Community Chat

[GoneButNotForgotten]

...free of aggravation. I have some medical issues that need to be addressed and I'm getting nowhere. My impression is that everyone is so snowed under, due to a new computer system, that you can't get a live human and the voice mails get answered--if at all--in a week or more. I may have to go down to my doc's office and pound on a desk or two.

It's getting so that I hate to open my email and/or answer the phone.

And I can't go anywhere else; everyone is booked up till almost the end of the year. I can go to either the ER or a free-standing satellite of my hospital but I really need to keep my pcd updated on everything that's going on so she can possibly step in and get things done.

As far as having a day free of aggravation, I hope I haven't spoken too soon.

[Puppy Lips]

I feel your pain.  Everything is getting so difficult to do these days.  

[Kalli]

@GoneButNotForgotten I’m sorry this is happening to you. Dh and I had a similar situation a few weeks ago. You may be right about going to the dr’s office. At least then you’ll speak to someone in person who may be able to help.

 When dh and I couldn’t get an appointment, I made the mistake of going to urgent care where I was misdiagnosed.  That misdiagnosis caused us to suffer longer. It also made our situation (scabies) last longer and take longer to get rid of! 😡

[ellaphant]

I totally understand. I had a similar experience and finally cold called doctors until someone could see me. 

Good luck.

[On It]

@GoneButNotForgotten I understand your frustration. Our doctor's office now owned by a large corporation got a new computer system in March. Things like refills have improved a little, but they are no where near where they were before the computer changeover. 

I hope you get the help you need.

[Mombo1]

I agree.  Seeing a doctor is getting harder to do.  I made an appt. with my ENT.  I waited 2 months to get in.  Finally went a couple weeks ago and they obviously overbooked appointments.  By the time I checked in...eventually saw the doctor after numerous delays...I was there for over 3 hours.  I know I won't be going back.  He obviously had a long day.  Even the office was closed by the time I left.  He didn't tell me anything I didn't already know...so it was a waste of time for me.  Only the insurance companies benefit. 

[Kachina624]

I think many people are out of touch with what's going on in the medical world.  

In my family, we have a 2 month old infant who has this RSV respiratory disease that seems to be running rampant.  The child is in pitiful condition, can hardly breathe, has to be watched 24 hours a day.  Mom spent night before last at hospital hoping to get the baby admitted but a pediatric bed never became available, nor was one available at any other hospital in the area (Cherry Hill, NJ).  Mom was finally told to take her home, watch her carefully and immediately bring her back if she got worse.  So she has no monitoring or access to oxygen.  I'm not sure she'd know if the baby got worse.

Heard on TV this morning that this disease is so prevalent, in Connecticut the Army is erecting a tent field hospital so they can take more patients.  It was also mentioned that seniors, having reduced immune systems, could also be susceptible to this disease which often evolves into pneumonia.  RSV has been around a long time but cases seem to have become more severe since Covid.

So difficulty getting appointments may be aggravating and inconvenient, how would you like to be in this situation?

[AuntG]

I'm at a loss to understand what has happened. Tests that used to be done in a day or two can't be scheduled for several weeks. So many referrals too.

[hckynutjohn]

@GoneButNotForgotten 

Like you, I too have several medical issues going on. Unlike you, I had an appointment with my Hematologist just this morning. I also have one planned once a week until? I am guessing until he orders another Doppler Ultrasound to see if the blood clot in my left arm is no longer present.

If so, I will see him once a month, unless my health status changes. Aggravated is not a word I have ever used in connection with any on my long list of Medical Doctors.

Have I had to wait on hold? Yes, many times, only to leave a voice mail. Do they always respond the same day? Depends on the time I left the VM.

Believe next week I have an appointment with my Cardiologist. Is he always on schedule? No. Do I mind waiting or get aggravated? No. There is nothing else high on my to do list, so waiting is pretty easy. Just sitting there, sometimes having a conversation with other patients, who are also waiting.

My days the last few months have not been my happiest, or even close, but! They are what they are, and like I have lived my life for several decades now! It is 1 day at a time, but I have never felt aggravated by my life's circumstances. There were/are some I just cannot control, and I except that. 

hckynut(john)🥅🏒 🇺🇸

[1Snickers]

 My son had a TIA stroke and has had trouble even asking questions about the medicines that are making him have nausea and diarrhea. He's waiting for insurance approval to switch pills. I told him to just pay! 

 He has stints in his heart and hasn't been able to see the cardiologist, just the nurse practitioner. He can only eat nutrition bars and fruit. 
  Monday he has a nuclear treadmill test. He had to cancel the last one, he could hardly walk. 
  I asked why can't they check his brain when they do the treadmill with dye and he answered "because they aren't neurologists. " That requires hospitalization for their test. 

  My plumber fixed my drains in the kitchen. Maybe he could help my son!

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