I am so seriously frustrated right now. At what point did a patient become an afterthought? What happened to Doctors and Staff that cared about people? When did they forget about compassion and empathy? Not to mention, dern it...I'M PAYING THEM!
Arrrrrgggg. So remember I received the letter that the moles had pre-cancerous cells in them? So I called 3 weeks ago and the receptionist looked up my file and said this other person had it and put me through to his office. I got voice mail, left a message and my phone number. Never got a call back. Decided to be patient because of going on vacation, got back and no message still. Had my regular appointment with my MD yesterday and told him what was going on. He told me to call them back first thing this morning and give them the benefit of the doubt that someone just dropped the ball. So I did first thing this morning, got put through to the guys voice mail again. Left another message and he has still not called back yet.
I am getting beyond frustrated at this point. I have seen 8 doctors over the last 2 years and I have ONE that cares about his patients. My MD is the only one that calls back, listens, tries things........ He told me to try again and if they didn't respond this time, he would call and get my results and we would go from there. I appreciate him but dang it, I'm running in circles!
I'm about over this today!
Sending good thoughts that this gets resolved today.
I feel for you, Pooh!
You'd think in this field, there would be more compassion.
Let us know if you want all of us to come there and slap 'em around for you.
POX ON 'EM!!!
You can all take turns slapping them! Ok, so going home...never got a call. I'm calling my MD first thing in the morning and asking him to go ahead and get the files!
GGRrrrrrrrr..... >:( >:(
does this person have a secretary ?
that's the person I always phone , get your Doc to phone , he should get a reply !
My cardiologist cancelled my next appointment two months ago , and said he would send me another ........
I could DIE waiting !!!!!!!!!!
These ''doctors'' should realise , even though they deal with hundreds of patients every day , it's my life that I care
about and so should he !
Sending you a double Pooh .....hic !
Smack, crack, wham...boom! (That was a cannon!)
Please become firm about this. You can push your weight around on this issue. I would leave it at that with the receptionist.
Dear Pooh
I feel your frustration and it is how it is in the Medical Field (not always). Good that you have at least a doctor who cares and supports you. Stick to it Pooh.... Keep us posted...wishing the best... You are my role-model.
I have two doctors home, my husband and my daughter. I always remind my daughter that the patient could be me....that I could be the one on her hands, and that every patient is very important. I ask her to never lose her human side....that we as patients or when we are sick we are very vulnerable....and need to feel the warmness of the MD treating us... It is even proven that when a patient feels secure, he/she does even better with treatment.
Love
It might be a good idea to ask to speak to the nurse. My doctor's receptionist appears to be the gate keeper; so I often ask for the nurse. I normally get good results going through her, but then again, she knows me well. Wishing you the best, Pooh...
Pooh, thinking of you and hope all is resolved soon. My HMO puts everything online as soon as the lab work is done. They aren't perfect, but that is one thing I like. I would hate waiting to hear back on that stuff >:(
I am sorry you have had to wait so long to hear the results. It really is not right, unprofessional at the least. But so wrong to keep you in the dark!
Do they have home phone numbers?? ;D ::)
Lol. I wish I had their home numbers! I would call them at 3:00 a.m.!
Ok, I didn't explain that well. Sorry, I was mad yesterday! I went for the biopsy on my arm and while I was there, the RA saw two moles she didn't like the looks of. I'm very fair skinned and have freckles and moles everywhere, always have. So they did the deep shave thingie on them (they were both on my back) I went back two weeks later to get my biopsy stitches out and they had the results of my biopsy thus got the diagnosis of my Linear Morphea. She didn't say anything specifically about the moles, but told me everything else looked fine. Normally, I am good at asking questions, but I was still processing the morphea thing when she told me this. When I left and kind of replayed in my head what was said, I assumed (I know...my bad) that "everything else looked fine" was about the moles.
Two weeks later, I received a letter in the mail from them saying the mole results were showing some precancerous cells and they needed me to call them to schedule further biopsies to ensure they got it all, and to schedule 6 month followups. I got the letter on Saturday, so I called them on Tuesday (Monday was a bad work day). That's when the secretary said that she didn't have my file, this XXXXX guy did and she put me through to his office. I have no idea who this guy is. Got his voice mail, left all the info to call me and why and waited. Didn't hear from him the next two weeks, and honestly, I am normally very patient and I also knew we were leaving the next week for the cruise. So got back, still no messages on any answering machine, so I knew I had a Dr. appointment with my MD Tues. I waited and told him what was going on and asked him what he thought. He told me that he could do the procedures, he does them all the time and he looked. He said the problem was, without seeing the actual reports, he didn't know what kind it was or if it was one of them or both. He said depending on what kind it was, would be how big of an area they needed to cut out. I love my MD and he said he didn't want to do two big incisions if he only needed to do one, so told me to call them again and if I didn't get any response again, to call his office and they would request all the records and he would just take care of it.
