Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Every time my Dad goes anywhere near a medical professional, they suddenly go nuts and start insisting the he have test after test after test. He wheezes. Medical professional "He needs a chest Xray" Me: He always wheezes, he has had bad wheezing for over 12 years. He has COPD. Also he just had a chest Xray last week, the week before and two months ago." Medical professional "Well we need to be sure, he is really wheezing a lot." Me: "It will not show anything. It never does. You are excessively radiating him for no reason." MP: "Well I must insist, this could be very dangerous" . . . . . "What did the chest X-ray show?" "Nothing, but he sure wheeszes a lot. Maybe a CT scan."
Gee if you do enough tests you may find that he has COPD - OR, perhaps you could look in his file and see it all over the place.
On Tuesday we took him to the doctor and said we think he may have an infection somewhere. They did a bunch of blood tests, urine test etc. They tried to insist on another chest X-ray. I told them not a chance.
Thursday - the assisted care place sent him to the ER because his knee was badly swollen. ER decided he has an infection. They did a blood test and a urine test- yes the exact same tests the doctor did on Tuesday. Then then Xrayed his knee and also insisted on Xray of his lungs - again. They want to do more Xrays, a CT scan of his knee, a bunch of heart tests (same tests he had in November, and May and a year and a half ago - all of which found nothing wrong - his regular doctor told us several times that there is no reason to think there is anything wrong with his heart) . . .
Is seems like they see an old guy and get visions of a new swimming pool. He is old so, he has lots of old guy issues, "We can test him for everything under the sun and bill the insurance company. Then we can do it all again."
I think I may have "NO More Xrays" Tattooed across his chest.
They like to admit him to the hospital for more tests, but once he is there, they forget to feed him, change him, give him water. Then they want to keep him longer because he is dehydrated. (which also makes them insist on a bunch of tests to find out why he is dehydrated - Umm maybe it is because he cannot get a glass of water unless we are there to give it to him.
I have completely lost faith in our medical profession. In the last two years they have done about 100 tests on dad and never found anything significant. (Except the covid test that came back positive, but they somehow missed that fact in his file and told me that they woudl not do a covid test because he had no fever. Then they said he did not have COVID. All the while the positive test results were in his file). . And a blood test that indicated he had pancreatitis that they also missed, but my wife noticed in in the test results in his file (She is a librarian, not a Doctor). Of course, it turned out that he was having a pancreas issue because he was badly dehydrated.
Everywhere he goes they try to do every test they can think of. Of course they never do anything to treat him because all of the tests reveal nothing.
The do like to hand out steroids like candy at Halloween though. We have half a dozen packets of steroids in our house because we decided not to take them (since they really do not do anything except make you really agitated and angry). At least for our family, it does not matter what you go in for, they prescribe steroids (usually after a bunch of tests that usually find nothing). Different doctors and clinics, but always the same results.
As I get older I've noticed various doctors seem to be pointing me to easy money for them. I just had this conversation with my podiatrist. he insisted I get special "diabetic shoes" because I complained about foot pain when walking on our hardwood floors. "But Doc, I said, my foot doesn't hurt when I'm wearing my sneakers, only when I'm barefoot on a hard surface."
Then about a week later I get a call to go get fitted for these shoes, and how will I be paying for them? I made it clear to whoever called from the Dr's office I had no use for their shoes and would no longer be needing their service. Then I called my primary Dr and got a referral to a different podiatrist.
My Mrs wonders why I don't trust doctors.
Every time my Dad goes anywhere near a medical professional, they suddenly go nuts and start insisting the he have test after test after test. He wheezes. Medical professional "He needs a chest Xray" Me: He always wheezes, he has had bad wheezing for over 12 years. He has COPD. Also he just had a chest Xray last week, the week before and two months ago." Medical professional "Well we need to be sure, he is really wheezing a lot." Me: "It will not show anything. It never does. You are excessively radiating him for no reason." MP: "Well I must insist, this could be very dangerous" . . . . . "What did the chest X-ray show?" "Nothing, but he sure wheeszes a lot. Maybe a CT scan."
Gee if you do enough tests you may find that he has COPD - OR, perhaps you could look in his file and see it all over the place.
