Saturday, September 5, 2009

I should be a Doctor

I think I have let you all know that hubby and I are thinking of doing the Trans Abdominal Cerclage (TAC) sooner than later. After speaking with Dr. D's Office Manager and contacting the Insurance Company, I requested a copy of my medical chart from the OB.
Just to remind you, the Insurance Company stated that since the procedure will be done pre-pregnancy, then my Primary Dr. has to request authorization. I e-mailed Dr. D. informing him of the consultation I set up with my Dr., as well as the fact that we want to do the procedure earlier. He immediately called me and said that he will support whatever we want to do and will collaborate with my Dr. to ensure that the procedure gets covered. He is also willing to submit a "Consultation Letter" to the Insurance Company. Have I said I already love this man? *sigh*.

The consultation was yesterday and I must say I am proud of myself. I was prepared, had all my documentation, had the procedure code, Dr. D.'s tax ID, contact numbers, address, hospital he worked out of, the works. I was ARMED and READY to plead my case. I also got through relaying the whole ordeal over the past year without breaking down. My Dr. already had some idea as my sister goes to him as well and he hand inquired how I was doing.

Well, I did not have to plead my case! He completely agrees with me and is willing to get the ball rolling. He did some blood work, one of which is Anti Platelet Anti Body- to rule out that any other factors did not contribute. This excited me to no end. I remember asking my OB if he thought we should check for other factors (such as a blood clotting disorder) just to rule it out and he said he did not think it was a factor. I don't either, but I want to rule everything out. My Dr. agrees.

So we got to the desk and the lady took my file and put it away (after I overpaid her the co-pay- which reminds me she never did give me back the balance). I looked at hubby and looked back at her (Imagine here my mouth dropping). I said to her how long is this process going to take? She said, what process? There is no diagnosis.
Flabbergasted I said to her, it says so right here- INCOMPETENT CERVIX.
To make a long story short and to not subject you to the incompetence of this individual, I had to tell her what to do. What form to give me to fill out, the procedure code, tax ID number, the works. She then said she would submit it and if it is approved, I should hear from Dr. D. I have already made up my mind to call her every week to make sure she does her job. As I was leaving quite displeased with her and her lack of knowledge, she said to me "are you sure you're not in the medical field?"
This is not the first time I have been asked this question, but I politely said to her, when you have lost two babies, you learn everything you can so you can advocate for yourself and make sure you are getting the best possible care.
Maybe I should be in the medical field. I know every complication that can go wrong in a pregnancy, I know statistics, I know medical terms and procedures and can go into them in length, I know the chances of preemie survival and every NICU term and procedure there is to know. Hmmm....maybe instead of continuing my Ph.d in education, I should do medicine. LOL, only thing is, I hate the sight of blood and other bodily fluids.

I said to hubby, this office is going to see how annoying I can be (My OB's office knew that and lovingly called me "trouble" when they saw me coming) if they don't do their jobs.

On a positive note, here is a picture of me and hubby on date night. We are still enjoying ourselves while it is the two of us. I can't wait to have an earth baby. Forgive the messy hair, the ocean breeze does not agree with me :-).



Where is my expected end?

9 comments:

  1. You could always do patient advocacy. That way you arent dealing with the blood and guts portion of the medical field but you can help educate people about how to advocate for themselves and their babies. It's amazing how many people are afraid to ask questions or stand up to unsound medical advice.

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  2. It's so healthy and good that you stand up for yourself, and that you make sure your needs are met. Hopefully she learned to listen better through this.

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  3. you go girl! i'm hoping everything gets processed quickly for you!

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  4. You guys are a hot couple :)

    I hope the process goes smoothly and know that we all support you!

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  5. Wow! I am super impressed; I might need to enlist your help! I can't even seem to get the crazy ob to give me a copy of my file! Good Luck, I hope everything works out with the insurance company! Thinking about you!

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  6. You go girl!! Tell them how it's done!

    Love your date night pic!! :)

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  7. You two are absolutely adorable!!!

    LOL...way to get the job done!!! I'm excited to hear about everything!!!!!!

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  8. I am truely impressed!! I am a senior customer service representative for a health insurance company and its nice to see people take a stand. Don't get me wrong....I am always glad to help a patient get the ball rolling on my end and do what I can to help, but its nice to see the patient is willing to get involved and understand what is going on in their care. I hope all goes well and the procedure gets approved asap!!

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