Repeated headlines from various media outlets in this province frequently tell bad tales of our provincial health care system and how inadequate the care is for many residents.
This week, however, we have a great story to tell about our health care system, a tale that helped save the life of a Roberts Creek man.
Sixty-one-year-old Michael Lovatt is lucky to be alive after he survived a deadly viper bite while on vacation in Costa Rica.
His ordeal began on Saturday, March 16, when he was out for walk near his tourist cottage. He felt a stabbing pain in his foot and thought ants had bitten him. Little did he know that a deadly poisonous bothrops viper snake had bitten him.
Within an hour his right foot and ankle were swollen and throbbing in pain. His condition continued to worsen, so he sought medical attention at the local clinic.
It was like he was going through a drive through fast food outlet for dinner - the care, or lack of care, he received was pathetic. Doctors who examined him had no clue he had received a deadly snakebite. In fact, they thought he had been drinking. They gave him a few painkillers, he paid his bill at the wicket, and off he went.
The next morning he began his journey home and his condition continued to deteriorate.
By the time he landed in Vancouver, his lips were bleeding - an indication of a snakebite - and his leg was swollen halfway up his knee.
He was immediately admitted to Vancouver General Hospital, and within hours, doctors, thanks to the B.C. Drug and Poison Information Centre, had identified that he had indeed suffered a snakebite and sourced the life-saving antivenin from the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle.
A medivac helicopter flew to Seattle and picked up the antivenin, which doctors administered at VGH. While all of this was going on, Lovatt was understandably worried that he would die. In fact, he called his children in Nova Scotia and they were rushing to his bedside - he figured they would arrive in time to plan his funeral.
If not for the quick and expert actions of the full medical team, Lovatt's family could be planning his funeral.
Sure, our medical system is not perfect. Governments need to provide more funding, more doctors and nurses, more equipment. But there is no comparison to the care and treatment that Lovatt received here in Canada versus Costa Rica.
These doctors and nurses saved his life. This type of care and professionalism should not go unappreciated.
