My Rant NF

[bucktail]

I have to yell this at the sky but this will do nicely.

 

In Dec 2010 I fell ill with intense pain and numbness in my left arm.

 

Went to my gp and he diagnosed it as injured vertebrate and shot discs that have finally caught up to me from a loose life! He books me to see a neurosurgeon in hamilton and books me for a MRI. After 5 months I finally get into the MRI and it shows 2 bulging discs in my neck . Still waiting to be called from the waiting list of the neorosurgeon. its June when I finally see himh he looks at it and says this will be good, we can fix you up, well the more and more he looks at it, the more and more he starts backing out, this comes to an end when he says I would be better off seeeing his partner as there is alot of work to be done. 5 months goes by and finally call to come in. I Get in and he is humming and hoing since the MRI is now almost a year old, he wants a new MRI done.Another 4 month wait.

The big day was supposed to be tomorrow mornning when I will finally get him looking at them. Well his office called late this afternoon and cancelled the date and will call back with a new one soon.

 

It has now been 14 month.....thats 1 year 2 months and I am no closer to getting fixed. My GP says the discs have completely failed and its bone on bone now.

 

 

All I have is massive amounts of oxy contin , 2 different types oh and on the weekend I lost the use of my legs getting out of bed.

 

Tomorrow I call my MPP and demand to be sent south where it can get done.

 

 

 

Thats why I havent been around much this year.

 

 

 

Im out of ideas...............................

 

 

 

 

 

Darren

Edited January 6, 2012 by bucktail

[mercman]

its terrible.

52 year old friend of mine.Had his first heart attack at 27.Was diagnosed with a heart problem, arythmia i think.Was sposed to go in in April for his annual heart work up. Postponed 6 times.Finally got the appointment done on Dec 15 2011. Died last friday without even getting the results back from his heart "Specialist".

Terrible waste of a young life. Makes me want to cry in frustration for his wife and kids.

[BillM]

It's your health, screw waiting around for your MPP to do anything. Go to Buffalo, pay for your MRI and be done with it. Why wait around and get worse only to prove a point?

[bigugli]

Sad to hear you've had a hard time. Sadly, the health system in Ontario has been deteriorating since the mid 80's. Fewer beds and longer wait times are the norm it would seem. I am so glad I was downsized out of the system in the 90's. The system stopped looking at patients as people back then. All that matters are stats and dollar signs.

Amalgamations were just a clever way of rationalizing and reducing the number of available hospital beds. Support staff and nursing staff were laid off to meet budget restraints, but there was always a new job for management personnel who's departments had been closed. Combine 2 ortho wards as one, 1/2 the beds, 1/2 the staff, keep the mgmt. A hospital that once fielded over 1500 beds has 700, and lots of nice office space.

It happened in Toronto, and Hamilton, now Niagara.

Without knowing who you had seen, Had you tried for a referral to Dr Devillier? One of the best spinal neurosurgeons around, and he never messed about.

[Gerritt]

Darren,

 

Perhaps you should be talking to Spiel... he may be able to offer a bit of advice on this surgery...

 

G

Edited January 6, 2012 by Gerritt

[Joey]

Sorry to hear that Darren, that really is terrible healthcare.

 

I hope you get some good advice here and can get it taken care of soon bud!

[Big Cliff]

First; I am really sorry to hear you are going through all of this, living in constant pain or all loaded up with drugs has got to be really hard, I hope you do get a solution soon!

 

Second: Several years ago Sue needed heart surgery, she lay in a bed in ICU for over a month and all the Dr. kept saying was "we are trying to get her a bed in Toronto". I finally got angry and called the ministry of health, explained the situation and told them that if I didn't have an answer back within 24 hours I was going to the media.

Sue had a bed in Toronto the next day and an appointment with one of the leading heart specialists. The surgery was done two days later.

 

When we moved to Lindsay we were having trouble finding a Dr.. because of Sue's previous heart problems she needed things to be monitered. I finally wrote a letter to the editor of the local news paper which they published. The very next day we had offers from three Dr.s and we were actually able to choose the one we wanted.

 

Just some thoughts you might want to consider!

[lew]

No way that kinda crap should be happening Darren, sure hope they get you fixed up soon.

Edited January 6, 2012 by lew

[Spiel]

Well I can certainly empathize with your problem Darren as you know.

 

Took me 14 months to see DeVillier who after several months and MRI's sent me to the same surgeon who cancelled on you today, cancelled me for today as well. I was told he was in emergency trauma surgery.

 

He's a good surgeon but waiting sure isn't helping you.

I hope they get you rescheduled asap!

[Billy Bob]

OMG.....Darren, I hope things speed up for you ASAP

 

Socialized medicine is good in one way terrible in another....in 2014 we are taking our first step towards socialized medicine.....it could get ugly or better...depends on who you listen to...but in my experience...thing never get better for the middle class...

[Ralph Field]

I believe that when you have to deal with a specialist you cannot win. You are treated like a number and not as a human being. There is no acceptable excuse for the delay in your treatment. Unfortunately we are forced to endure their lack of concern for their patients.

[Headhunter]

I feel for yah brother! I had a herniated disc back in the mid 90's... it took just over two years before I was operated on by Dr. Michael Ford.

The best advice I can give you will echo Big Cliff's... THE SQUEAKY WHEEL GETS THE GREASE!!!!!!

