My family and I have learned a great lesson on medical care in recent months we have faced losing my mother: All physicians are not created equal.
While you could already claim to know, I assure you that we did not want ?? t just fall off the turnip truck proverbial. We ?? re a bright, educated bunch.
Back on the trip my mother to a diagnosis, I can see that we made quite a few mistakes. First, we put too much trust in our doctors, not realizing how critical it is to get the second opinion from an expert.
Your family might make the same mistake of not finding a top specialist, given the rarity of mesothelioma and how often it is misdiagnosed.
mesothelioma has entered your world, and you absorb a lot of information from a variety of medical staff. You may be assuming that ?? is accurate, true and the best available information.
Don 't.
When doctors confuse mesothelioma for less serious diseases, it delays you or your loved one to get appropriate and urgent care that is so important with this cancer.
First sign of symptoms
on a return ride of the city during the holidays it a few years ago, my mother huffed and puffed so bad my son ran back to get the car to look for her.
?? Hmm, that ?? s weird ?? I was thinking.
I made sure that I went with mom the next time she visited his cardiologist, who saw for an occasional rapid heartbeat. Once in the exam room, I asked him point blank if mom had congestive heart failure.
He looked me in the eyes, laughing at my assertion. ?? He ?? s just old age ?? he said
Error number: .. I trusted him
Fast forward a year
Mom later ended up in hospital with infection kidney. A CT scan revealed fluid in his lungs.
I made monkeying around with his cardiologist. Based on the recommendation of a trusted friend, we visited a second cardiologist.
Within minutes of the examination of the results of echocardiogram, he said she had a dangerously leaky mitral valve and needed surgery to open heart.
What's New?
the first cardiologist never mentioned a leaky valve mom or me.
with this great revelation, my brothers and sisters, parents and I were in full trust mode with the new cardiologist. That was mistake number two.
He made us a reference ?? Excellent thoracic surgeon, ?? and we scribbled the date of surgery on schedule and expected.
The thoracic surgeon postponed the procedure because a colleague which should help to surgery broke his foot.
weeks passed. We called asking when we can go forward.
Finally, the thoracic surgeon schedule despite the prolonged absence of his colleague (who we later learned was a lot more surgical experience).
Mistake number three :. We failed to ask why he was stalling
Bad News After surgery
thoracic surgeon announced to our expectant face the heart of mom ?? at ?? gone too far? ? and he could do little to improve his condition
His words implied she faced a slow death agony of congestive heart failure
Mistake number four: ... We have him thought
for the next year and a half, the mom of state ?? steadily declined. She lived like a prisoner on the couch, unable to walk to the bathroom without losing his breath.
Unfortunately, we are faced with the inevitable. Mom was dying.
On one of our regular visits to the second cardiologist, he mentioned in passing that we could go see ?? this other guy. ?? The reference seemed so I reluctantly hardly considered
After sitting on it a few months, I made an appointment with ?? this other guy, ??. who happened to be in a large university hospital.
?? It will make mom feel like we ?? re doing something to help him ?? I told my sister, without waiting to hear something positive from the new doctor.
Mom Finally Got Help
Now, a few weeks after his second open heart surgery, mom walk without losing his breath. ?? This other guy ?? replaced the valve and repaired the heart that was too far ?? gone.??
Fortunately, mom is alive because of it.
We learned most thoracic surgeons perform only four or five valve replacement one year. Our ?? other guy ?? ranks as one of the top valve specialists in the country with nearly 5000 valve replacements under his belt
Why did we not ask the first thoracic surgeon about his experience with this procedure
answer.? We trusted cardiologist and two assumed number if it made the referral, the surgeon was qualified for the job.
My brilliant and educated siblings currently feel like a bunch of morons.
Now back to you
Mesothelioma is as new to you as congestive heart failure has been for us. You trust your doctors and respect their decisions
But ask yourself these important questions :.
- Who are your doctors
- What experience do they have with? Mesothelioma?
- As you face this attack and death in life, you see doctors who specialize exclusively in the treatment of mesothelioma?
t waste the time of Don. If they rarely work with diseases linked to asbestos, don ?? t blindly trust what your local doctors tell you, but that means it can be
Some useful tips for you :.
- Learn everything you can about the disease.
- Talk to other people affected by mesothelioma, either in person, online or in a support group.
- Ask your doctor how many cases of mesothelioma, they 've diagnosed and treated.
- Ask them to their patients ?? the survival rate.
- Do not be intimidated by your doctors, regardless of how they respond to your questions.
- Getting a second opinion.
- research that doctors are considered experts in this specialty and make an appointment with one of them.
- Be prepared to go travel for treatment. It could prolong your life.
We must act as our own lawyers
When it comes to your health, it helps to be proactive.
? ? Remember, medicine is a service industry, "said Dr. Lissa Rankin in his blog about the management of your health care. "Proactive ?? patients who have the best results in terms of health ?? don ?? t hesitate to ask their doctor questions, get a second opinion, and change health care providers if the form isn ?? t right ?? she said.
?? your body is your business! ?? she added.
Even if you feel uncomfortable with assertiveness doctors expect from their patients more.
?? There was a solid, steady push in recent years towards empowering patients, ?? said Linda Adler, CEO of medical Pathfinders Advocacy and Consulting, as reported in US News and World Report.
?? It ?? s been greatly encouraged by the dedicated patients and some suppliers who believe that health care isn ?? t only a right, but that people should have more control over what happens to their own bodies, ?? Adler said.
learn from us
Take chitterlings languishing three years ?? trust ?? eventually run into someone who offered life Mom
Don ?? t trust as we did. Don ?? t make the same mistakes. Instead, take control of your health. Finding the right doctor for the best treatment of mesothelioma and go from there.
