August 21, 2006

  • JUST VENTING

    Having a handful of what are considered to be chronic illnesses I have my fill of doctor appointments and lab work on a monthly basis.  And, I have gotten to the point where the usual poking and prodding just doesn't register as a violation of my privacy anymore.  Yet, when I have to wait for so long to be seen it really gets on my nerves.

    Today I was supposed to see my OS for my monthly x-rays and things didn't go as planned.  To start off with I used my own personal vacation time to go see him.  So, I get there five minutes early.  About thirty minutes go by and I go ask the receptionist what's going on.  It seems that they haven't received the authorization from my GP and are waiting for it after having faxed their office. 

    I decided to wait, and thirty minutes later still nothing.  At this point I was pretty upset, mostly because I only see my OS every month and would think that they would be able to process any necessary paperwork before I get there.  The receptionist told me that she could reschedule me for Friday around 9 AM, problem is I know how these doctors work and that 9 AM probably means 10 AM (but they'll give you dirty looks if you're late and charge you extra). 

    I told her that I probably wouldn't be able to make it in, so she asked how about Monday at noon.  Nope!  Not gonna work for me.  That's when a few more people crowded the reception counter and I just yelled over the voices that I'll wait until she hashes it out and let her call me - and I left.

    I have a feeling that they won't be able to accommodate my time frame, and if this is the case well I have no other choice but to postpone seeing my OS until November (if he's lucky to see me).  As it stands now I feel pretty good, my leg isn't swelling too much and if I encounter a major problem I'll just go to the emergency room.  Sure, I'll have to pay $100, but at least I'll be attended to.

    What the receptionist doesn't seem to understand is that I used up most of my vacation time when I was in the hospital and at home recovering from my broken leg.  So, I figured out I just had enough miscellaneous vacation time to accommodate my doctor - the rest of my vacation time is going towards trips I plan to take in September and October ... and no way am I giving up that time now that I can finally walk.

    Added to this I have a new Supervisor who is trying to "assert" her authority over us.  And we can't use illness time for our doctor appointments, we have to use vacation time.  Not that using illness time for doctor visits is forbidden, but they don't "like" us to use illness time where I work.  Plus, if you use your illness time 5 times they count as incidences and it will go into your employee file (that's five per fiscal year).  And, even though you work your ass off to earn this vacation and illness time they frown upon using all of it ... so what the hell am I to do.

    Sometimes I don't even know why doctor's make appointments like they do.  I have NEVER been to a doctor where I was seen at my appointed time or even close.  Usually I have to wait about an hour and be surrounded by running and screaming children who drive me to the verge of getting my tubes tied ASAP! 

    *sigh* ... now I'm wondering if I really even need to see my OS anymore because I pretty much now what's going on with my leg.  Maybe I could just release myself from the OS unofficially and just see my GP.  I don't know ... yet. 

    I guess in the end looking at all this it isn't the doctor's fault really, but the paper pushing mentality that is clogging this medical system. 

Comments (11)

  • Now i know why I usually would rather die than go to a doctor.

  • Dear Liz,

    Well, I'm glad you went to the doctor's instead of dying. But this doesn't sound good. Actually, as you say, you're walking pretty good, and we can always think of more places to go to keep in 'exercising' even without a doctor. You just don't walk if it hurts. He'd probably say the same thing, and then charge you for it.

    Too bad about the vacation time though.

    Love,
    Michael

  • i am missing that crown you had up there the last time i came. it was really funny.

    anywho, i know how you feel in terms of doctors appointments. only, in my case, it was the othrodontist. i had braces for two years (not anymore. woot woot!) and i felt like i could've written three 10 page essays while i waited. time seemed to drag on forever! the only benefit i had is that im in school so i dont have anything counting against me but in my new school, i would pity the kid who wears braces. my new school has this rule that if you miss any class (each class is 2 hours long), you will have to make it up in saturday school. however, lets say you miss one class (2 hours) then, in order to get the credits or whatever for that class, you have to do 4 hours of saturday school. if you miss a whole day, then you have to make up 12 hours of saturday school. (3 classes per day, 2 hour classes each)

    yeah, that was some math for ya. :D

    anywho, do take care and enjoy all that you can. appointments are stupid and there isnt much we can do about it.

    p.s. i don't plan on having kids so you will most definitely will not see any little screaming thingers in an office that belongs to me. that's one less annoying kid in the waiting rooms of america.

    peace.

