Today I visited the dog bite clinic in Kuching, which was a requirement to get another dose of injection after I was bitten by a stray dog yesterday.
This post is released later due to poor internet connectivity in my wife’s village, in which disallows me from doing any posting when I’m back there.
Anyway, as I mentioned in my previous post, I was asked to go for another screening at the Sarawak General Hospital as Sarawak is still pretty much under the threat of rabies.
>> READ THE PREVIOUS POST: A Stray dog bit me
Updates on my TaliKhidmat complaint
Before I proceed to explain about how everything went with the screening, let me first explain how my complaint with TaliKhidmat was handled by the authorities.
After making a complaint last night, my complaint was immediately accepted, and forwarded to the local council which is the Kuching North City Hall (DBKU).
At about 8.30AM the next day, an officer from DBKU contacted me and asked me about details of the incident and the dog in particular.
I explained and gave a brief description of the suspected dog.
He then told me that he knows about the pack of dogs in the said area and said that the dogs aren’t exactly stray dogs as they are actually ‘taken care’ of by someone in a nearby building.
He further explained that the ‘owner’ has been advised not to let the dogs lose prior to this, and that he was even asked to register his dogs with DBKU so that DBKU can take action on the strays. The owner however hasn’t done so.
The DBKU officer further said that the ‘owner’ claims to own three dogs and the rest are strays, but they (the dogs) usually group together in the area where I was attacked.
He then said he is heading to the location to investigate and find the dog.
Soon, he sent me a couple of photos of dogs and I identified one as the possible ‘suspect’, which you can see in the photo below.
If I identified the dog correctly, the dog in the picture does seem rather healthy and well taken care of.
Anyway, to be honest, I was cycling, so making proper identification was almost impossible, but I remember it was a white big dog with black and grey spots.
The officer then said that the all dogs will all be hauled up by DBKU, but didn’t mention what action would be taken. I thanked him for his prompt action and had not heard from him to date.
Finding the Dog Bite Clinic in Kuching
That evening (Friday), as required, I went to the Sarawak General Hospital to visit the Dog Bite Clinic. The clinic opens from 2.30 – 5PM on weekdays, with the clinic being used for something else in the morning.
The dog bite I had seemed to have swelled and there was some slight pain. The pain felt like when I had a boil.
To avoid parking misery, I took Grabcar and headed straight to the Emergency area as this was said to be nearby the Dog Bite Clinic.
I asked for directions, and was then asked to go to a building in between the Meditel Serapi (Medical Hotel) and the Lobby B of the hospital (as you can see below).
Upon reaching the clinic however, the nurse told me I had to register myself at the registration counter first, and then come back to get my evaluation.
So I left for the main hospital building by foot and went to Counter 11 at the main block of the hospital to get myself an registered. You can see the main building location below.
Therefore, if you are a referral from another hospital/clinic (like me), make sure to go to the main building first to get yourself registered before heading to the Dog Bite Clinic. The registration area is as seen below.
The staff at the counter was pretty friendly and nice, and he politely asked me to go to another counter to get my Civil Servant Guarantee Letter (GL) so that my treatment cost would be waived.
I was impressed they had such counter to be honest, and learned it had been around since 2016. The person manning the counter was also very friendly and printed my GL without much fuss.
I headed back to Counter 11, and was given a yellow slip to bring to the Dog Bite Clinic.
What happened at the Dog Bite Clinic
At the clinic, I had to scan MySejahtera and fill up an online form to declare my health. I was then asked to wait for the doctor. (The clinic main door can be seen as the main photo for this post)
To my surprise, there were already 5 – 6 patients there for dog and cat bites. I thought dog bites are rare, but from the looks of it, its more common than I thought.
After waiting for perhaps 30 minutes, the doctor attended me, and interviewed me on what had happened.
He also asked me to open my bandage and see the wound (Photo below). After examining the wound, he explained what needs to be done next.
After a brief 15 minute interview, I was asked to wait in the waiting room again. This time, it was for another injection, which if I remember correctly, was Anti-Rabies Virus Antibodies or Rabies immunoglobulin (RIG).
Based on what I was told, the antibodies are only available in government hospitals and are strictly controlled.
The doctor also said that I should continue getting my Rabies vaccines from the private hospital I initially went to because the private hospital administered a different dose of vaccine (which required four injections), while the ones by SGH were a three regime dose.
It was quite a long wait for the injection as there were more patients pouring in. During this time, I observed the surroundings and people working there and personally though that the two doctors who were attending the clinic could easily pass as Korean actors and actresses.
The female doctor in particular, looked like UI, and the male doctor was also good looking. (I know, sempatttt!!)
Anyway, when it was my turn to get my RIG, the nurse cleaned the wound and the doctor administered the dose. There was some slight pain during the injection but nothing too bad. It did feel like he dug through the wound, but I couldn’t see it.
The nurse made a final clean-up, and told me the wound shouldn’t be covered so that it can be observed and properly kept dry. She explained that animal bites should never be covered.
I was then asked to go back to the waiting room and inform the nurse if I developed any side effects from the RIG.
At about 5PM, after another check by the doctor, I was cleared to go home.
What’s next?
Knowing there’s plenty of people actually bitten by animals especially dogs in Kuching is actually comforting.
This is because it also meant that the number of people who are infected by rabies isn’t as big as I thought although it remains ‘a problem’ in Sarawak.
For now, I’ve to continue monitoring the wound and also my health with a doctor friend also advising me “If you have headache and act weirdly, go to the nearest hospital as fast as you can, and also pray”.
I will get another injection for the rabies vaccine this coming Sunday, and then another one on Thursday. The final dose will be on the 25th of November 2021.
I’m not sure how much the vaccine will cost but my first visit cost me a hefty RM361.20. Lucky I have insurance to cover this cost.
Remain hopeful and thankful
Anyway, I am hopeful this will pass and that I will be alright.
I also hope all the dogs which were hauled up by DBKU are not rabid dogs, particularly the one that bit me.
Last but not least, if one have pet dogs, please-lah take care of them and keep them in your compound. Part of me feels like I should sue the person who let their dogs out, but.. yalah… I will be thankful enough to be alright and healthy at this point.
Also, thank you for all the well wishes and I hope what I’ve shared here will help anyone of you who may encounter such incident in the future. – Stay safe!