HH

[Rizzo]

wow that is terrible, I hope it all works out for you AND SOON

[Beans]

I too can

empathize with you regarding a protruding disc in my lower back. I finally had an operation to fix it after being messed around with for over two years. First it was the physio therapy then a back specialist who said all the physio in the world would not fix me, I needed an operation...then the long wait for an MRI and a much longer wait for an operation date...like you I lived on percocets...made the mistake and took them two tabs every six hours for several days and wound up so badly constipated that I ended up having to go to emergency...

[Roy]

Our family is going through these same situations, Darren. You're going to need to scream louder. I don't consider your experience a rant at all..it's a cry for help and I really hope they hear you soon.

[bucktail]

Thanks guys and especially Chris....thats too funny ( In a bad way ) that you got cancelled as well.

I think I ma more mentally exhausted then hurt physically.

I hope he is in surgery and not golfing.

[Spiel]

Thanks guys and especially Chris....thats too funny ( In a bad way ) that you got cancelled as well.

I think I ma more mentally exhausted then hurt physically.

I hope he is in surgery and not golfing.

 

Well no biggie here Darren as my appt. is/was a post surgery follow up.

You're appt. on the other hand is of far more importance.

 

Keep calling Christina till you get that appt. rescheduled.

[Photoz]

I went through almost the same thing in the last 2 years with my right knee. I originally banged up my heel in 2006 . . . . (while delivering mail) and limped around for several years until my knee collapsed. If you think it's hard to get a specialist to look at you under NORMAL circumstances, try to find one that will take a W. S. I. B. case. My faimly doctor tried NINE different specialists over a period of 1 year, before he got one to take me. It then took 5 months to see him, 4 months to get arthroscopic surgery (to clean the knee joint out) then 3 months after that, he agreed this hadn't worked. Next was a full knee replacement . . . . 15 months to reach the top of his surgery list to get THIS done. I understood I was going to be able to go back no work in 4 to 6 weeks? It's been 8 weeks now since the operation . . . . I STILL have to rely on my walker sometimes to get around (I just cannot get used to a cane) . . . . up to 2 more months before I get to see my job again!! My knee was VERY painful (and still is), but I can't even imagine the pain you must be in. Just a suggestion . . . . put this in writing and send it to your local M. P. P., and copy it to Christina Blizzard at the Toronto Sun, also to The Star & Post to whomever follows the Queens Park beat. Keep track of everything you do . .. . dates, times, whom you talked to etc. But . . . . don't give up . . . keep being noisy . . . . it can't make anything worse!

[Fang]

Darren,

 

I feel for you. Did my neck 6 years ago and I got a slap on the back form other doctors and was told I had a pinched nerve. Finally someone with more brains than diploma's on the wall paid some attention and found I had complete disc ruptures on C5-6 and 7. I was lucky enough to have a guardian angel somewhere and I was fast tracked through oakville hospital with an MRI and was sent on to Dr Eric Marmor in Mississauga.

 

Now I dodged a bullet as the nerve pressure had relaxed a bit and my right arm and leg function came back somewhat and the pain subsided but he was the absolute best. Straight answers and very caring. He seems to be the best around in this field.

 

Make the call and go see him. You'll need to get your GP to refer you but you need someone you can rely on. I was scared going through this back then as I've never had so much a stitches.

 

 

I still remeber the address

101 Queensway, suite 303

 

across from Mississauga Hospital

 

Take it easy and watch those white pills

[corvette1]

like bill said come over and get it done your less then an hour away. once i had my mri two days later i had my back surgery i was so much pain i could not wait a year i am glad i pay for for my medical.

[fishindevil]

welcome to my world darren been in this cycle for 15years,i have had 2 back surgeries for almost the exact same thing as you,i have nerve damage from squashed discs...about 5 mri done and about 30 xrays over the years i have been waiting to see another specialist for over a year,get used to it took me 2 years to see a doctor at toronto general as well.....i feel for you i know how you feel...and ya i could open a pharmacy as well for all the crap they give ya...physio,and chiro are the only things that keep me going to work and fishing !!!

[BITEME]

Sent you a PM

[pikehunter]

Sorry to hear you are in so much trouble and how bad your condition has become.

 

Sometimes I wonder if certain doctors have more pull than others? I have not had to wait that long for an MRI as yet. The 4 I have had were at Joseph Brant in Burlington. Just had one on my left knee last Friday, I had about a 6 or 7 week wait. The last MRI was on my heart and abdomen, it was around 2 months, the time before that was my right knee which was about 2 years ago and I only had a 2 week wait and was booked for surgery about 2 weeks after that.

 

Considering all I think wait times are not that terrific and I wish you well, start raising some crap with your elected government reps and like Cliff said threaten action.

 

As a side note;

My best buddy passed away a couple of years ago because of a misdiagnosed lymph node cancer. If the doctors had been on the ball and figured out his problam sooner he would have had a chance, after dinking around for a month sending him away with pain killer scrips they finally figured out after he entered emerg in a wheelchair with no bodily function control "Hey this guy is really sick!" we better do some tests and then it was downhill for the next 3 months with never leaving the hospital after that until the funeral home arrived.

 

Time for the officials in Ontario to smarten up!

Edited January 7, 2012 by pikehunter