Monday, May 23, 2011

Pain Management Doctor

Today was our monthly doctor's appointment. I say "our" because I never let Tim go alone if I can help it. I want to know exactly what is going on with everything in his body. If they change his meds, I want to know why, how, and any other question I can conjure up. If they want to try a new procedure, I want to ask as many questions as I can, and then go home and research it. Tim was in the military for 21 years. He just takes orders without asking questions. I am extremely analytical by nature, and I want answers!

The pain management doctor Tim was seeing before moving away from the area quit his practice while we lived away. We switched to a new doctor where we were living, but when we moved back we had to switch back. Since his old doctor is no longer in practice, we had to find a new one... and fast.

Apparently we rushed a little too fast. We have been with our current doctor for about 4 or 5 months now. He originally seemed like he would be wonderful... at least, that was Tim's impression when he went by himself the first time because I was unable to get off work. As I made it to the next appointment with him, I noticed this office was unsanitary, the doctor always wears dirty jeans and an old t-shirt or scrub top, his nurses don't seem to know the first thing about the human body, they did not keep any records of what they were doing, and the doctor was rather spacey. It really concerned me. However, he was willing to try non-narcotic solutions to the pain. That's what we've been looking for! We want him off those narcotics. With his current level of pain, though, it is impossible. This doctor mapped out a plan that seemed perfect. He did an injection that decreased the pain for a few days. But when it was time for our next appointment, he had no clue what was going on, what he had previously done, and what the plan was that he had mapped out for us. As we described it to him, he didn't agree at all. So he simply refilled the prescription.

Today was even more interesting. We went in to where the nurse was sitting. She asked how the pain had been and if the narcotics were helping. Tim told her that the pain was still very bad. She said, "Then let's increase how many you're taking. What do you think you should take?" Really? This nurse is asking what narcotics we want and willing to just write a prescription? We were shocked. Tim said, "Well, actually I'd like to not take any more than I absolutely have to, so I would rather just stick to the amount that I already have." The doctor then walked in, sat down, and literally had the following conversation with us sitting there in complete shock.

"You know, I keep driving down the road and seeing these signs for Vacation Bible School. I went to Vacation Bible School when I was a kid... FOR THE COOKIES! I would go to every one of them I could so I could get those good cookies they had there. You remember that? They were so good. I'd hit every denomination... Baptist, Methodist, Church of Christ, Catholic, Muslim.... well, I didn't hit Muslim. I wouldn't go to Muslim. But the cookies were so good! Did you ever go to Vacation Bible School as a kid?"

Tim responded, "Yes sir, but I don't remember the cookies."

Doc said, "I don't know how you could forget the cookies. Wow! Those cookies were so good!"

The nurse handed him the prescription, he signed it, and she told us we were finished and they'd see us next month. The doctor never said anything about the pain. He had no clue what was going on with Tim. Never in my life have I seen someone so unprofessional, especially someone who has other people's lives in their hands. I think it's time for us to find a new pain management doctor.

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