Arterial lactate sample

After the doctor's attempts to take A's arterial lactate sample, her wrist had lots of pokes and even one had a blue-black bruise. Then the doctor said her senior might try the procedure later again. We should have checked that she was just a houseman before we allowed her to do the procedure for A because it's not easy to get the arterial lactate from a young child and we've had failed attempts in the past too such that more experienced doctors were needed to take the sample. Really need to remember even when we're tired to be more insistent and demanding (but in the nicest way possible) even though the doctors may be irritated with us so that it makes life just a bit less painful for A.

The appalling thing was that before this doctor was going to do the procedure, we had already asked if it was going to be done when A was under GA because her lactate levels might increase when she's crying. And she just brushed us off saying, "Who else is going to do it? The anesthetist and the surgeon will be busy so no one else will be able to take her lactate?" So after her failed attempts, we decided to ask around and thank God a more senior doctor checked with the anesthetist the next day who ended up taking the sample while A was under GA.

Even though there are quite a few pokes near her left hip, and a bruise too (guess anesthetists aren't experienced in taking lactate samples either), at least she didn't have to experience further trauma or pain.