As many of
you know, I have recently started what I like to call “the medical
merry-go-round,” seeing many different specialists in the past few weeks and
more in the coming weeks. I had to have
surgery a few weeks ago which went very well, but as usual for a guy my age,
more medical issues have arrived.
I’ve learned
a lot of lessons the past few weeks and being able to compare my health care
with the veterinary care we offer, all I can say is:
Do any living, breathing people work at
insurance companies? I have called mine
several times, usually while on their website looking for answers. Usually buried on page 67 of the website I find
my answer before someone answers. And
the on-hold messages are actually looped, bringing you back to the same menu
with no answers available. You ought to
check that.
When checking to see if your health
care provider is in your insurance network, guessing is the best option. The health care provider will tell you to
call your insurance provider (see above) and the website may not list them
but has a disclaimer at the bottom saying all approved health care providers
may not be listed and to contact your health care provider…..another never-ending
loop.
Why is everyone so interested in my
birthday? I know for a fact that I was not the only person born on that
date? What if I don’t remember my
birthday? No health care? It’s also listed on my driver’s license…see
below.
Do you really need to copy my driver’s
license and insurance card every time I have an appointment? Why do you not believe me when I tell you
once again that nothing has changed? You greeted me when I came in by my name!
Eight pages of new client forms, some
front and back? Really? Some would be able to be completed if only
you would read my driver’s license and insurance card.
Price shopping for flea and tick
medications prior to performing surgery on me did not endear me to you.
Asking me about your cat who is
urinating outside the litter box was a really nice conversation, but why don’t
you focus on why my oxygen saturation level was low? And take your cat to your vet!
And speaking of nurse anesthetists,
that story about one of your friends performing a surgical procedure on a cat
while using succinylcholine only…. I can only hope this was just an acquaintance
and not a peer or a mentor. You know and
I know, that cat felt every bit of pain during that surgery but the succinylcholine did not allow him to move or respond.
He was paralyzed, not anesthetized.
He was awake during the entire process.
No wonder he died. Your friend is
a sadistic jerk that should have his license pulled. I should have fired your sorry butt and
demanded another anesthetist. I was
stunned someone with your knowledge would think that was comical.
Recovery nurses, you rock!
Physicians,
get your exam rooms cleaned better. You
have dust bunnies multiplying under your hydraulic exam tables. Just raise them and look. I did.
Physicians,
it really isn’t a physical exam when the only part of me you touch is my hand
when you shake it. Reviewing someone
else’s medical notes isn’t a physical.
What if they were inaccurate? It
will be interesting to get that bill. Then I'll be able to know how much a hand shake is worth.
Nurses
-- By the way, those crackers you gave me post-op to see if I could keep them
down? Didn’t work…..lost them somewhere
on I-44 on the way home. Thanks for the
memory.
No
wonder so many of my clients say I take better care of their pets than their
own physicians.
Dr. Hackworth
