Since the holidays I’ve been dealing with gall bladder issues. I ended up in the emergency room at the stroke of midnight New Years Eve in lots of pain. They prescribed me nausea medication and some pain killers to get me through but I needed to see my family doctor to figure out what was really going on.
I’ve been going to the same doctor since I was born. However when I called to get an appointment I was informed that since I hadn’t been there for 3 years I was a “new” patient. So even though I was missing work because I hadn’t eaten anything except a few crackers for days they were not even going to bother getting me in before their next “new patient time slot” the next week. So rather disgusted I called the office my wife goes to and got an appointment with a new doctor there the next day.
In the past 10 years I’d only been to the doctor twice. Being a typical guy I only saw the need to go to the doctor when I was sick and couldn’t manage my care myself. Now I’ve found a new reason to go to the doctors, just so I stay a current patient and can get an appointment when I’m really sick. My new doctor’s office has the same stupid 3 year policy as my old doctor’s and I’m guessing they’ve all gone to that.
So if you’re reading this please figure out when the last time you saw your doctor was, if it’s been more than 3 years go in for a checkup to get your name back on the list. I would have been in pretty bad shape if I’d had to wait another 5 days to get the whole process started.
My surgery went well and I’m now sans gall bladder. I’m pretty much recovered now but I really appreciate the ability to get out of bed on my own. It’s really nice being able to eat again too. Now to try to figure out the insurance company’s math…
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