1-800-260-660)

An electronic recorded voice, in Hebrew, started listing various options, with NO English translation. Lucky me, my boyfriend is Israeli and his mother tongue is Hebrew. Thus, he helped me going through the menu. Unfortunately, something went wrong with my phone twice, and the call unexpectedly ended. It's not the first time that happens to me, and that's why I always prefer having an Israeli person around in these situations.

We repeated the process with my boyfriend's phone, and we eventually reached an operator who - luckily - spoke English. She needed my details and policy number and then she put us on hold, for a few minutes. Meanwhile a cringe, unbearable classical music tone sounds squeakily on the speakers. When she came back, she offered two options. The doctor at home, which would be at our place within 3 hours, and the consultation with the doctor on the phone. "Well, talking immediately with a doctor sounds like the best option" I said to the operator. "Alright, it's 149 shekels for the service". I needed a second to process the information. I looked at my partner, disoriented. Then I asked "Isn't it covered by my insurance?" "No, it isn't. You only have the doctor at home service covered". I was torn: my health is important, but does a diagnosis on the phone, potentially no longer than 5 minutes worth that money? If it had helped, it would have been a good purchase; but if otherwise, I really didn't need to spend 149 shekels for someone to tell me to go to the 24/7 clinic or to a hospital. Still undecided, I let my boyfriend talk to the lady, who explained more things to him in Hebrew.

At certain point, she remembered that there is actually a service that is very appropriate for me, which is the Israel Poison Information Center, at the Rambam Medical Center. The service runs 24/7 and it is for free.

With no hesitation, we called them. The operator picked up quickly, but she did NOT speak English. Again, blessed my ma who was with me. He translated for me the various assessment questions that the lady on the phone asked me and in a few minutes she concluded that IN MY CASE there was no risk of poisoning or worrisome collateral effects, since my body is already used to taking these pills. "Worst case scenario, you will have tiredness and some dizziness" she told me. We happily received the news, thanked her and finally got back to sleep after a steam off of my nerves.

I shared the story with you because there are a few important points when one feels bad:

1) ask for help in your surroundings, having a person close to you is vital (especially Hebrew speaker)

2) get to know the terms of your insurance and what are the services that you need

3) consult with people before deciding what to do, unless it is a matter of life and death. Ask for opinions, for other options, for services around you.

4) the TAU International school hotline is available 24/7 if you are in precarious conditions and you can't find any help. The number is +972525346188. It is good to talk to them any moment, even after someone rescued/medicated you already.

5) from an overdose of pills to a snake bite, everything that can be considered poisonous can be addressed to the Israel Poison Information Center (+97247771900)

As they say, better safe than sorry