On Tuesday we took him to the doctor and said we think he may have an infection somewhere. They did a bunch of blood tests, urine test etc. They tried to insist on another chest X-ray. I told them not a chance.
Thursday - the assisted care place sent him to the ER because his knee was badly swollen. ER decided he has an infection. They did a blood test and a urine test- yes the exact same tests the doctor did on Tuesday. Then then Xrayed his knee and also insisted on Xray of his lungs - again. They want to do more Xrays, a CT scan of his knee, a bunch of heart tests (same tests he had in November, and May and a year and a half ago - all of which found nothing wrong - his regular doctor told us several times that there is no reason to think there is anything wrong with his heart) . . .
Is seems like they see an old guy and get visions of a new swimming pool. He is old so, he has lots of old guy issues, "We can test him for everything under the sun and bill the insurance company. Then we can do it all again."
I think I may have "NO More Xrays" Tattooed across his chest.
They like to admit him to the hospital for more tests, but once he is there, they forget to feed him, change him, give him water. Then they want to keep him longer because he is dehydrated. (which also makes them insist on a bunch of tests to find out why he is dehydrated - Umm maybe it is because he cannot get a glass of water unless we are there to give it to him.
I have completely lost faith in our medical profession. In the last two years they have done about 100 tests on dad and never found anything significant. (Except the covid test that came back positive, but they somehow missed that fact in his file and told me that they woudl not do a covid test because he had no fever. Then they said he did not have COVID. All the while the positive test results were in his file). . And a blood test that indicated he had pancreatitis that they also missed, but my wife noticed in in the test results in his file (She is a librarian, not a Doctor). Of course, it turned out that he was having a pancreas issue because he was badly dehydrated.
Everywhere he goes they try to do every test they can think of. Of course they never do anything to treat him because all of the tests reveal nothing.
The do like to hand out steroids like candy at Halloween though. We have half a dozen packets of steroids in our house because we decided not to take them (since they really do not do anything except make you really agitated and angry). At least for our family, it does not matter what you go in for, they prescribe steroids (usually after a bunch of tests that usually find nothing). Different doctors and clinics, but always the same results.
Anyone else running into this BS?
I know you probably don't want to here this but there is a simple reason as to why all the testing is going on again and again. It's called liability. If they didn't do the tests and you Dad died, you could sue them for malpractice. By offering it and you declining it, it takes away some of their liability in the event that they were sued. The legal system needs to be fixed for the sake of the medical system. The 1st step would be to do away with contingent billing (you don’t pay unless we win) and class action lawsuits ( in most, the only people that get any substantial money are the attorneys). The chances of either going away is slim. The most powerful lobby in Washington DC is the American Bar Association. And guess what? Almost 100% of your Senators and Representatives are members of the ABA. Until the medical profession gets out from under this liability, you can expect redundancy in what they do.
Every time my Dad goes anywhere near a medical professional, they suddenly go nuts and start insisting the he have test after test after test. He wheezes. Medical professional "He needs a chest Xray" Me: He always wheezes, he has had bad wheezing for over 12 years. He has COPD. Also he just had a chest Xray last week, the week before and two months ago." Medical professional "Well we need to be sure, he is really wheezing a lot." Me: "It will not show anything. It never does. You are excessively radiating him for no reason." MP: "Well I must insist, this could be very dangerous" . . . . . "What did the chest X-ray show?" "Nothing, but he sure wheeszes a lot. Maybe a CT scan."
Gee if you do enough tests you may find that he has COPD - OR, perhaps you could look in his file and see it all over the place.
On Tuesday we took him to the doctor and said we think he may have an infection somewhere. They did a bunch of blood tests, urine test etc. They tried to insist on another chest X-ray. I told them not a chance.
Thursday - the assisted care place sent him to the ER because his knee was badly swollen. ER decided he has an infection. They did a blood test and a urine test- yes the exact same tests the doctor did on Tuesday. Then then Xrayed his knee and also insisted on Xray of his lungs - again. They want to do more Xrays, a CT scan of his knee, a bunch of heart tests (same tests he had in November, and May and a year and a half ago - all of which found nothing wrong - his regular doctor told us several times that there is no reason to think there is anything wrong with his heart) . . .
