“My daughter can’t breathe can she see the doctor?”
“We have an opening in 20 minutes at 3:15.”
“Ok, I will take it. I may be a few minutes late because I don’t have a car.”
“Well then I’m afraid your daughter will have to die.”
“I can’t get there by 3:15. Can I have a later appointment?”
Recently my wife had a reaction to a cephlasporin drug and was having trouble breathing. I took her straight to the clinic with no appointment, walked up to the desk and told them she was having trouble breathing. We were taken immediately into the clinic for care. Fortunately she did not have to be hospitalized. A breathing treatment, a shot of steroids and observed. She was good to go after this, but no more beta-lactams for her ever.
Even though this was just an offsite clinic of the hospital, there was a crash cart at the ready. If necessary they could have intubated her and then to the hospital for critical care.
Scott White Baylor is our clinic and hospital. They have given us great care over the years.