Medical System Failed For This Man, He's Dead

[LoneWolf_53]

I must say I find it quite odd Faarrma, to see you defending a system which forced you to become "proactive" as you put it, to the extent that you did.

My definition of proactive was going to the doctor with a complaint, then again, and again, and again, making it clear symptoms were getting worse. In my case even a cortizone shot at the hospital did basically nothing, so reporting that result should also have been a clue for a good doctor. Heck one time when I showed up for an appointment I was asked why I was limping. Really????? Talk about any remaining confidence in the system rushing out the door.

Shouldn't a competent doctor be able to look at X-rays, read the accompanied report, remember a patients condition, and take the situation to the next step, rather than wait for his patient to demand referral to a surgeon?

I had to practically get nasty to get satisfactory results, and in my opinion a system that works, should not be forcing a patient to go to that extreme.

The doctor in my case got the same X-rays my surgeon did, yet my doctor simply prescribed more pain killers, whereas the surgeon took a look and put me on high priority for surgery. To my thinking there was something amiss and it sure as heck wasn't my surgeon who's considered the best in his field for this area.

I didn't want to be ignorant to medical professionals when I began the process, still don't for that matter, nor did I think I was all that special, to where other sufferers should allow me to jump the queue, but in my instance as well as my daughters there was unquestionably a level of incompetence, and trying to be patient and wait our turns proved to be the wrong approach, yet in a properly run system it should be the right approach.

[Farmmaa]

I must say I find it quite odd Faarrma, to see you defending a system which forced you to become "proactive" as you put it, to the extent that you did.

My definition of proactive was going to the doctor with a complaint, then again, and again, and again, making it clear symptoms were getting worse. In my case even a cortizone shot at the hospital did basically nothing, so reporting that result should also have been a clue for a good doctor. Heck one time when I showed up for an appointment I was asked why I was limping. Really????? Talk about any remaining confidence in the system rushing out the door.

Shouldn't a competent doctor be able to look at X-rays, read the accompanied report, remember a patients condition, and take the situation to the next step, rather than wait for his patient to demand referral to a surgeon?

I had to practically get nasty to get satisfactory results, and in my opinion a system that works, should not be forcing a patient to go to that extreme.

The doctor in my case got the same X-rays my surgeon did, yet my doctor simply prescribed more pain killers, whereas the surgeon took a look and put me on high priority for surgery. To my thinking there was something amiss and it sure as heck wasn't my surgeon who's considered the best in his field for this area.

I didn't want to be ignorant to medical professionals when I began the process, still don't for that matter, nor did I think I was all that special, to where other sufferers should allow me to jump the queue, but in my instance as well as my daughters there was unquestionably a level of incompetence, and trying to be patient and wait our turns proved to be the wrong approach, yet in a properly run system it should be the right approach.

I've never defended the system actually.
In my case, there were two over worked ER doctors who did not take the time to find accurate answers - and no, I don't think that is acceptable. The first one, I do blame for just giving a ridiculous half explanation of what he thought it was...which was way off base, and I told him so.
The next visit I do blame the system for - because each emergency dept has ONE attending physician trying to treat hundreds of patients. Yes, that is a problem.
It is also a problem that Er physicians can not send a patient for an MRI without a specialist's request.
It is also a problem that I had no family doctor, because none were to be found when I moved here.

So, no, our medical system is not perfect.

But...people still need to be proactive in their own health and care.
It would have been pretty stupid of me to just take the advise of one Dr, who I knew was wrong, and left it at that.
Don't you think ?

No matter how 'perfect' any medical system may be...and ours is a lot better than many countries by a long shot - doctors are people...and things can get missed, especially if they are rushed and stretched too thin.
Three doctors and two specialists looked at my x-rays and CT scan and still could not figure out what was going on until an MRI was done. So, yes, GPs most certainly can and do miss subtle changes on xrays.

In the case that this thread is about....they stated clearly that he originally went to see the GP for pain in his nose. Not for a growth, not for a tumor...for pain on the tip of his nose.
If that was the only symptom that the original GP was presented with, he did the right thing.
Health care would be a mess if every single patient who presented with unidentified pain somewhere was rushed to a specialist for expensive tests and biopsies - just in case.

Yes, once the photos were taken and put on the news, there was unmistakably a serious problem....but given the information in their story, that is not how he first presented...it was a tumor which grew very fast and it doesn't sound like they had informed anyone of that fact...except the press. Presenting it to the specialist or the hospital as soon as it started to grow and spread would have been a better option.

[eliecer]

Sue the doctor or the clinic, not the system.

[Rosemary1]

Won't comment on the case because it sounds complicated. But there are good doctors and not so good ones like any profession. More than ever many doctors are so busy that the more information a patient can provide to the doctor about their history and symptoms, the better the likelihood of getting a proper diagnosis, treatment, or referral.

Get the impression too that many GPs now days are less hands on and are more a referral service to a specialist for anything much more than a common cold, and the writing of prescriptions!

[kgcayenne]

When you hear hoofbeats, look for horses not zebras.

They don't look for zebras, zebras are rare.