Bad timing

Saturday day-trip to Awaji-shima: in retrospect, he wasn't looking too well!

Sick infectious child? Have to work? No available family members? Who you gonna call?

— Kupu Kupu

When we were living in the UK, one of us would probably have had to cancel classes. Even here, this is normally what we would do, but this week—exam week—is different: both Ayumi and I really have to turn up for work.

So when, at 2am on Saturday morning, I was told by the duty doctor at the 24-hour children’s clinic in HAT Kobe, that Justin had Influenza A—the result from an on-site diagnostic test that took 10 minutes—and that he wouldn’t be allowed to return to nursery for at least five days, I was stumped.

But Ayumi had the answer: at least, the Internet did, and she found it. By lunchtime on Sunday, she had contacted a local nursery/hospital (hospital/nursery?), had made an appointment on line, had taken Justin over for a preliminary assessment, and booked him in to this special nursery for sick children whose parents have to work. City-subsidized, the daily rate is less than his regular nursery (not including lunches). He's in good hands, and a doctor does the rounds every evening to check on progress and to certify the children as safe to return to nursery.

Of course, this is not a perfect solution, and I’m afraid that Justin will be very upset, and miserable, and possibly afraid. But it is a solution of sorts.

In the other countries where we have lived and raised children, there are practically no services available when your child is sick. Precisely at the time you need most help. Though there are many things about Japan that compare disfavourably with Britain or America—my personal bugbear being traffic-lights, of all things—the efficiency and accessibility of medical and paramedical services at a reasonable charge is/are not one of them.

So now, I’m off to pick him up. Let’s hope it hasn’t been too traumatic.

PS. It wasn't.