1st Trip to ACH

I haven’t shared much of Paige’s struggle with frequent UTIs and bedwetting until now.  She’s had 4-5 UTIs each year since she was about 9 months old and she’s yet to be able to be fully potty trained at night.  Stephen and I felt like these 2 issues were related so we asked our PCP to refer us to a pediatric urologist.  Yesterday was our first appointment with Dr. Patel at Arkansas Children’s Hospital. 

We left at about 1:00 and headed to Little Rock.  We got there at around 2:30, about 30 minutes before her appointment to have an ultrasound on her kidneys and bladder.  Since we were early, we walked through the gift shop and browsed some.  I promised Paige that she could have a treat if she acted well during her 2 appointments.  We waited nearly 45 minutes for her ultrasound but finally got it done and then we headed to the Urology clinic.  We were in a room within 5 minutes of arriving to the clinic! We met with a medical school student first that asked several questions about Paige’s particular situation, then we met with Dr. Patel.  He asked more of the same questions and then reviewed her ultrasound, which showed healthy kidneys and bladder. 

At that time, he determined that we need to test Paige for urinary reflux.  It’s tested by inserting a catheter into her bladder and shooting dye into her system using the catheter.  It won’t be a pleasant experience for Paige.  We’re waiting for ACH to call us to set up that appointment, which should be sometime in the next 2-4 weeks. 

Paige was such a trooper and got 2 treats from the hospital gift shop.  She was pleased!

I know the picture is blurry, but it is from my phone.  She had her own bracelet that they could scan and get all of her information.  Each person we encountered always asked me to state her birthday and my first name before they would proceed.  Love that safety precuation!

Here’s Paige coloring a picture of Cinderella and Gus Gus while waiting to go back to meet Dr. Patel.  I’ve been to Children’s before, but never as a parent of a patient.  I was amazed at all of the areas they had set up specifically for children.  It was amazing.

So basically we are in a holding pattern right now until we get the phone call setting up her test appointment.  I took Paige on my own yesterday because Stephen had football practice and a JV game out of town, however he’s going with me for the dye test.  I just don’t think I can handle her being uncomfortable on my own.