Tom is a 15 year old who lives with his single mother who is a 34 year old woman and his 17 year older brother Carlitos in New York City. Carlitos and Tom attend at Brooklyn High School. While Carlitos and Tom are in school their mother works in a chocolate factory. Carlitos is in 11th grade and Tom is in 9th grade. On September 9, 2008 Tom and Carlitos are ready to go to school, but when Tom gets to his first class he starts feeling dizzy but he ignores it.
Tom sees his brother during second period and he does not tell his brother about the dizziness. During his third period class his teacher is explaining the assignment to the students. Meanwhile, Tom raises his hand but his teacher did not notice and Tom could not hold it and he said “Ms. Pollen, Ms .Pollen I need to go to the bathroom. I feel like throwing up. ”Ms. Pollen came towards him and said “wait, wait let me get the garbage can for you to throw up. ” But it was too late, Tom already vomited in the classroom floor. Tom’s vomit had a green color. The teacher sent him to the nurse’s office. The nurse and the Doctor from the school check him and ask “Tell me why did they sent you?” Tom answered, “Because I felt dizzy in my first period class and I just threw up I have been feeling a sharp pain by my bladder in the left side.” The Doctor call Tom’s mother and they explained what happened. She decided to take Carlitos home with them too.
After they got Tom, Carlitos and their mother went home. Tom got worse and his family had to take him to the Emergency room at Saint Robert’s Hospital. There were a lot of patients waiting, but the nurses saw that Tom was pale and that he almost fainted in front of the registration room. So they took Tom fast in a wheel chair. The Doctor took five tubes of blood out to examine why Tom was so bad. They got the results of the blood test and the Doctor said to Tom and his mother “Everything came out good. We did a white cell blood test to make sure nothing is wrong with him. We are going to do more tests to him.” The mother asked the Doctor, “What kind of test are you going to do to my little boy Doctor?” The Doctor answer to the Mom “Is just a Cat scan.” The results were the same. Everything was all right. The Doctor sent Tom home.
Tom was really worried because no one had found anything wrong and he still was in pain and kept on vomiting. Their mother was driving the car and she received a phone call. Carlitos answered the phone. It was a nurse from the hospital. Carlitos pass the phone to Tom. “Hello?”. The nurse said, “Hi, Tom, I’m calling from Saint Robert’s hospital to tell you that you need to came back immediately. The doctor checked your results again and she found out that you need an emergency operation. We are going to be waiting for you at the emergency room. Thank you.” Tom was in shock.
Tom saw a nurse in the entrance of the Emergency room and she took him to a room and gave him a bag to put his clothes into. The same Doctor that sent him home came back to explain to him what she found in the blood test and the Cats can. “Ok I found out that Tom has appendicitis and we have to operate him immediately.” The mother got very mad and said, “Why you said he was ok and now you are telling me he has to get an operation.” The Doctor said, “Look right now I just need you to sign these papers for me to operate your son. Don’t worry your son is in very good hands and it’s a simple operation but I must operate now. I can guarantee to you that the operation is going to be excellent.” Tom’s mother signed the papers and she gave her blessing to Tom, with tears coming out of her eyes she told him, “I love you son. You’re going to be ok. I will be here waiting for you.”
The hours felt like years, and then the Doctor came. He was laughing said, “I’m so happy to tell you that the operation was a success.” Carlitos and his Mom started to cry. Tom was in intensive care. Tom needed to stay for 9 days in the Hospital for recuperation, but then he was send home.
Before he got sent home Tom talks to the Doctor and told her, “My stomach is in so much pain. I haven’t felt any better since I got the operation. Is that normal or what?” The
Doctor Checked Tom’s stomach and he said, “You’re perfect.”
Tom went home and vomited blood with a green color again. He had a high temperature and his mother took him to the same hospital. The Doctor was the same too and he did another cat scan and saw a ball of puss that he drained without giving Tom anesthesia. Tom screamed, “Mom, it hurts me take me out of here.” But Tom’s mother could not hear her son yelling for her. Tom had to stay for 10 more days and he was sent home with some medications.
Three days later, His mother takes him to see a private Doctor. At the appointment, the private Doctor tells Tom, “The medications the Doctor prescribed you are too low for what you got operate on. I’m going to send you to a new hospital. If you want, they can check you there and they will take care of you.” Tom accepted.
Tom, his brother and Mom goes to the new hospital. Once there he got another cat scan and blood test, too. They detect puss with a side of a basketball. They drain him again and the Doctor of the new hospital told Tom that he had a medical practice. But he felt like home for the first time after 22 days and he did not want to pay attention to what the Doctor said because he was happy to be alive. Tom felt less pain, but the Doctor in the new hospital gave him a strict liquid diet for now. Tom was so happy he forgot about the pain or that he was in hospital. He was sent home on October 6, 2008. Tom and his family could not believe what Tom had to suffer through for all those days and now he is like a new teenager who just wants to take his education seriously and get a career.