New Year’s Resolution: To post more on my blog, so people will know I am still alive. I’ve been up to a lot since I last posted. Been on 3 trips to different provinces in China. Had my mom and sister come out and visit (yay!). Got really cracking on my research projects. Had a fun Christmas and New Year's (tho neither is really celebrated in China.) And more… I hope all your holidays went well and that you are all now refreshed for 2010. You guys got any New Year’s Resolutions?
btw this post didn’t have pictures to go with it, but the future ones will!
Without further ado….
Random happenings in Beijing
Though my trips thus far have been fun, living in Beijing is pretty crazy, itself. I’ve had some unexpected and unusual things happen since I’ve been here.
In particular, there was a rather memorable incident a couple months ago….I was exiting the subway with one of my friends when I noticed a young migrant worker lying down on the sidewalk, using his pack as a pillow. He looked to be taking a nap in the warm midday sun, and I was about to walk past him when I noticed that his face was twitching. As I took a second look at him, he began slowly raising his arms and legs up and moving them in a curious manner. It was at this point I suddenly realized…he’s seizing!
I have witnessed 2 seizures in the past, both in the hospital when I was on the wards. In both cases I ran over to the patient, all while calling for help and help was usually soon there. But here, standing on the street in Beijing I was at a loss for what to do. Typically, there’s not a ton for you to do during a seizure, and they’ll usually end on their own. You should not try to restrain the person. You shouldn’t put something in their mouth. You can move stuff out of their way if they might injure themselves on it. And once the seizure is over, you just wait for them to come out of their post-seizure (or post-ictal) state on their own.
My first thought was to call 911 and then realized I wasn’t sure which number to call, as there seem to be multiple different emergency numbers in Beijing. Then I realized even if we got this man to an ER, I wasn’t sure what would happen. Would he be seen? Usually they require payment first. Would his migrant worker status cause him problems? Could he get arrested? Did he even need to go to the hospital? You don’t have to go to a hospital for every seizure. If it was his first then he should go. There’s lots of things that can cause seizures, which should be worked up and often can be treated. If he’s an epileptic he could be started on anti-seizure medication (which I’m not sure if he could afford). Maybe he was already on medication? If the seizure didn’t end and he didn’t regain consciousness he definitely needed to go get treatment. Or if he hurt himself during the seizure he should go to the hospital.
A German man appeared and began telling us in broken English to call an emergency number which shocked my friend and me out of our indecision, and as there was too much we didn’t know about this man’s past medical history, we called for an ambulance… only to be put on hold.
At this point a crowd had begun to appear. An older migrant worker began saying that this man often had this happen and would be fine within 30 minutes. We asked him if he knew if this man took medicines, if he knew if he was epileptic. He just shook his head and then when we asked him if he knew this man personally, he said no.
Another woman began calling the police. An older, distinguished-looking man began trying to give the migrant worker candy, thinking his condition might be related to hypoglycemia. The man in question had stopped seizing long ago and now was attempting to get up, all while waving the candy away and saying “没用”，or “no use”. (Note: During a seizure, you don’t want to give people food until they’re fully recovered --don’t want to risk choking). He looked sleepy, confused, post-ictal. He did not respond to questions being pelted at him by the crowd: Are you ok? Are you epileptic? Do you want to go to the hospital? He waved everyone away and abruptly got up and walked away leaving his things behind.
At this point we were taken off hold, but said an ambulance was no longer necessary. The lady calling the police said they were already on their way. The crowd dispersed leaving the older distinguished-looking gentleman staring at the migrant worker’s pack saying he would tell the police what happened.
My friend and I left for the lunch we were late for, all the while pondering if we did the right thing (that is, not much.)
That same day while taking a cab to a mountain on the outskirts of Beijing, our cab hit a motorcyclist. Luckily no one was injured. Our driver and the young motorcyclist began yelling at each other. The woman sitting on the back of the motorcycle who was thrown to the ground got up and began brushing herself off and picking up the 3 large boxes that were tied to the sides of the bike. The voices of the men were getting louder and louder both saying one should pay the other. A crowd had gathered (as they often do), and they seemed to be siding with the younger motorcyclists. We weren’t really sure what was going on or if this would ever end, until the driver pulled his trump card. He said he could call the police, and quickly pulled out his phone and began dialing. This clearly scared the young man who started saying they should just forget the whole thing. The older driver wouldn’t back down and eventually got the young man to agree to give him about 500rmb ($75) to fix the dent on his bumper from hitting the bike. The two got into the taxicab and drove to the nearest bank, while we got in another cab and left the scene.
Beijing, it’s an adventure.
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