I very much like the GP near our house- he was both meticulous and good with kids but there was always the long queue before you get past his door.
We tried another GP, near her babysitter’s place. She was bit less detailed but worse of all, Arissa hated the sight of her and would resort to screaming in the consultation room. Despite being female, she also seemed nervous about my feisty little tot.
It was KK hospital next. We took her there three times, was attended by different doctors who was not familiar with her sinus condition. Although they try to be informative, I do not appreciate the lack of familiarity for the $75 that I pay for this GP-ish service. The nail on the coffin came from the hubby one trip when an MO attended to Arissa instead of a certified doctor.
And so, at 17 months, we’re back at her PD- a Dr Vellayapan of the Singapore Baby and Child Clinic in AMK. Our last visit here was when Arissa was 5 months and the bill came up to $200+, startling both me and the hubby, prompting us to search for cheaper alternatives. A particular cousin with very bad asthma and eczema goes to him and so he comes highly recommended from that branch of the family. After much deliberation, we decided to give this another shot.
When we arrived on an 8pm weekday, the clinic was packed to the brim with children of various ages- from weeny bubs to bouncy tots. A mere 5 mins at the registration counter and we were whisked off to a young-ish nurse who measured and weighed my little tot and asked me if I’d like her development assessed. I said go for it, expecting some professional gadgets to appear on hand for measurement of brainwaves or the like, but she simply rattled off from the list in Arissa’s healthbook- duh! It was something I could’ve filled in myself in my own time rather than having to yell back the answers over the din of weepy children.
Anyyywayyyy.... we got through that in 15 mins (whilst I sense the other waiting Mothers behind me eyeballing us with disdain). We were told to move to the 2nd floor where there was a quieter (thank God) waiting room. I remember there was a play area here before but it’s gone now to make way for more chairs. There was 1 (yes 1) Playskool toy thingamajig that was cracked in 7 places with badly peeling paint, which all the kids stole (as in ‘to take without permission’) from each other so I had to entertain Arissa with a little toy I brought along in her Eeyore rucksack. Of course, I had to pry this off the sticky hands of another kid once our queue number flashed onscreen.
The husband instructed me beforehand to keep this unofficial looking by walking (not carrying) Arissa into the PD’s office and she seemed thrilled by the sight of him (I think she has a thing for tanned men, don’t ask me why- we’ve noticed). She toddles over to his cabinet and starts pointing and talking gibberish at the Barney stuffed toy there. Dr Vella’s manner is calm and fatherly as he asks us what our concerns are. As we chat, he casually examines Arissa over and surprise! surprise! she did not once struggle against him. I think it’s the way he makes birdy sounds to distract her whilst he looks her over- pretty innovative!
No threat of bronchitis as he assures us her chest remains clear in spite of the perpetual runny nose and will continue to prescribe Zyrtec. Improvements, however, can only be seen in the next month or two. Since this was an allergy and not a illness, Arissa was cleared for the MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) jab, the nurse tells me to hold on to her hands whilst Dr Vella makes more birdy sounds. In goes the syringe, my daughter screams in protest and looks at him as though her trust has been abused :[
I expected a $200 bill again (GAH!) but after sitting around at the dispensary for a good 20mins we were presented with a bill of $110. Not too bad, since this was consultation plus meds plus her MMR shot. It was $30 more than her (normal, no jabs) KKH bill but I get an experienced PD who is familiar with her history (and pretty nearby). Just remind me to come armed with more toys and a magazine.
To occupy Arissa during the waiting time, Hafidz took her down to our favourite neighbourhood shoe shop with their fake CROCS- hey, something’s gotta give when you have to keep paying for medication. It’s the one opposite AMK Polyclinic with a colourful array of look-a-likes for S$5.90 each so Daddy bought 3 more for bub. And I got another one for ‘babah’(read: "abang" in Arissa language) Rifqi. 
**Oren tumpang glamour.