Health Care

[mjarrels]

On 6-22-10, I was having diner with my wife, son and my daughters friend. Yikes, a 95 plus day. I felt strange, went to the bathroom four times and could not pee. Next day, I was felling fine... No more Dr. Ppper, Only ice cold water. The next day, slured speach, drouped left lower mouth, water down the left chin. STROKE here it comes. (I'm retired at 55 years old). A old Navy friend from Wa. State said drop the phone now and go to the emergency room. We did, arrived about 2130, looked at the folks waiting, probably 30 plus in the waiting room. Told the wife, lets just go home. 20 minutes later, I was in a wheel chair in the next waiting room with no folks. I was in a private room within one hour, hooked to EKG, had a Cat scam within two hours but was left for two hours without any care. About 2:45 AM, I finally pulled the wires, removed the wrist band all the other wires/IV etc. and just went home. Just wait until you have to get permission to do things this fast from the Gov't.

mark

 

[jinjimbob]

Its nice if you have insurance, retired and 55, pretty sure someone else is picking up your tab. Other people aren't this lucky.

 

[RoyJackson]

Yep, sounds like a mini-stroke.

At minimum, report this to your family doc. If your BP is high, get the meds and start taking an aspirin (Ectoprin works well) daily.
Strokes, like chest pains, are not something to fool around with! I know...been there with both (still don't have the tee shirts though).

 

[MarkV]

Mark I can understand your frustration in the emergency room. It is like so many things these days, understaffed and no idea how much work is coming in that night. Don't ignore what happened though. Call your family doctor and get a referral to a cardiologist asap. Those symptoms are nothing to fool around with. A mini stroke you can walk away from is often just a sign of what is coming. A major stroke you rarely walk away from without some after effects.

Good luck,
MarkV

 

[DocHeb]

Health care is not exempt from the business plan used by most businesses:

"Do more...
With less...
Faster"

Unfortunately, most of the time only the first two lines are attained in practice.

4-20% of people that have a Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA or "ministroke") have a full Cerebral Vascular Accident (CVA - or a full, non-reversible stroke), within 90 days. Half of these CVAs occur within the first 48 hours of the TIA.

I tell people that are unhappy about waiting "you've had 55 years to develop your problem, you need to give me a couple hours to fix it." You need to at least talk to your doctor today.

There are significant differences between Emergency Departments and Hospitals in regards to treatment of trauma, stroke, and heart attacks. Talk to your doctor about signs and symptoms of these problems, and if you re lucky enough to have a choice of Emergency Departments, know which one to go to for those symptoms.

 

[jinman]

Mark, you've had nothing but good advice here. I can't add more except to admonish you to take the advice. Geez! I'd think a Navy Chief would know a lot about "hurry up and wait." Be calm, be patient, and get some help. I kinda like having you around to swap sea stories with.

 

[studor]

Leaving the emergency room because you are tired of waiting is like driving through a yellow light because you do not want to wait the two minutes. You might get away with it a few times but sooner or later all that impatience will manifest itself in some pretty ugly ways -JMHO

 

[20 20]

What I don't understand is that you thought something was serious enough to go to the ER. Then you waited for some time to see someone, just to leave, mean while you were also tying up someone else's emergency, by going part way with your issue just to leave and play cat and mouse

At the age of 55 you must have some idea of how many of these ER's work? It's been like that for years.

 

[beppington]

Leaving the emergency room because you are tired of waiting is like driving through a yellow light because you do not want to wait the two minutes.

Is there any other reason to run a yellow light? :laughing:

 

[beppington]

I imagine health care works about like any other business, that is supply-&-demand ... Right now the supply of doctors must be low so their prices are high. Instead of taking over health care altogether, the gov't should just offer a bunch of really good student grants for doctors so the supply-&-demand are closer to equal. That would make sense ... & that's why it's not happening.

 

[sweettractors]

Glad all is well with you now, however, as others have said, take care of yourself and don't put off getting help. Get a specialist to check you out and stay on top of your situation. God Bless. Ken Sweet

 

[brin]

I think the OP's point was ...given the new health care bill which takes 500 Billion dollars away from Medicare patients and gives it to Medicaid patients we can expect less treatment when we go to the ER...It is a proven fact that Medicaid patients and the uninsured use the ER for runny noses etc. and think 911 is a Taxi service...Sad situation indeed. Anyone see the movie " Soylent Green " ? Get ready...all these sci fi movies are coming true.

 

[mjarrels]

Good news, just got back from my doctor and all the hospital results were faxed to him... Just a nerve infection but looks like I'm going back on blood pressure meds again.

mark

 

[sweettractors]

Sounds like good news, Congratulations. Ken Sweet

 

[MarkV]

Good news, just got back from my doctor and all the hospital results were faxed to him... Just a nerve infection but looks like I'm going back on blood pressure meds again.

mark

Good news, glad you got back to the doc.

MarkV

 

[riptides]

Jeez, If I had symptoms like that why not call 911?

Emergency rooms in my area are like wait clinics. You come in with the fire department or an ambulance, you GET emergency care.

 

[jinman]

Good news, just got back from my doctor and all the hospital results were faxed to him... Just a nerve infection but looks like I'm going back on blood pressure meds again.

mark

Whew! Good news indeed, shipmate.

 

[automech]

Soylent Green? Spicerubbed and slow cooked in my smoker with my homemade barbeque sauce and you would like it.

 

[RadarTech]

Good news, just got back from my doctor and all the hospital results were faxed to him... Just a nerve infection but looks like I'm going back on blood pressure meds again.

mark

Good deal!


I have to second the thought about the pick the ER you go to...
As some here know, I have been working on paving my driveway with kidney stones...
and I know where to go for that.. twice in the last 6 months I have had attacks....
At the ER of choice, I am taken back and treated in less than 20 minutes.

At the ER of closest proximity, it once took them an hour and a half to just take me back. that time was so serious they admitted me for 4 days...
(BTW- this was at midnight on a Sunday and there was only 1 other patient!!)

So follow the advice about picking an ER....

It does matter....

Later,
J

 

[MossRoad]

Good news, just got back from my doctor and all the hospital results were faxed to him... Just a nerve infection but looks like I'm going back on blood pressure meds again.

mark

You're lucky you didn't fall over on your wife and die the next day. I've had several retired friends that did that. One fell on his wife in church. Died two days later. Another fell on his wife in the grocery store. Died a few days later. Another kept telling his wife something was wrong... for several months. Fell over on her in the house and died within a few days.

You are lucky it was not a stroke, but foolish to have left the E.R. without a diagnosis.