  • Wow thats pretty messed up that you had to use vacation time. You guys don't have any kind of disability insurance from your work?

  • Cherry Garcia (drool)

  • *hey*

    i wonder if that isn't a huge city problem, cuz i'm from a smaller town and i'm good to be seen at the appointed time unless the doctor gets unexpectadly called to the er just down the way. which doesn't happen often. it sucks that you have to go through all this just to get seen though. i hope you can figure something out! ((hugs))

  • Doctors suck...

    But your you tube video doesn't!  Hang in there Hun... (((hugs)))

    p.s. Waz up with the dragon circle?  Just curious... good thing I'm not a cat... (grins)

  • I am grateful for my Orthopedic Surgeon OS just sounds like some other body part to me..or a puter thing:)

    First fractured leg I gave up going after 15 months with no healing..eventually just walked with external cast until I could bear wt and not notice..then tossed it..I have a rod however knee to ankle forgot if you do too? I never saw a healed x-ray..not advocating dumping ortho but hey..if it is an HMO thats about par...as long as it is set properly you can ask for Reiki or other energy work safely...( so I hear:) winks....dolphins refused to run  while my friend is here..uhnn...even ask the surfers..they said nary a sign of em usually run all afternoon...( when may I expect you then;) ha...I am in the mood to give tours..it seems..btw I dont cook..so everyone is on their own in that dept...Heal Heal Heal..((Wings))

  • ryc: Hahaha.  I wouldn't want to look at the sunrise on a monday morning after a good weekend either. LOL   I am almost never up early enough for a sunrise, and if I am, i'm too groggy to enjoy it.  Ahhh the life of a night person :)

    Once again your welcome for the broken leg site. I'm glad I "knew" someone that I could refer it too, because it seriously saved my life too.   There were days were I was so depressed and so lost, and feeling like I had no idea what to do or what was going on with me, and if this was normal, and than I'd go to mbl....and all of sudden, I found i'd have nothing to worry about, or i did and i better call my doc! lol, I found that there were many other people just like me, or worse off than me.   I think in this situation, it gave me strength.  I was going to make a brochure for the site, but I never got around to it. I believed that much in it. I wanted to drop it at hospitals and orthopaedic doctors.   I'm sure it did all this for you too.  I was lucky to have bought a laptop during this time, so I spent a lot of time on there! lol

    and believe me....i know exactly what you went through, and even what you are going through now (well, minus the hardware, that's a different ballgame for me....do u get yours removed in a year? )   The struggle to walk everyday, and hoping that just one day...it was pain free....and the fact that you continue to work through the pain, because you really know no otherway, and are just thankful that you can SOMEHOW throw one foot in front of the other.  I'm still learning how to walk properly, although I've lost my limp and am pretty much normal.  I walk slightly slower than normal, and i tend to roll my bad foot on the outside now because I experianced so many arch problems in the beginning of my recuperation.  I'm trying to correct that by thinking about walking as much as I can, but to tell you the truth i'm sick of that! lol, so now i'm trying to correct it on the treadmill:) oh, and i just began running again....Most of my days now are pain free....so it really does get better( I'm even going to yoga tonite. I did yoga the other day, and it did me a world of good) 

    Well, I totally went off on a comment tangent here:) hehehe.  Hope you don't mind, I just wanted to really show you that you still have hope.....:) I know at the point you are at now, I always thought " Ok, I'm walking, but is this going to be normal for the rest of my life"   If you keep pushing yourself, the answers no :)    If your lazy and don't take action down there, YES :(

    Do you have any body misalignment problems? constant muscle pain anywhere? etc? ... I could recommend a few good books which helped me.   Let me know and I'll provide you with links (yeah, I'm not shameful, I'm an amazon assosciate and I would get a small cut. hehehe.)

  • (hugs)!

  • aint our system a grand `Ole thing

    :)

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