Little Story 242 : A Broken Toe

I slipped on a wet tiles when I wanted to close the window. It was raining heavily and I didn't noticed the puddle of water. So I slipped and my right foot hit straight to the wall, I didn't fell down, saved by the wall but I heard the 'pop' and the intense pain from my pinky toe crawled fast to my calf and thigh right after. I don't usually curse, but that pain is the kind of pain that make you curse over and over again.

My pinky toe was red, and it looked a bit farther than it normally located.

"I think I dislocated my toe".

The pain was unbearable, so I decided to go to a clinic to get it checked but it was after 5pm and so the x-ray station (at the nearest clinic we could find) was closed for the day.

The next day, I went to the same clinic and got an xray :

"You broke your pinky toe, and there's nothing on my part that I can do. So I'll write a referral letter and you can go to the hospital for further process". The doctor did a simple splint on my toe.

-

Here's the long process in summary :

• I went to Hospital Serdang, and the orthopaedic clinic was closed for Thaipusam
• I went again on the next day. The orthopaedic clinic sent me to ER
• At the ER, I was x-rayed again. The doctor that checked me sent me to the ortho again with a referral letter, and some pain-killers. 
• I went to the ortho clinic and only got a date for a checkup, 10 days later. On that day alone, I walked 3 km in total with a broken toe.
• The next day, my stepmom brought me to Az-Zahrah Hospital in Bangi. The doctor was only available for a consultation because it was almost the Friday prayer time. 
• During the consultation, he said that if I want to proceed with him, I can come in the next Monday to get it casted. He told me the price (around RM 350 per cast), then told be about 3 months MC, about recast every 10 days or so, explained that my fracture was clean and simple, only need to immobilize my foot to let the broken toe heal.
• The consultation was a bit packed and messy (maybe because I came in the wrong time).
• But even though I have insurance to cover the process, I decided to just proceed with Hospital Serdang because I didn't quite like the doctor and my family suggested me to just go to Hospital Serdang instead.
• On the 9th day, I went to get my Covid booster shot.
• I survived a broken toe with a simple splint made by the doctor from the first clinic.
• On the 10th day, I went to Hospital Serdang. I waited around 4 hours, to get a consult, only to be told to get my pinky toe 'buddy-splinted' and let it heal itself over time.

Sure the whole process at Hospital Serdang only costed RM 1, but I wasted at least 3 days walking to and fro, walked a lot alone, super slowly in pain (I can ask for a wheel chair but it was really awkward to handle the wheelchair myself so I just walked). Then I had to wait for 10 days, 4 hours of waiting just to get a 'buddy-splint' and a 5 mins consult. 

Why couldn't they just do so on the first day I meet the doctor? I just don't understand.  

The left one is when the doctor put a splint beneath my foot, did a simple buddy-splint and wrapped it. The right one is after I got a proper buddy-splint toes :

After I got my toe buddy-splinted, I was in more pain than before. So I had to make an adjustment. I  put a hard long board beneath the toe so that it won't bend, and wrapped the broken to next to my 4th four as a double splint. Then I wore my hardest flat sandal so that my foot won't bend at all when I walk. 

The 'buddy-splint' alone wasn't enough, because I still need to walk at home. I was taking care of Sofi and need to do the cooking. I think a recovery walking boot will help my foot tremendously because it will immobilize my whole foot and so a proper healing can happen faster. But I don't want to buy something that I will only use for a month :F 

So at this moment, I'm just hoping it will still heal somewhat faster. Honestly 6 weeks is a bit too much and I really need my morning walks. But I really want it to heal properly to avoid osteoarthritis due to improper healing. We all know how my body isn't really in good shape lately, I don't want any more physical pain to add in the future and I really want to do a walking pilgrimage one day.  

Remember I posted a post on IG asking for a pain-free 2022 ? 

Well, I started the year with a broken toe.