Oh the ear!

Her daycare provider told me she was poking at her ear and didn't nap well and was pretty unhappy when I picked up Thing 2 yesterday afternoon.
She's had some serious upper molar action lately, so we decided to try the standby decongestant/Motrin cocktail.

She slept restlessly, when she did sleep. She spent a decent chunk of the wee hours perched on our pillows.

This morning I called the appointment line to get her into see her Pediatrician.
Give 10 minutes of personal information, Thing 2 symptoms and address.
No appointments available today.
"Please call the Ped office, see if they can squeeze you in. "
So, I called the Ped's office, and was snarked at by some Corpsman for calling them.
Let her know to call Tricare office and tell them to stop telling parents to call.
Asked if I could chat with a nurse. Snotty Corpsman takes my contact info and says a nurse will call me.
To clarify, "Today?"
She says, "maybe."

Nurse calls, and says there are no appointments available this week
I ask nurse what is going on that I cannot get Thing 2 in to see a pediatrician when she's sick?
Nurse says I should take Thing 2 to the ER.
Let nurse know that ER gets pissed when kids are brought in for things that are not super emergencies when there's a perfectly good Pediatrics clinic a few floors up.
Nurse says all the kids booked in appointments are sicker than mine.

What.ever.

I put Thing 2 down for a nap.
Hospital calls, and I let it go to voicemail.

After restless 25 minute nap, Thing 2 has a snack while I get us ready to go to the ER out in town.*
I check the voicemail, and it was the nurse calling back to say they made some appointments for the evening and suggested I try and get one.

Call appointment line and relay what the nurse had said.
The scheduler wouldn't give up that information without me giving up the standard 20 minutes worth of information. Essentially repeating everything I had told the other scheduler earlier this morning.
Scheduler states no appointments are available this week, but I can call the pediatric clinic and see if I can get in.....

I had to hang up on her.

I took Julia to the ER to the nice hospital downtown, was sitting in an examination room with her within 15 minutes of walking in the door. She was diagnosed with an ear infection by the nicest Doctor, and was given a dose of each of the two meds she was prescribed by a nurse who told us she was a joy to treat and invited us back anytime.
We were happily out the door within an hour.

I was told to have her in with her Ped. for a follow up in ten days.
I should call now and book the appointment.


*When Thing 1 was three, he was having symptoms of an ear infection late at night.
We were due to fly across the country a week later. We brought him to the ER at the Naval Hospital and after waiting 2 1/2 hours, the pediatrician on duty came in and told me that in Europe they don't treat ear infections with antibiotics.
And since Thing 1 was so compliant, he couldn't possibly be sick, and we were told to just go home and give him some Tylenol.