Is seems like they see an old guy and get visions of a new swimming pool. He is old so, he has lots of old guy issues, "We can test him for everything under the sun and bill the insurance company. Then we can do it all again."
I think I may have "NO More Xrays" Tattooed across his chest.
They like to admit him to the hospital for more tests, but once he is there, they forget to feed him, change him, give him water. Then they want to keep him longer because he is dehydrated. (which also makes them insist on a bunch of tests to find out why he is dehydrated - Umm maybe it is because he cannot get a glass of water unless we are there to give it to him.
I have completely lost faith in our medical profession. In the last two years they have done about 100 tests on dad and never found anything significant. (Except the covid test that came back positive, but they somehow missed that fact in his file and told me that they woudl not do a covid test because he had no fever. Then they said he did not have COVID. All the while the positive test results were in his file). . And a blood test that indicated he had pancreatitis that they also missed, but my wife noticed in in the test results in his file (She is a librarian, not a Doctor). Of course, it turned out that he was having a pancreas issue because he was badly dehydrated.
Everywhere he goes they try to do every test they can think of. Of course they never do anything to treat him because all of the tests reveal nothing.
The do like to hand out steroids like candy at Halloween though. We have half a dozen packets of steroids in our house because we decided not to take them (since they really do not do anything except make you really agitated and angry). At least for our family, it does not matter what you go in for, they prescribe steroids (usually after a bunch of tests that usually find nothing). Different doctors and clinics, but always the same results.
Anyone else running into this BS?
Our medical system is profit based, not patient based so this goes on a lot, and sometimes if you are on medicare and medicaid you can't get the tests because it costs money.
Sadly, this is the current state of medicine in America. It's awful. I can't tell you how many doctors I have "fired" due to their incompetency and interest in billing my insurance company for everything they can get. When I lived in Florida we had a lot of Canadian snowbirds. Every one of them I talked to said that if they got sick they would go back to Canada because they didn't trust our health care, which DesertRat56 correctly pointed out is profit based. They're in the business of making money.
The ONLY time I have had good health care was when I went to First Nation in Albuquerque, NM, a tribal place that's also open to non Native Americans. They only had one doctor and everyone else was nurse practitioners, which I found to be much more caring and patient orientated. They listened to me, imagine that. It was always a consultation and never a directive. If the crime there wasn't so crazy I would go back.
Last edited by stephenMM; 02-23-2024 at 11:54 PM..
I actually found the opposite. My mother (90) started having some digestive issues in September. She went to a gastroenterologist in October. He never physically examined her, patted her hand and told her to eat more fiber. Her symptoms worsened. Her stomach became distended, she started vomiting dried blood. She went back to the gastroenterologist on November 28. She had lost 10 pounds in a month, but looked six months pregnant. Again, he did not do a physical examine. He would not order an abdominal ct scan. Instead he ordered an endoscopy and told her to chew her food more thoroughly. She started throwing up bile on 12/1, went to the hospital by ambulance and died 12/6. We still don’t know what was wrong as all the tests results had not come in. They suspected some type of abdominal cancer (colon, pancreatic, or liver), but we don’t know. I’m not sure the outcome would have been different, but I am still furious with that doctor for ignoring my mother.
I actually found the opposite. My mother (90) started having some digestive issues in September. She went to a gastroenterologist in October. He never physically examined her, patted her hand and told her to eat more fiber. Her symptoms worsened. Her stomach became distended, she started vomiting dried blood. She went back to the gastroenterologist on November 28. She had lost 10 pounds in a month, but looked six months pregnant. Again, he did not do a physical examine. He would not order an abdominal ct scan. Instead he ordered an endoscopy and told her to chew her food more thoroughly. She started throwing up bile on 12/1, went to the hospital by ambulance and died 12/6. We still don’t know what was wrong as all the tests results had not come in. They suspected some type of abdominal cancer (colon, pancreatic, or liver), but we don’t know. I’m not sure the outcome would have been different, but I am still furious with that doctor for ignoring my mother.
Wow, I'm really sorry to read this. I'd be furious too. Very sorry for your loss.
The conclusion here is that doctors: (1) listen to complaints from old patients and therefore perform too many tests on old patients while simultaneously (2) ignoring complaints from old patients and not testing for certain conditions that give rise to those symptoms.
