@approxinfinity I am sorry that you had that experience and am glad you have found a provider that treats you with the care and respect you deserve. There is a provider in the rural area I work that “fires” a patient if the patient goes to an Urgent Care or emergency room or to a specialist that he has not deemed appropriate. He not only does that, but he cuts off refills at the moment of the dismissal, which is illegal and unethical. The patients that I have inherited from him, I advise them to contact the Board of Healing Arts so that he can be corrected on the cutting off of refills. In the state I practice, we agree to provide med refills and emergent visits for 30 days after dismissal until they can find a new provider. In today’s climate, though, finding a new PCP that will see someone within the 30 day timeframe is becoming less likely.

@mayjay The healthcare system has been getting worse and worse over time in the U.S. I remember when I first started practicing that people said the reason to avoid universal healthcare is the length of time it takes to get a procedure done or to see a specialist, as evidenced by looking at Canada. We are in the same boat now, but without universal healthcare. Some specialists take at least 6 mos or longer to see. You want an autism evaluation on children? You are put on the waiting list for 1.5-2 years.

I want to take care of patients, but it seems like the healthcare industry fights me every step along the way.
I don’t live in a multimillion dollar mansion or estate and I don’t drive a BMW or Mercedes or any luxury vehicle. I live in rural America caring for the neighbors in the area that have placed their trust in me to provide the best quality of life that I can based upon their beliefs and habits.

Thanks for letting me vent.

@mayjay For supplements and vitamins, I will look for USP designation on the bottle, which is a designation that means it has been vetted by a 3rd party lab confirming what it says on the label is true. There is also Consumer Lab for those that like a source similar to Consumer Reports. It is a pay site, but if you are heavy into using vitamins and supplements, I believe it is worth the cost. That site actually tests various supplements and vitamins to determine whether what it says on the bottle is what you are getting. It also shows which ones are more economical.
Some of the companies that tout the claim they are 3rd party tested can be sneaky in that if you do some digging, you find the overall company that owns the supplement company also owns the 3rd party lab.

Quackwatch is an interesting site started by a physician covering a lot of alternative medicine I don’t agree with everything on it. I do believe there is benefit to some alternative medicine. Just because we don’t scientifically understand something does not mean that it has no merit. The placebo effect is real and impressive.

Kratom and K2 are both gas station legal addictive supplements. Kratom has opioid-like properties and K2 has marijuana-like properties. Both are dangerous IMO and should be removed from the market.

@kjayhawks2.0 I don’t disagree with you. I am sorry that you have had such negative experiences in your lifetime. If we had universal healthcare like any other 1st world country, then you would not be spending thousands of dollars on surgeries that have not gone right. You would see more providers that go into medicine for the right reasons as the specialists would not be paid as well as they currently are. There are more issues at play in biological machines that have free will to make decisions than inanimate structures. Even then, in individuals that have done all the right things, outcomes may still be poor based upon factors outside of a patient’s control. Unless a provider is a sociopath, it bothers them when there are poor outcomes.

I am glad that @farmerjayhawk had a positive experience receiving necessary care in a timely manner with a positive outcome. That is the best scenario for all involved and when healthcare works as intended.

I often wonder if healthcare is getting worse because my idealism is transforming to realism or whether I am becoming grouchier in my old age or whether healthcare is circling the toilet declining like much of our way of life.

@mayjay I have no qualms with your comments and am glad that the discovery of the reason for your wife’s symptoms was determined. Providers typically will tell patients what the most common side effects are, but don’t have the time to tell patients every possible symptom that may occur. I always advise my patients that if they have a new symptom after starting a new medicine to let me know and if it is a weekend to stop the medicine, but call us the next day the clinic is open to discuss it. Sometimes the side effect symptoms are temporary, but if too severe, then they should stop the medicine. Also, just because a symptom is not listed does not mean that it cannot be a side effect. Other medicines that a person already takes may interact with the metabolism of the new medicine making higher concentrations stay in the bloodstream. If I know a patient is sensitive to medicines in general, I typically start out with a lower dosage if possible and gradually increase as tolerated.
Dr Google and Reddit in the right hands can properly inform and confirm about similar experiences that other people have had. It largely depends upon whether a medicine is preventing a major adverse outcome or life-threatening condition versus an annoying or quality of life symptom.

In Darren’s case, I would have told him to stop every new change that he has made to see if the culprit could be eliminated. I caution pt’s that creatine can be harmful depending upon your hydration status.

One thing I would point out that I find too commonly, is that patients don’t see vitamins or supplements as medicines. They don’t tell their provider about these things they use, which may affect the absorption or metabolism of prescribed medications. For me, a medicine is anything that is swallowed, inhaled, snorted, applied topically, injected, or inserted rectally to have an effect on the body. Yes, that includes food and liquid. Quite a few diseases could be prevented or cured if we would just stop poisoning ourselves with our dietary intake.

I agree with @kjayhawks2.0 that medicine is used too frequently because it is easier than changing your diet, exercise, or lifestyle, but changing those things and maintaining the change invariably will beat prescription medicine hands-down.

Have a great day!

@kjayhawks2.0 You have so many misconceptions about healthcare providers. If you have that strong of an opinion, though, I doubt that discussing the inaccuracies will make any difference. If you are interested, though, I am open to a discussion. I would create another thread, though.

I hope they can bear him.

That is good to hear, when most players have no loyalty to where they play. I hope he makes great strides and him and Rosario become all time favorites. If Mel could come back, that would be awesome to have the “dawg” on the team to have the leadership.

@stoptheflop A great reminder. Thanks. I would like to see him succeed.

Kohl should have stayed in there. He was a positive spark.

Do you think in hindsight that Bill wished we had passed on Hunt watching Zuby play?

Bill: “Get your heads out of your ass!”

@approxinfinity Not so religious after all.

@rcjhdraft Going for the other team.

WTF

Tiller showed some aggressiveness

@crimsonblu22 Yes

I think I am about 5 seconds behind everybody be else. It gives me a preview of what’s to come.

@crimsonblu22 Doc from Back to the Future

Lance the Lancer, their mascot, looks like a hockey goalie.