Hosible

Hospible- as a little child would say hospital- came to me recently after Skott had a particularly bad seizure. He thought he was in hospital. I asked him if he knew who I was, he said I was the 'gerl doder'- Girl Doctor. He said he had been in hospital before and last time there was a 'boy' Doctor.

I told him he was in my home and that I was looking after him. I was later told that his name is Hosible because that's the first thing he said to me. He's only ever been out once before and that's' when he was taken to hospital. He's just three years old.

He went to hospital with rectum bleeding. How on earch his family, parents, ever missed such an obvious sign of abuse is such a mystery. Skott says that as a child he had ongoing bowel problems but they never figured it out.

I assured him he was safe now. That nothing was going to hurt him anymore and that I would look after him. He didn't like hospitals, he said, and I assured him that he would never have to go back to one because someone hurt him. He was safe now.

Two weeks later he came back again, unbidden. Skott had cut out an abscess at home and Hosible became aware of it. He thought I was operating on him. He thought I was hurting him. I was saddened that he would think that and tried quickly to assure him that we were trying to help the body, not hurt it. Still its horrific to know that anyone might be around, aware of what Skott if doing. We never know who might be hurt by what we do. We need to be so careful.