So I called first thing yesterday morning. Told the secretary what was going on and that I had not received a call back, she put me through again to mystery XXXXXX and got voice mail again. Left the message again, nicely explained he had not called me back and waited. No call again.
Shewwww.........more than you guys wanted to know! Lol.
Quote from: Nana on September 21, 2011, 02:58:53 PM
Dear Pooh
I feel your frustration and it is how it is in the Medical Field (not always). Good that you have at least a doctor who cares and supports you. Stick to it Pooh.... Keep us posted...wishing the best... You are my role-model.
Sweet Nana, bless your heart. If I'm your role model....you are in trouble! I love you Nana!
Dearest Pooh,
Please post results - I'll be thinking of you.
If I am in trouble...how bad can it get? haha.... I like taking chances.
Hope everything works out fine for you. Keep us posted.
Love
I waited through yesterday afternoon, so almost 2 full days and still no call again. I gave them the first time because everyone is human and can make a mistake. But to do it twice is unprofessional and not a group I need on my team. That's how I see this. I am in this for the long haul (the rest of my life). I need Doctors that are reliable because I will be with them for a long time.
I called my MD Office and they gave me my Nurse's voicemail and I told her I had tried and still no call so they had my permission to go ahead and get my records and reports from them and that I wanted my Doc to do the procedure. She will, and they will call me when they get them to set the appointment. They always follow through.
NOW, the evil side of me wants the Derm's Office to call so I can tell him "Don't worry about it. My MD is going to take care of me since it has been a month and you never returned my call. Thank you but FAIL!"
I would make that call Pooh , even if they don't receive it , you'll feel better ! Good luck with the procedure .x
Ha ha...I knew there was a reason I love you! :P
I would feel better probably, but at the same time....I'm trying really really really really hard to be the better person. That's been my goal the last few months...to not lower myself to someone else's level. I may FAIL! Lol.
I'd be calling the secretary back and telling her you weren't getting a call back from the doctor and you want your files sent to your MD....then I'd be asking for the senior/managing partner to get to the bottom of your file disappearing into that black hole of ennui. I'd also be informing them I'd be sending a letter to the state medical board listing my problems with their office.
Doctors may be educated in medicine ....but they still are an employee....and you are the boss. When it comes to your health, you sometimes have to be the squeaky wheel. Don't feel bad about raising the roof.
BTW, I hope they got the problem cells in the first biopsy and your follow up is clear. Crossing my fingers and toes for this outcome. :)
Thank you Orly!
And Pooh, it's not just about you (although you're the one we care about in this situation) it's also about the patients coming along behind you who may not be able to advocate for themselves as you can. The office needs to be aware that patients are not being dealt with properly. The more complaints the more motivation for them to improve their services for all.
Good point!!
I'm going to disappear for a few days...again. My Nurse called me last Wednesday and was seriously frustrated herself. She wanted me to know that she had not forgot me, but had been left 3 messages over the past 3 weeks with the Derm office and they wouldn't call her back either. She wanted me to know she was trying and was going to try one more time and was going to get righteous with them and refuse to get off the phone until they gave her a human. She said she would call me back on Thursday and let me know if she got the records taken care of, and if not, she wanted me to march into their office, in the middle of the reception area and pitch the biggest fit they had ever seen, until they copied my records right then...Lol. I love my Nurse. She was telling me that she had never had another Doctor's Office refuse to call a Doctor's Office back for 3 weeks.
Well my phone rings about 30 minutes later and she is laughing. She said they tried to give her voice mail again and she pitched her fit. She said she told the receptionist that if they didn't put a human on the phone, she was going to have my Doctor call and report them to the bar for putting her patient in jeopardy. They hunted someone down and she gave this guy down the road too (he's the one that hasn't been returning my calls either). Said she told him the same thing, that she was within an inch of having him and the Doctor's office reported. He faxed my records within 10 minutes. ;D
So she put me through to scheduling and I have my appointment this Thursday afternoon to have the two places removed. They told me I would be sore for a few days since it would require a few stitches in each place. I have taken off work Friday to give myself the weekend to recover. So I'll be MIA again from Thursday afternoon until probably Monday.
This would be the appropriate place for you all to chant, "Let's go Pooh...Let's go Pooh!"
You'll be fine Pooh ...... time to get this sorted .Take care , I'll be with you all the way .....x
Wow Pooh what a frustrating and stressful experience :-\
Sending positive thoughts and energy your way for the procedure :)
OK, "Let's go Pooh!" Better than the pre-op enema, eh? ;)
Hey, major props to your kick-butt nurse! You've got this, Pooh - we're all in there with ya, don'tcha know. Love you!
