It doesn’t just depend on the MRI place. I haven’t needed an MRI specifically - but I recently needed a colonoscopy, and needed clearance from my cardiologist to come off Plavix for a while to have it done, cardiologist wouldn’t take me off Plavix unless the coloscopy was urgent ( which it wasn’t) , the gastroenterologist tried to get approval for a CT coloscopy from my insurance company which wouldn’t approve it , but he was then able to get approval for another procedure. Once that procedure was approved, I could have made an appointment for the next day at the radiology center - but the whole process took 3-4 months. And the thing is, it’s almost impossible to know these things ahead of time - on Wednesday, I saw one doctor and was referred to a different sort of specialist. I called on Thursday to make an appointment, thinking the soonest I would be able to get would be 2-3 weeks away - but they offered me an appointment on Tuesday. That 3-4 month process I had would have been much shorter if I got next day appointments with the gastro and the cardiologist and the radiology center.
That’s pretty wacky. Colonoscopies are the gold standard in catching / preventing colon cancer. Does your cardiologist prefer you to die of colon cancer because it couldn’t be screened for? An “emergency” colonoscopy generally means it’s too late.
I mean, I know that an anticoagulant regimen would be a problem, in that any polyps they remove would pose a risk of excessive bleeding - but there must surely be some kind of protocol for this.
"Urgent’ , not “emergency”. There are other tests , like the CT colonoscopy and the barium enema I eventually had - but although didn’t tell the whole story initially, I had a minor heart attack (apparently due to a blocked stent) on the day my colonoscopy was originally scheduled. ( I actually thought it was a reaction to the prep) And I was asking about clearance just a few weeks later.
You may not be able to control all sorts of things in the world of medicine. But you can absolutely choose your doctor.
FWIW the few times I’ve chosen to leave the care of a specific doctor, they or their office has always been completely helpful and friendly about it, sending records to the new one or whatever else. I think this is because trying to fight a patient who wants to leave is some kind of magic carpet ride to malpractice suits.
Yikes!!
Well, they DO say the prep is the worst, but honestly I think having a HEART ATTACK as a result is taking things to extremes!! Most people just WISH they could die - you made rather a better attempt at it than most.
I’d go to an orthopedist instead, but that’s just me.