Mom went out to check the mail the other day. On the way back, a car pulls into the driveway and a man gets out. He asks for directions to a local tourist attraction. After mom tells him how to get there, he thanks her and rubs her arm. I get a hysterical call at work Wednesday night. Mom wants to know the symptoms of Anthrax. She suddenly itches on both arms, has temp, headache, sore throat, chest pains, etc. I tell her I'll be right there, so we can go to emergency room. She tells me, in retrospect, the gentleman "looked foreign". Now, for my mom, this does not narrow down the description very much.  So I get home and we call the ER, to ask the symptoms of anthrax. Interestingly, the triage nurse WILL NOT TELL ME, but asks what symptoms mom has. She says, "Sounds like the flu. It has started this year and many people are woorying when they get sick. Can I get her name and address for our logbook, just in case?" We give her the info, and mom is fine now. But I can't help but wonder why the symptoms are so secret........


Scott

;g




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My guess is that the nurse you spoke to on the phone did not want to put any suggestions into your mother's head.  She wanted to know what symptoms she was exhibiting in her own words, without any outside help.  I'm sure the hospital ER's have had a lot of hypochondriacs to deal with lately. Considering the attention that the media has focused on anthrax lately, perfectly normal folks are freaking out at the slightest symptom.  It's turning into mass hysteria, and the hospitals have to do what they can to weed out the panic stricken from the real cases.