My experience with vaccination in Lagos

One thing aside from pregnancy that one can never prepare for is the periodic hospital visit for vaccination for your baby. From the crying, fever, and restlessness. It is a whole experience on its own.

image source

Immunization is a process whereby the child is made immune to any specific infection or disease by administering a vaccine for that specific infection. So when you immunize your baby it helps them build stronger antibodies that will protect them from the infection or disease when they get exposed to them. Disease like polio, measles, tetanus, whooping cough, and more.

So it is very very important that we immunize our babies I guess whatever pain that would come with it can be managed and it won't be forever so better now than later.

I had my baby via cesarean section I wasn't available for his first vaccination at birth My mum took him there and he was given 3 injections named BCG, OPV, HBV
I sincerely didn't know the main benefit of this set of injections till I asked today during his 4th-month appointment.

Well, it wasn't my fault the second appointment was a disaster, and the experience alone I needed it to be over that I couldn't even get more information about the vaccination my baby was getting.

Let me give you the gist!!!

I stayed with my mum for over a month after delivery in Benin city where I had my son and returned to Lagos so I had to take the card I was given to another location to receive the vaccination.

I and my husband sincerely had no idea where we could take the immunization so we trusted my mother in laws choice so when he was 8 weeks she took us to one of the government-approved centers in Lagos state. we expected a crowd since it was a government matter so we decided to leave as early as 6 am even when we know this organization does not resume until 8 am but we had to just beat the crowd hoping we would be done in no time.

We arrived and waited a bit in the car till we saw the first staff walk in and we were given numbers and I was number 4 pretty lucky right and at that time over 15 people had arrived too so we were not wrong to have left the house that early. We were told after receiving the numbers that we had to seat outside till we are called, we waited for 5 hours and nothing was happening, my baby was fuzzy and uncomfortable. We couldn't even go to the car because if we leave, our spot would be taken.

My mother-in-law enquired and we were told 3 people were in labor and all the nurses available are busy so we had to wait till they deliver safely. At this point, we couldn't even be angry because someone's life is on the line but at the same time, the place was getting so crowded and super uncomfortable because the sun was so hot on that day.

I was already so pissed at this point because I was hot and so was my innocent 6 weeks old.
Finally, 6 hOurs later a nurse was made available for the immunization process, and numbers were called, and guess what!!

Someone who just arrived was immediately attended to, ignoring us that have been waiting since morning. my mother in law has to walk inside and give them a piece of her mind before they attended to us. And the manner they handles it because of the pressure from everyone was so unpleasant. My baby cried so hard even before the injection was administered and after, even getting home we had a whole 2-day episode of tears and pain for my baby.

image source

I hear stories of how the injections are painful but the pain my baby was feeling was more than just injection pain anyone would have reacted the same way or even worst after the whole experience than imagine a newborn baby. It was a really sad experience

I knew that never again will I go back there so I made more inquiries from friends and I was introduced to a private hospital I had to ask the right questions about the crowd to the manner of approach there and we were convinced because apparently to get a good and proper service in this country you have to pay for it.

And Yes I rather pay a fine for my peace of mind and my child’s health.

I do not want to assume that just maybe because the government-issued vaccine is free that's why I had that experience or it was just a bad day because I know a lot of people still prefer to take their vaccines from the government directly for reasons best known to them but for me, lesson learned; Never again “penny wise pound foolish” as the adage says.

Luckily the matrons and nurses in this private hospital I started using are so nice and encouraging, I can ask as many questions as I want and they ensure they take their time to answer, they handle my baby with such care and love and even when the injection is painful I am almost confident that he would be ok because of the mental support they give.

There is so much experience that comes with being a mother and every day I keep learning and making sacrifices As I am ever grateful for it all.