my medical news
Posted: Sat Jan 30, 2021 2:35 pm
Hi guys,
Got some bad news and I need to discuss it a bit to process it. Sorry this is long.
The back story. I have a genetic degenerative nerve disease. The closest analog would be diabetic neuropathy. It isn't that and it works differently, but the effect is very similar (ish). Long story short, my sense of feeling and pain is very much less acute than most of yours starting more distally from my spine. Meaning my toes only sense the most basic of sensations and pain is not one of them. This has back tracked into about the middle of my foot.
The effect, when you stand too long or wear shoes wrong, you feel a blister and stop doing that. I don't. I get a pressure ulcer and things go a bit sideways.
About 3 years ago, I stepped on a very hot piece of metal. I burned the hell out of my foot. I worked to fix it. It got infected. I saw a pro. The pro was a moron. I went to see another pro...
Side note. I have Christian Health Ministries as my "insurance". The second pro was the wound clinic at a local hospital. They seemed to do a pretty good job, but didn't see me weekly like is normal, but every other week. I didn't think much of is as I was getting better. Then after about 12 weeks, they told me I was as medically improved as I was gonna get (about 85% healed in the wound) and it would take about a year to fully heal. As long as I didn't' have a significant reversion I was on track. I specifically asked and they said there will be some give and take, but over time it should completely heal. If you over do things it will unheal a bit, but if it keeps getting better, no need to see us.
I buggered it up pretty good at the beginning of the month and due to the GF's dad's surprise death, I could not go to the wound clinic. It wasn't infected so no big deal. Then it got infected. I took some antibiotics on hand and attempted to get to the wound clinic. Slight delay so I ended up in the ER to work on the infection. That got me an appointment to the wound clinic.
Upon hearing the above story, the new (to me) doctor was horrified. Horrified that I was released from treatment and he ASSUMED I had bone infection and had for quite some time. Then he realized I had been treated there and immediately shut up.
They used an x-ray to determine if I had bone infection when I was a patient in the past. Same as they did recently at the ER. The DR politely laughed about that and said x-ray will only find MASSIVE bone infection and often not even then. An MRI which the hospital almost refused to give me and I had to pay CASH for, showed strong involvement and certainly longstanding involvement.
Prognosis: possible loss of a metatarsal bone and two toes. The two next to the Great toe on my right foot.
It looks like a bean counter was not able to figure out how Christian Health Ministries works and I was being treated as an indigent despite multiple attempts by me to educate them and get them to give me the bills in a format that my insurance would accept. Bottom line, they get paid in full and faster, but not when they can't get me bills. Their system also does not have an ability to classify my as anything other than self pay / indigent. So I get short shrift...
An MRI 18 months ago before cutting me loose would likely have greatly reduced the damage.
A bit in shock. More than a bit ANGRY and likely to be greatly diminished in my ability to walk...all due to bean counting and incompetence.
Got some bad news and I need to discuss it a bit to process it. Sorry this is long.
The back story. I have a genetic degenerative nerve disease. The closest analog would be diabetic neuropathy. It isn't that and it works differently, but the effect is very similar (ish). Long story short, my sense of feeling and pain is very much less acute than most of yours starting more distally from my spine. Meaning my toes only sense the most basic of sensations and pain is not one of them. This has back tracked into about the middle of my foot.
The effect, when you stand too long or wear shoes wrong, you feel a blister and stop doing that. I don't. I get a pressure ulcer and things go a bit sideways.
About 3 years ago, I stepped on a very hot piece of metal. I burned the hell out of my foot. I worked to fix it. It got infected. I saw a pro. The pro was a moron. I went to see another pro...
Side note. I have Christian Health Ministries as my "insurance". The second pro was the wound clinic at a local hospital. They seemed to do a pretty good job, but didn't see me weekly like is normal, but every other week. I didn't think much of is as I was getting better. Then after about 12 weeks, they told me I was as medically improved as I was gonna get (about 85% healed in the wound) and it would take about a year to fully heal. As long as I didn't' have a significant reversion I was on track. I specifically asked and they said there will be some give and take, but over time it should completely heal. If you over do things it will unheal a bit, but if it keeps getting better, no need to see us.
I buggered it up pretty good at the beginning of the month and due to the GF's dad's surprise death, I could not go to the wound clinic. It wasn't infected so no big deal. Then it got infected. I took some antibiotics on hand and attempted to get to the wound clinic. Slight delay so I ended up in the ER to work on the infection. That got me an appointment to the wound clinic.
Upon hearing the above story, the new (to me) doctor was horrified. Horrified that I was released from treatment and he ASSUMED I had bone infection and had for quite some time. Then he realized I had been treated there and immediately shut up.
They used an x-ray to determine if I had bone infection when I was a patient in the past. Same as they did recently at the ER. The DR politely laughed about that and said x-ray will only find MASSIVE bone infection and often not even then. An MRI which the hospital almost refused to give me and I had to pay CASH for, showed strong involvement and certainly longstanding involvement.
Prognosis: possible loss of a metatarsal bone and two toes. The two next to the Great toe on my right foot.
It looks like a bean counter was not able to figure out how Christian Health Ministries works and I was being treated as an indigent despite multiple attempts by me to educate them and get them to give me the bills in a format that my insurance would accept. Bottom line, they get paid in full and faster, but not when they can't get me bills. Their system also does not have an ability to classify my as anything other than self pay / indigent. So I get short shrift...
An MRI 18 months ago before cutting me loose would likely have greatly reduced the damage.
A bit in shock. More than a bit ANGRY and likely to be greatly diminished in my ability to walk...all due to bean counting and incompetence.