waiting

I'm back from my month's training in my soon-to-be new job in Christchurch (more on this later), but there are other pressing issues on my mind at the moment.

Today could be - and hopefully is - d-day finally bringing a resolution to the ongoing NZIS medicals saga. This time it's not me, but my youngest daughter Maddie. Her issues have been described by her consultant as (and I quote)

... treated amblyphobia, an exotropia and right homonymous hemianopia.

This sounds incredibly scary - and relates to problems with migration of the brain during development - but basically means that although she can see out of both eyes, she can only see through one of them at a time.

Just like with my own reports, it seems that NZIS are incredibly nervous about signing-off anything that could possibly cost NZ money further on down the line. I can understand this to a certain extent, but they seem to need to hear it three or four times from different sources before they can finally relax and relent.

The final letter from the consultant (and it has to be final because there really is nothing more to say) finishes with:

As she is still young (< 2 years), I would recommend continued attendance at the orthoptic department. I would expect this to require 3 or 4 visits per year over the next 2-3 years. It is likely that patching will be needed to maintain the current excellent vision.

In the meantime we've managed to find tenants for our house, and they move in on the 17th December. So, just like my panic in getting the work-visa - the clock is ticking once again...