Really? They refuse to join networks? I wish they could be compelled to make that fact known upfront. Nothing frustrates me more when dealing with my out-of pocket costs than having to figure out who’s in-network and who isn’t, and I’d prefer to receive services ONLY from providers who are in-network.
Woo- I sprained my knee a couple summers ago. I was on restricted duty at work for the first month, limped significantly for three, and wasn’t back to normal until December. It was bad enough that an MRI was done to make sure nothing was torn. Nothing was. Just had to do physical therapy, take 600-800mg ibuprofen up to 4 times a day, and wait it out.
teela- are you wearing inserts in your shoes? PM me if you want recommendations for what shoes I bought to relieve my faciitis - in the long run they’re cheaper than the inserts that come from the podiatrist! I have happy feet 100% of the time, now.
Refuse, don’t qualify, been kicked out or whatever. I’ve seen it all.
Not coincidentally, many of them own some sort of stake in the facility (again, out-of-network) they “recommend” to the victims, I mean patients. “Recommend” meaning, “This is where you got to have this done”. That’s where I’ll be.
Know anybody who questions the doctor about the place or whether its in network or whether he is a* fucking partner?* (They should, but they don’t. People tend to trust their doctors. Once their finger goes up your ass or pussy, they got you!) They’re a lot of shit-hooks in the medical profession.
And record it! Tell them you are recording it! Get names and numbers! Write down every thing they say!
Coverage can change form day to day. Call all the time, every time before you get anything other than emergency service . Make sure you document what they tell you.
They should be more than willing to give you a list of current “in-network” providers. Please note the word “current”. A month later, this information is not current. Call again. Record. Document. Trust me. (Don’t trust me. Don’t trust the doctor or his front office minion. Do the smart thing. Get it on tape or in writing.)
Elemenopy here’s what I would do/have done sometimes, in various ways…
Write down every single ailment you’ve had, every doctor you’ve seen and every medication you’ve been prescribed with approximate dates for all. Don’t forget to mention your previous home which sounds like it could have contributed to some of your problems. Prominently note your current maladies.
Make several copies of this information and hand-carry it to the office of every doctor and hospital etc. you can and tell them you’re not leaving until you know who is going to read it ASAP because some of your treatments, diagnosis, and medications could be counterproductive as mis-(and missing)-information could be making things worse instead of better.
Take down the dates, names, and phone numbers of everybody you talk to and who they say will be responsible for doing this, and when. Also ask for a copy of your records wherever you can get them (not everyone will release them.)
Mail certified copies to every place you can’t physically get to, (like insurance company or whatever) because somebody has to sign for it, letting them know that every single other medical facility is receiving the same information. This will:
piss off the ones who are incompetent but will make them do their job;
hopefully make a light bulb go off in some doctor’s head as they realize “!!!..Oh, that explains…yada yada”;
force consultation in your treatment which is ultimately what you need for overall resolution of your physical state.
It will also be good information for any Patients Advocate you can talk to or…lawyer, if it ever comes to that.
If this sounds radical, aggressive and pushy—I speak from experience. Nobody else cares as much about your health as you do and if you don’t make them look at the whole picture things can fall between the cracks. You don’t have to be mean about it, just persistent and tenacious.
I hope you’re feeling much better, soon.
SeaDragon, that’s both comforting and depressing! You DID recover, but man, that’s a LONG time to be laid up.
Migraine from April showers.
I can’t go to bed because I have an appointment with my neurologist. At least I can bitch about the migraine.
THEN maybe I can go to bed!
I did something to something in my calf muscle and/or ligaments. Walking fast and all of a sudden … oink … I’m painfully limping. Something sprained, strained and/or twisted I don’t know. Put it up in the air, hot water bottled it, iced it, popped some ibprofen - it’ll heal right? Well it was getting better then two weeks later bam - felt like I’d been hit with a cricket ball - it twanged again.
It’s about three months down the line now and it still feels weird and I’m still avoiding doing anything I don’t have to do. These sorts of thing really do take time to heal.