I wish I could write..."no, they couldn't have been THAT bad"...but of course, THEY WERE! I think your nurse walks on water! The whole thing makes me so mad! What a horror!!
And we are all chanting...I can hear it! And we're marching to Your drummer!
Awaiting report! And sending love...
Goo Pooh Go girl.
You will be in my thoughts and prayers. Hope the best for you.
Love you
Thanks guys. I'm not too nervous about it, just don't like shots in the middle of my back. Also, I'm not healing as quick as I was. ??? I haven't quite figured that out yet in my research. The only thing I can maybe think it is, and Luise, you may know if this could be true, autoimmune commonly causes vasculitis. I'm starting to get purple bruising along the bottom of my legs, and veins have been popping on my legs the last 3 months. My Mother has spider veins (which my Doctor says is proven hereditary) so I attributed it to that, but when I get the smallest scratch now, it is taking over a month to heal. The last shave biopsies they did, took forever to heal up. So I'm thinking maybe it's vasculities that's slowing down my healing process.
One of them is in the dead center of my back, right under the bra strap and was hard to keep from rubbing it against chairs too, so it stayed sore. On the bright side, my DH will baby me this weekend!
I'll be here pulling for you, too, Pooh. FWIW, dd had some moles removed a couple years ago. They were quite large & went rather deep. They looked infected for a time & took a good long while to heal. They also left ugly scars. This last time, they used a laser treatment & they healed much better, as well as faster. I don't know if they can use a laser in your situation, but you might want to inquire about it. Wishing you the best, Pooh~
I don't think my MD is equipped with a laser, probably the Derm's office was! Lol. Thanks Rose. He told me that after he got my records, depending on what type of cancerous cells it was, depends on how deep he had to go. One type, as long as they get all the mole and it's roots, it's a small incision with just a couple of stitches, the other type, they have to get the roots and surrounding tissue, so he said a bigger incision and more stitches. Heck, we didn't even know if it was both of them or just one of them. So I may get there and it only be one of them and a small incision. I don't even know and they had just got the records and I have been so frustrated I didn't think to ask. I'll find out Thursday!
You're in my thoughts Pooh. Is there any kind of creme that can be put on to promote healing and lessen soreness/itching?
That's a good idea Pam. I will ask about that Thursday. Last time they just had me use Neosporin and keep them covered for 3 days. I had to leave the one in the middle of my back with a bandaid for a couple of weeks though, because of it's location and the rubbing.
Thanks! I'll ask.
Just catching up and throwing in my "Let's go Pooh!". Glad you found your champion nurse!
Thanks!
This may be a little TMI but it worked for me, then again, I'm not top heavy. I had a pretty bad patch of psoriasis on my back near my bra strap area. I got fed up and found these sticky cups at Kohls and just used those instead of a bra. Might be an idea
Hey! That's a great idea too. I'm not top heavy either, so that would probably work. I wondered if a sports bra would help too. You know, the bigger ones that have more of a full back instead of a strap rubbing?
Sending you lots of good vibes - let's go, Pooh!!
You guys sick of my updates yet? I am.
Well, I'm not MIA. Got bad news yesterday when I got there. The type of cancerous cells were melanoma, which is good news as it's the most common and easily taken care of. It was in both moles so both need to be excised. The bad news...of course. The pathologist report showed that the samples show I have yet another lovely disease. It's called dysplastic nevus syndrome. Layman terms: I am very fair skinned, freckled, blue eyed and have inherited all those, plus I'm classified with over 50 molelike places on my body. The biopsies showed all this technical, medical stuff that says any mole I have that is raised, dark, irregular or such has a 100% chance of turning to melanoma. Basically, I am carrying precancerous cells in all my raised moles. It's just a matter of time before they start changing: 6 months, 5 years, 20 years...who knows...but they will.
Good news: as long as we stay on top of them, I will be fine
Bad news: Besides the two places that have to go now, I have 7-8 others that have to go. I will have to keep watch from now on on all the others or new ones. He told me he was capable of doing this, but he didn't want to...Lol. He wants me to see his surgeon that he uses and loves. He's more comfortable knowing with the amount of cutting I'm going to have to have, that I see a surgeon. So they have already called me this morning and I have an appt next Tuesday morning.
His biggest fear right now is what the autoimmune will do. We know I'm going to scar badly because that's what my disease does. But he said trauma will send other autoimmunes into a flare so he's suspecting that may happen with mine.
Ok...have I told you that I am having a personal pity party right now?
Oh Pooh, I'm so sorry to hear it's melanoma. Keep on top of this!! Yesterday I was reading a scientific article about cancer ... reading it because melanoma runs in our family ... and wondering if I needed to implement any of the scientific knowledge found there.
