From my doctor’s bag

I kid you not.

This tiny wooden cow sits on my mantelpiece. I bought her in 1975 when I was a house officer in Paediatrics at the RVI in Newcastle.

She is one of those toys where you press up under the base and the cow dances (or collapses). I was able to control individual limbs and the head independently.

I’m sure you won’t guess how I used her!

When you assess anyone for meningitis, you need to see if they have a stiff neck. Small children and babies have a fever and a headache. They are usually screaming or they are still and watchful in case anyone touches them.This means that you can’t assess the stiffness of the neck by feeling.

In comes my cow. I would gently manipulate her. Children are always fascinated. If the child’s neck is not stiff, they wriggle and reach out. If the neck is stiff, they moved their eyes to watch the toy, as it moves higher and lower, but nothing more.

I used my little cow all the way through my GP career. When I retrained in Psychiatry, I no longer needed her. Thankfully she was not in my medical bag when it was stolen.

Surprisingly, the elastic is still intact so she works!

Today I returned to choir. I was so glad to be back. I managed to sit almost all the way through. I walked there and back too.

PS the cow is tiny!