Becky, thank you. I did this at first, and I’m trying to reconstruct things (broken computers, several of my old physicians dying or retiring, moves, etc) and do it again. Thinking of sending it all to either Mayo or the Cleveland Clinic (which is pretty close to me). Cleveland apparently has a “Second Opinion” program that has been helpful to some. I just have not gotten a single local doctor to really look/listen to my history, even with labs, a short written narrative, etc. I’m lucky if anyone really remembers what I’m about on my next visit. And I’m just so tired and brain-foggy. 
I saw the rheumatologist again this week (after 3 months). I’m so bolloxed I hardly want to recount it, but it will do my memory good to try. She had given me something called Plaquenil to try to combat symptoms, but no supervision. Just told me if I felt weird to discontinue the drug. Well, all my lesions, new and old, burst open in a disgusting way, I got new things that look like plantars warts all over my hands, was vomiting daily, and eventually started having weird OCD behavior. And I’ve suddenly started needing reading glasses (retinopathy is in the literature about the drug, but she never mentioned it). So, I stopped the drug after a month, but had to wait another two months to see her. 2 hrs in the waiting room, and I saw her for 10 minutes, though I talked with her new NP first. She wants me to try Imuran or methotrexate now. I asked her if the bad reaction to the drug could be due to my situation being infectious (regardless of subsequent autoimmune reaction) and I got blinked at. There’s more, but it’s just too stupid to discuss. I’m not even sure I want to take the new drug, if it’s just going to cripple my immune system more…but maybe if the same thing happens, she might consider a different approach (like giving the infectious disease Dr a poke).
I know this is a commercial site, and a dubious one at that, but I’m beginning to think thatthese folks aren’t completely nuts. I have almost all the same symptoms. I wouldn’t dare bring up the M-word to a doc, though. Still think I have a weird fungal infection. But my random wounds look like that picture, and that’s why I’ve practically become a hermit. That would be bad enough without all the arthritis pain, etc. I look like the chubbiest meth addict ever. :rolleyes:
One good note: the rheumatologist gave me a referral to the one endocrinologist in town, which my primary wouldn’t do. So, another round of bullshit, but she did clear me to have thyroid surgery if the new endo agrees. That’s been 4-5 years in progress, now.
Anyway, sorry about the rambling. I’ve read everyone else’s posts, and have some comments, but I’m turning into a pumpkin (I usually can’t read much or post more than a one-liner till midnight or so, therefore I’m slow at message boards). But just for one, SciFiSam, I feel what you’re going through. I too sound as though I am drunk sometimes, and I’m having terrible word-finding difficulty, and when my shoulders and neck start acting up, my facial affect looks pissy and everyone thinks I’m angry. Sounds like we might have some of the same issues. Have you had your thyroid examined? Thanks for the well wishes.
As far as the insurance issues others have mentioned, I get it. I have a lot to say on that, but will have to wait until I get some sleep. 
It’s a small rant, but several times now techs or CNAs or nurses have taken my pulse with their thumb. No surprise that they get a higher pulse than I do counting at the same time. When I was a wee professional working on an inpatient unit, I was taught never to use my thumb when taking pulses. Also: I need a manual blood pressure cuff. That doesn’t mean they can’t use your pulse oximeter to get a more accurate pulse.
In that same vein, heh, if you lookat my left arm, you will SEE very clearly my fistula. The throbbing bulge in my wrist. The thick veins in my arm. The row of scars from surgeries. I cannot have blood pressure tested on that arm, nor can I have blood drawn. That was pounded into my head many times. I have had to argue with more than a few technicians who say it’s no big deal. I am not fucking up access for dialysis because you claim you know more than my nephrologist and surgeon.
Every time there’s a major change in the barometric pressure, I get a mega-headache or migraine like you would not believe. The feeling like you’ve got a pick-axe in your brain, nausea, pounding in my ears (sometimes I can hardly hear out of my right one, it’s so bad), chills AND flushes. It’s awful.
Once I woke up in the middle of the night and couldn’t get back to sleep it hurt so freaking bad. :mad: