October 06, 2009

Is it just me?

What the heck is wrong these people?!

I have this long sorted story about the inefficiencies and blundering of medical care.
This has nothing to due with the current 'crisis' as described by our elected officials,
but it does say a lot about health care.

This morning I find myself furious to say the least. I was supposed go in for a CAT scan and bone scan today, along with having numerous vials of blood drawn. Late yesterday afternoon Mary talked with the radiology lab to confirm the appointment for this morning. They needed to review the usual list of preparatory questions; "Is the patient experiencing any medical issues, etc. When they asked about allergies for the first time she had to inform them that I had an allergic reaction to the iodine the last time I had the scans. One would think that since the scans were taken at the same facility just 3 months ago, the reaction would be notated in my file, but apparently not. It was at that point and for the first time that we were told I needed to be on Prednisone the night before and morning of the scans. Yes, we had been told I needed to take Benedryl in preparation, but a prescription for Prednisone was never issued, nor mentioned for that matter.

This led to a flurry of phone calls from Mary to the nurse, the pharmacy, and back to radiology to make sure the prescription was written and issued to the pharmacy and the appointment was maintained. After Mary facilitated the situation, I took the Prednisone at 11:00 last night and we went to sleep believing that the crisis was solved. Oh no...not so fast!

Mary followed up this morning first thing by calling the Radiology department at 7:15 again this morning to confirm that I was still scheduled and on track. She was questioned about what dosage the doctor had prescribed. Apparently, it was half the dose that I ultimately needed. Consequently, I took the medication for nothing as the radiologist will not allow the scan until I have the proper dosage, as my allergic reaction can be dangerous. While I appreciate and respect this, I am infuriated that A. the prescription was not issued to begin with and B. It was the wrong dosage.

I repeat, I am furious but thankful I have this outlet.

I am not in the medical field. However, looking at this situation from a patient's perspective, along with other expereiences I've had in the last few years, I cannot believe the way patients get treated. The blatent disregard for my my time, my schedule and ultimately, my health and my life is totally unacceptable. Is it that far fetched to expect that someone could have either
sat us down when we scheduled these tests and gone over this in detail or issued the prescription when we scheduled the scans so that we would be prepared.

So now we will spend most of the day getting my bone scan and then we have to be back at the cancer center tomorrow morning at 7:00 for the CAT scan.

Maybe I'm over reacting. Perhaps whining, a little and feeling sorry for myself. In the end, the results will be there next week when we meet with Dr. V, but that's not the point, is it?

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

David , I cannot beleive the inefficiency . '
I will say however You are very lucky to have a wife who will follow up on all of this ,and stay on top of everything
You are still in my prayers
Dan

Anonymous said...

David,

Hang in there friend! Had the same situation, didn't know I was to take "prednisone 11 hrs, 3 hrs and 1 hr prior, in addition to the Benadryl". They think we're clairvoyant??

God bless,
JD

Anonymous said...

This fiasco is very concerning - the inconvenience and frustration alone not to mention the safety issues as a patient. Hope all went well when the tests were finally able to be performed.

Your friend,
Sharon

Anonymous said...

David, you are not over reacting, whining or feeling sorry yourself.

I'm much to angry with this medical bunch to write something that you wouldn't have to delete from your blog. I've deleted what I've written several times now.

Don't second guess your standards of reasonableness and expectations for excellence in service from these guys for this is the business they are in. Demanding and expecting basic blocking and tackling is well within reason. Accept nothing less.

Peace be with you and your family.

Jeff

Anonymous said...

Hey Buddy... You stand up and fight and by golly let them know you are NOT Passive, Stupid, uneducate, and are NOT gonna take it sitting down! I would get in their face, BIG TIME!
You and many others are educated and in control of their lives and treatments... Im not sure if this has to do with govt run health care but it (govt run health care) scares the crap out of me.. Its bad enough the way it is.
SOUND OFF DAVE!

Tom T..
Ps... yea Im still here and reading your blogs weekly.