DUBAI: A Filipino salesman's initial euphoria over the birth of his first-born on November 11 has been cut short by mounting bills — around Dh700 per hour, which he fears may soon land him in jail.
Happiness turned to dismay for first-time dad Ricter Calixto, 32, when he realised he was running daily bills of up to Dh9,800 for his new-born son Ric Andrei's neonatal intensive care unit treatment at Welcare Hospital.
In just four days since Andrei's C-section delivery, both mother and child had accumulated over Dh71,000 in bills and, depending on how Andrei responds to the treatment, the bills may go to up to Dh250,000, said Calixto, who hails from Zambales province in Philippines and earns less than Dh5,000 per month.
Emergency case
His wife Analisa, 29, was 31 weeks pregnant when she was rushed to the hospital with episodes of dizziness, vomiting, temporary blindness and pregnancy-induced hypertension. Analisa has been checked regularly by doctors at Metro Clinic in Deira and was due on the third week of January 2011 when signs of a severe form of preeclampsia, ensued.
The baby, Ric Andrei, weighed 1.6kg at birth, and was connected to a breathing machine while undergoing photo-therapy.
Calixto thanked doctors for saving the lives of his loved ones.
Paediatrician Dr Khalil Ur Rehman has reported that Ric Andrei, who is connected to a ventilator and whose chest X-ray suggests a respiratory distress syndrome, needs to be closely monitored till his condition stabilises — which can range from several days to weeks. "I'm just happy that my wife and child are safe," said Calixto. "My son is still fighting for his life. But I'm concerned that this happy moment in my life might also mean jail time for me."
"Our original plan was to go to an affordable private hospital when she would have been due in mid-January. But since it was an emergency and the closest hospital to our place [Rashidiya] was Welcare, my concern was safety and I just followed my instinct.
"I know I did the right thing, because my wife and our baby are both alive today. That's what really mattered to me," he said.
"I'm doing all I can, begging people around me. The bills are scary," Calixto said.
On the day Analisa came out of the operating room, Calixto asked the hospital to allow him to move his wife and baby to a more affordable hospital. "Unfortunately, we were not allowed because it was too risky to move the baby out of the neonatal ICU," he said.
However, a hospital spokesperson said the baby can now be moved, adding that they have offered up to 20 per cent discount and a payment option till April 2011. "The baby is safe and stable and it's up to the family to stay with us or move to another hospital if the father signs a waiver," said the spokesperson.
