Tag: quality of care

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TORTURE ON THE X-RAY TABLE

Most of us have avoided seeing the doctor as much as possible since COVID. Didn’t want to sit in an office with sick patients or be guilted into taking vaccines we didn’t like. Unfortunately, our bodies sometimes betray us. Our hinges get rusty. We have  accidents and falls. We do stupid things that strain backs. Sooner or later, we have to submit ourselves to an exam and/or procedure in a health care clinic. We’re confident that the administrators of these facilities are masters in pain management. But sometimes they seem totally clueless. For example, if you need a back x ray, you’re forced to lie face down on a narrow table. After they get the needed pictures,  pain intervenes, and you can’t get up off the table. At that point, the technician has no recourse but to yank you up to make room for the next patient. That’s when you experience torture on the X Ray table.

TORTURE ON THE X-RAY TABLE if you have a bad back and can't get up.
TORTURE ON THE X-RAY TABLE will happen unless they have machines designed for patients with bad backs.

I have to admit that I embarrassed everyone at that point, because I heard a loud yell coming from my own throat. Excuse me, but this is not acceptable in a clinic where many patients can hear you. Bad optics.  After all, it’s not like you’re having a baby. Except, it hurts every bit as much, although maybe for a shorter period of time. Quickly, they ushered me back into the patient waiting room and firmly shut the door.

The doctor was cheerful and friendly. He listened carefully and treated me successfully for the bad shoulder and back joints I’d originally come in to complain about. He did the best he could for the back sprain I’d just recently acquired. . But now it was too late , because I had a new pain caused by the rough treatment of the x ray technician. And it still hurts.

Should I blame the technician involved ?. Not really. Because if the facility administrators had cared to make the investment, there are x ray machines designed for patients with back injuries. I suppose they’re a bit pricey, but I would have paid for the contraption myself to avoid that pain. No, it wasn’t the quality of patient care that I objected to. It was torture on the X Ray Table.

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DOCTORS GHOST YOU ON WEEKENDS

There’s a  trend in healthcare which you may not be aware of.  At least not yet. If you’re young and healthy, you won’t even know about it, until it’s too late. Let’s say you’re seeing a specialist because you’ve developed one of thousands of medical conditions that require the ongoing care of a doctor.  Not just a yearly checkup, but something more serious. Supposing you have a flareup of this condition on a Friday afternoon.  And so, you call the physician who’s been treating you. Not too long ago, if your doctor was not available, he had a partner who was “on call.”  That doesn’t happen anymore.  Now, many  doctors ghost you on weekends.

In our case, my husband has frequent nosebleeds while being prescribed a well advertised, over priced blood thinner. Thanks to information gleaned from the internet, I have learned how to deal with the situation most of the time.   No doctor gave me this advice.  I had to find it out on my own, after one too many trips to the emergency room for a procedure I could have handled on my own, if only someone had been on call who could have told me what to do.

Doctors may ghost you on weekends. You may have to call 911.
DOCTORS MAY GHOST YOU if you call on weekends of holidays with a nosebleed.

He had seen an ENT a few days before, who insisted the problem wasn’t caused by blood thinners.  The doctor said he  simply needed a cauterization to stop the nosebleeds. Afterwards, she said that he should never have another one. .  But, if he did, he should consider it a medical emergency and call her office immediately.  She assured him that he would be given top priority to be treated right away. That sounded very comforting.  We could rest assured that he was in good hands.

Fast forward to less than 10 days later, on a Friday afternoon at 1:30.  Major nosebleed.  Called the doctor’s office and got no answer at all.  Called the hospital where she’s on staff, and was  informed that the office closed early for the weekend. Frantically tried to find a way to contact her.  Finally got an answering service from her old office which she had left three years ago.  Said they couldn’t help.

Now, of course, we knew what we were supposed to do, based on previous experiences with other physicians.  If you have a problem on weekends, you’re basically up shit creek.  You’re supposed to call 911, get taken to the hospital emergency room, wait  hours until SOMEONE shows up to decide what to do.  If they admit you to the hospital, you will not see your original doctor.  You will be treated by “hospitalists” who have been assigned  to treat you over weekends and holidays.  These strange doctors  are starting from scratch.  They have access to your medical records, but other than that, they know nothing about you as a living,  breathing,  human being. .

Not all physicians operate this way.  But many of them do. They’re covered, legally, by the old refrain on their answering machine: (if they have one). “If this is an emergency, call 911.”  (Average cost of ER visit is  $1,610 in most states))   Beware: your doctor may ghost you on weekends.

Follow up:  I did finally stop the nosebleed by placing a frozen bag of peaches on the back of his neck.  I doubt if I would have received this piece of advice if I had actually received a call back.  It was something learned while in girl scouts, back in  elementary school.