Doctors: Love or Loathe Them?

The past week and a half has just shown me why some people hate doctors. Or why other people make it a practice to visit them as little as possible.

For well over two years, I've had chronic back discomfort, the combined result of a minor back injury I suffered about a decade ago lifting a box the wrong way, and an even worse injury suffered at the end of a softball game. Things haven't been the same for a long time.

I've gone to a sports clinic, had chiropractic care, tried an herbalist's dietary supplements (at my dad's insistence) and am currently going to physiotherapy (almost for a year as of March). I've had two sets of X-rays, which haven't shown anything unusual.

Last September at my annual physical, I mentioned to my doctor that I was still having the discomfort. She replied she found it strange that it was still going on for this long, and added she'd look at my file and see if I was eligible for an MRI. I filled out the questionnaire on the requisition form that would be faxed to the nearest MRI clinic, and signed it. The receptionist gave me a number for the hospital clinic and that was that.

In October or November, after not hearing anything, I called the doctor's office to inquire. The receptionist said she'd put a reminder on my chart and would make sure the doctor would look at it.

Fast-forward to the week of February 12. I'm suffering from a stiffness in my lower back and discomfort I haven't had in months. It's prompted me to think: hey - what about that MRI request from September? I haven't heard a peep.

I made a special trip down to the office that Friday afternoon to inquire in person. The receptionist pulled my chart, and opened it to show me that, in the five months since my physical, the MRI requisition form was STILL sitting in my file.

In another dimension, my doctor could have faxed off the form, prompting the hospital to send me the forms to fill out; I could have sent back the complete forms; gotten an appointment; gotten the MRI done; and probably have gotten the results in the same amount of time.

I'm shopping around for a new doctor. I have one prospect, who I'm supposed to be seeing this coming Friday.

Meanwhile, I phoned twice this past Thursday to find out what happened to my requisition form. The clinic (FINALLY) called me back Friday, just to tell me the form was faxed off. My doctor - who I've NEVER gotten a personal phone message from the entire time I've been her patient - left a message on my cell phone to tell me she faxed the form off last Tuesday; and would like to make an appointment to see me to see how my physio is going (um, pretty good up until, like, two weeks ago) and to discuss other options (for treating my back, I'm assume).

While I should be glad she's FINALLY taking a concern, and should understand she probably has a couple hundred patients, I'm annoyed that I have to poke and prod her for medical care.

I'm not a hypochondriac. Outside of my annual physical, my visits are minimal. If there's something which has the potential to greatly affect my ability to function day to day, shouldn't I explore all avenues of investigating and pinpointing what the problem is, and solving it as soon as is needed?

And the worst part is, there are people out there who are suffering from pain and discomfort worse than mine, who are doing the same thing, day after day, week after week.

Just a thought.