I actually found the opposite. My mother (90) started having some digestive issues in September. She went to a gastroenterologist in October. He never physically examined her, patted her hand and told her to eat more fiber. Her symptoms worsened. Her stomach became distended, she started vomiting dried blood. She went back to the gastroenterologist on November 28. She had lost 10 pounds in a month, but looked six months pregnant. Again, he did not do a physical examine. He would not order an abdominal ct scan. Instead he ordered an endoscopy and told her to chew her food more thoroughly. She started throwing up bile on 12/1, went to the hospital by ambulance and died 12/6. We still don’t know what was wrong as all the tests results had not come in. They suspected some type of abdominal cancer (colon, pancreatic, or liver), but we don’t know. I’m not sure the outcome would have been different, but I am still furious with that doctor for ignoring my mother.
What kind of insurance does she have? This kind of treatment screams Medicaid to me (or perhaps a really crappy Medicare Advantage plan).
Every time my Dad goes anywhere near a medical professional, they suddenly go nuts and start insisting the he have test after test after test. He wheezes. Medical professional "He needs a chest Xray" Me: He always wheezes, he has had bad wheezing for over 12 years. He has COPD. Also he just had a chest Xray last week, the week before and two months ago." Medical professional "Well we need to be sure, he is really wheezing a lot." Me: "It will not show anything. It never does. You are excessively radiating him for no reason." MP: "Well I must insist, this could be very dangerous" . . . . . "What did the chest X-ray show?" "Nothing, but he sure wheeszes a lot. Maybe a CT scan."
Gee if you do enough tests you may find that he has COPD - OR, perhaps you could look in his file and see it all over the place.
On Tuesday we took him to the doctor and said we think he may have an infection somewhere. They did a bunch of blood tests, urine test etc. They tried to insist on another chest X-ray. I told them not a chance.
Thursday - the assisted care place sent him to the ER because his knee was badly swollen. ER decided he has an infection. They did a blood test and a urine test- yes the exact same tests the doctor did on Tuesday. Then then Xrayed his knee and also insisted on Xray of his lungs - again. They want to do more Xrays, a CT scan of his knee, a bunch of heart tests (same tests he had in November, and May and a year and a half ago - all of which found nothing wrong - his regular doctor told us several times that there is no reason to think there is anything wrong with his heart) . . .
Is seems like they see an old guy and get visions of a new swimming pool. He is old so, he has lots of old guy issues, "We can test him for everything under the sun and bill the insurance company. Then we can do it all again."
I think I may have "NO More Xrays" Tattooed across his chest.
They like to admit him to the hospital for more tests, but once he is there, they forget to feed him, change him, give him water. Then they want to keep him longer because he is dehydrated. (which also makes them insist on a bunch of tests to find out why he is dehydrated - Umm maybe it is because he cannot get a glass of water unless we are there to give it to him.
I have completely lost faith in our medical profession. In the last two years they have done about 100 tests on dad and never found anything significant. (Except the covid test that came back positive, but they somehow missed that fact in his file and told me that they woudl not do a covid test because he had no fever. Then they said he did not have COVID. All the while the positive test results were in his file). . And a blood test that indicated he had pancreatitis that they also missed, but my wife noticed in in the test results in his file (She is a librarian, not a Doctor). Of course, it turned out that he was having a pancreas issue because he was badly dehydrated.
Everywhere he goes they try to do every test they can think of. Of course they never do anything to treat him because all of the tests reveal nothing.
The do like to hand out steroids like candy at Halloween though. We have half a dozen packets of steroids in our house because we decided not to take them (since they really do not do anything except make you really agitated and angry). At least for our family, it does not matter what you go in for, they prescribe steroids (usually after a bunch of tests that usually find nothing). Different doctors and clinics, but always the same results.
Anyone else running into this BS?
I know that process from my grandparents... I always wondered why they seem to be unable to talk to each other. Sometimes my mom was walking around with hundreds of reports to bring them from one expert to the next just to make sure there is as little redundancy as possible. I would really love to have a platform where the doctors can (and actually do) check what was already done by other doctors for the same patient...
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
