GRRR to doctors offices, and ERs ACK grrrrrr (Immediate input accepted)

dreamer

New Member
OK so the other day PCs doctor sent her to ER. OK, fine, and set follow up appointment for mid July. <shrug> whatever. Then easy child landed back in ER yesterday, chest pain on top of the continuing with no relief vomiting that landed her in there theother day- it continues and has worsened, not gotten at all better, and has now already caused TWO IV rehydrations in less than a week.
SO, our ER - in their consent fortreatmtent makes it clear they do not diagnosis and or treat......(I posted about our ER paperwork last week here)
So yesterday she also had chest pain, which then needed an EKG to rule out arrythmias due to electrolyte imbalance. (from dehydration from the constant vomiting)
So yesterday ER Rx'ed more additional medications, that the ob gyne has not approved (MORE - higher dose zofran PLUS prevacid, PLUS ibuprofen) And ER removed her from work pending her own docs release. Discharge ordders were to call ob gyne first thing today. OK, makes sense to me. easy child is still so ill, so dizzy, so very weak, I mean it is now 2 weeks since she has held ANYTHING at all........2 full weeks, around the clock vomiting. even after her IV, even after bare sips of lukewarm water or watered gatorade or 1/8 of a saltine cracker. Yes, most of what she gives back is pure bile, has been for a full week.

So- she is SO ill, SO weak, she could not call and cope with the multi levels to reach her doctor. And at her last appointment she signed and requested for me to have full um- whatever- so I could make appts for her, so I can discuss things with doctor etc.........becuz at THAT appointment easy child was already weak (Last Monday)

So- dutifully and all.....I called doctor today. Except first you have to talk to main desk, and then get the nurse. leave message, nurse calls back, and then she decides how to handle the issue at hand. As soon as I identified myself to the nurse, she got snippy and snotty and cut me off- she KNEW I was not easy child.....(altho I did not claim tobe) I tried to tell her easy child has been in and out of ER over the weekend, and is now far far too ill.......but, the darned nurse was haveing none of it. Nope, not at all, she just kept insisting that easy child is 18 (as of May) and she has to call herself, - I tired to say LOOK easy child is like SO incredibly ill....... and ER is insisting she come to doctor for more adequete longer term help---becuz this is not only acute but also chronic- ongoing- and ER does not DO chronic. and easy child CAN'T wait till mid July. YEESH the poor kid is barely conscious!!! LITERALLY.
BUT nope, the nurse is not accepting that. I said CHECK the paperwork in the chart, easy child gave doctor permission for ME to call and set appts, call with problems, easy child was there last Mon with a severe problem and it is still ongoing .....doctor KNOWS easy child is quite ill.........NOPE, nurse will not budge. easy child is 18. Nevermind she is JUST 18, and yes, I DO understand HIPPAA etc........but-------easy child signed for me, requested it specifically, asked on her own, due to how ill she has been.........
SO---------ER is shoving us to ob gyne, and ob gyne nurse is blowing usoff, and here I sit with this very ill kid......and my unborn grandchild and I am stuck between the medical professions garbage. Ripping my hair out, VERY angry, getting more scared, and clueless what to do next. The ER and hospital often send people home who are far too ill to handle their own discharge instructions and care. I get it, I know it, know it for fact from doing nurseing home andprivate duty in home nurseing of elderly.
I am not getting thru to the darned docs office. at all........

Well, I called ER and told them to fax ALL the papeprwork from both ER visits to PCs doctor cuz PCs docs nurse would not take a call from me......but ER said they were not sure they would "get to it this week" ?????????????????

On top of it all, it got dramatically hotter outside today and far far more humid than it has been..........and our house air cond is broken........nice situation when you have someone so ill already and dehydrating so fast. GRRR. Repairman keeps saying he will get to it.......but so many ahead of us. <sigh>

I am SO frustrated and am out of ideas. The thoughts I DO have are not ones I can post or say out loud.
WHAT is a person supposed to DO? The kid is half unconscious for petes sake.........ER does not want her........their care did NOT restore her to a level to be able to call and set an appointment herself. She tried mumbling at the phone to docs nurse, but docs nurse could not hear her.........

GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR
 

Star*

call 911........call 911
YUP!!!!!! Take her to the doctor and TELL THAT FREAKING NURSE - YOU take her NOW! SHE's HERE!

ARGHHHHHHH.

Then ask them for the release form that States that you may assist and sign in IN FRONT OF NURSE SNIPPY.
 

smallworld

Moderator
Sometimes pregnant women who are this ill and can't keep anything down need to be hospitalized for 24/7 hydration and nutrition. You might need to take her back to the ER for admittance if the situation does not resolve and the OB/GYN is not responsive.
 

Andy

Active Member
Would you have time to take her to doctor's office NOW? Take her directly to his appointment desk. Tell them, "Since nurse refuses to acknowledge that I have the right to help my daughter, and nurse can not understand her on the phone because she is too sick to talk, I have brought her in to make an appointment. Do not send us to ER - we have been there enough and ER sends us back to you. Since nurse is refusing to be of help, we want to see the doctor NOW don't bother having the nurse see us first, just send out the doctor."
 

donna723

Well-Known Member
Yep, that's what I'd do too! Take her straight in to the doctors office and right up to the appointment desk and DEMAND that the doctor see her! Make a spectacle of yourself if you have to, and the more people in the waiting room to see it, the better! They'll have her back there seeing the doctor soooo fast ... !
 

DammitJanet

Well-Known Member
I would go to the docs office too.

The last time I was at my regular docs office a mom and boy came in who were first time patients of this doctor but something very bad was going on with this boy and they took him back immediately. Not long after that they were calling the hospital to have him admitted per the instructions of my doctor.

Honestly...if you cannot get her ob-gyn to see her immediately and your local ER wont help, I would be driving to another hospital.
 

janebrain

New Member
Hi Dreamer,
I am so angry after reading this! I agree with the others--take her there and demand they see her. Please update us when you can--I just cannot believe the nerve of that nurse! I am so sorry for you and your dtr, how horrible!
Jane
 
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