The article: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21673053
So I am seriously thinking of reducing the amount of CHO in my diet, upping the protein. Because I have already had approximately 10 moles removed, and I need to do whatever I can to stave off the inevitable.
Pooh, I am so sorry to hear your diagnosis. At least you have a great doctor and surgeon to keep on top of things. In all of my 6 siblings, I am the only one that has not had any kind of skin cancers, but have a couple of other weird skin problems. One of my sister's has had several places taken off of her scalp and face areas. She once went for a job interview, with what looked like a giant Kotex on her head. Only kind of bandage they could come up with! BTW, she got the job! Will keep you in my prayers. Party on, sistah! Pity or not, we'll be here for you.
Dearest Pooh :
You are a winner , not a loser , and you can beat this baby !!
With you every step ..... :-* :-*
Well, it's not your own personal pity party because we are all there with you. Bummer, bummer and yes, BUMMER! Lots of prayers and incantations, dancing by the light of the moon and such. We are a motley crew and we've got it covered. Bottom line, I am so sorry. I am going to have to read "When Bad Things Happen To Good People," again. I think it was written by Joshua Coleman (not sure) but I can't find my copy. Here's what's so: You are one of the "goodest" people I have ever known. Sending love...
Pooh, not a chance this is your own personal anything - we're here, for sure! And I am one of the fair-skinned, mole-prone multitudes as well...my family has a history, I've had many things removed and expect to have many more done before I'm through. So sorry you're going through this, but am grateful (!) you caught it before it became even more serious!
I'm bringing the wine and wings to the pity party. ((((Pooh)))) Give yourself a little bit of time to grieve and be sad/scared/angry, and then come out kicking nevus butt. You can do this, and it sounds like you have some really good doctors in your corner. And all of us.
I read your post today and just want to send my heartfelt commiseration and love accross many miles. The upside is that the melanoma was detected early. I do hope that you are in good hands and have a strong support in family and friends, I'm sure you have as you are such a lovely person.
Quote from Pooh Bear (paraphrased so no copyright issue):
Roo: 'Imagine the tree over there falls down and flattens your little house.'
Pooh: 'Imagine, it won't.'
Oh Pooh, I just read this today. (((Big Hugs))) You're a fighter and know you're in my thoughts. Sending you well wishes
I'm here with you too, Pooh, and glad about the early detection. I'm visualizing that all the pre-cancerous cells decide they have better things to do than give you trouble in the future.
I believe "when bad things happen to good people was written by a rabbi - Kushner. Great book. Worth several readings in a life time. Thanks for reminding Luise.
I'm here for a little bit today. Came back to work and slammed but not feeling great. The surgeon did cut the two places out of my back, so I'm very sore and the stitches are burning like crazy. I'm taking tomorrow and the weekend to try and get better as I'm running a low grade fever today, which is usually a sign of a flare coming on. Hopefully the weekend will give me time to recover and rest and ward off the flare.
Thanks for all the well wishes and I'm reading some, but not commenting much. I can't stand sitting up in front of the computer long as I can't lean against anything.
Sorry Mod Squad, I know I'm not helping much around here.
Oh, Pooh...what a time you are having. I'm so sorry and we have you covered here, always. Rest and then rest some more. We all love you to pieces!
Heal up pooh!!!
Pooh, don't worry about us! We got it!
Take care of yourself and feel better is all we want. Sending you well wishes
Dear Pooh...its good to know that you are here even if you dont comment much. You are a fundamental stone in this forum. I hope and pray that you feel much better. Take your time and get well.
Love you Pooh
Sending hugs to my brave little Pooh .....love ya ....xxx
Pooh, please don't worry about us. Take care of yourself this weekend. Hope you feel better super-quick!
Thanks guys. I will try to spend some time tomorrow filling everyone in on what's transpired over the weekend. Just send me good vibes, thoughts, prayers, energy...whatever you do as I need them right now more than I have ever needed them. Hard to believe with my stories, that I am in a very bad place right now that I never would have dreamed of. It's bad, ugly and I am truly stressed to the point I don't even know what to do with it right now.
My back is fine and healing, nothing to do with that. But I have eyes on my computer right now, so I can't get into it right now.
Dearest Pooh :
Whatever the problem is , we are with you 2000%...!!
Sending all my energies to you , and wishing you the best .
We are here when you need us , you're in my heart and soul , and I have the strength
for us both .
Love you Pooh ...x
Pooh, I'm sending you everything I got. We're here for you.
Me too
I am on it with all the rest of the woman who love you so dearly here. We are in your corner 10000%! Sending love...and faith...and hope...and healing.
Dear Pooh
We are all here for you. Can you feel us?
Love you very much
Yes, I feel every one of you! Thank you. I'm going to try and muddle through this on a new thread so I can get some help on this one.