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Post by vweiss824 on Aug 27, 2014 21:11:22 GMT -5
I am not sure if this fits in a different board but my pain has been so unmanageable the last few days I have hardly left my bed. I went to the ER yesterday and the nurse got me set up but when the nurse practitioner came in and started asking me questions (I work in the healthcare industry so I know what questions to ask), he asked me what I expected from them on my trip to the ER and I explained what was going on, my history of endo, ovarian cysts, uterine polyps, adenomyosis and that I also have a mirena IUD. He asked me if I wanted pills or a shot and I just couldn't believe what was happening. They gave me a shot of toradol and a really harsh pelvic exam(which is what could've been done for me at my doctors office), didn't do an ultrasound or a ct scan and said they would manage my pain before I left. They gave me an RX for Mobic (NSAID family like Motrin, but this is typically given for arthritis which I know because I have arthritis and work in pharmacy). I was asked if Id taken it before and I said yes and that it doesn't work as well as Motrin and then they told me if I experienced abnormal pain to come back.....umm that's the reason I was there. They discharged me after 5 hours and I was worse off than before. On an endo Facebook page they had posted this skeptability.com/2014/08/16/politics-in-the-er-five-ways-doctors-decide-you-are-a-drug-seeker/How many of you are being treated like a junkie looking for a fix while you are stuck at home, unable to work, sometimes unable to leave your bed? Any advice? Thanks
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Post by chibineko717 on Aug 28, 2014 0:07:00 GMT -5
That's why I don't go to the ER anymore unless I'm in extreme pain or think I have a bowel obstruction. The last couple times I went, they don't believe about the endo being in non pelvic areas even though they have my chart in front of them.
Don't hospitals get in trouble if they release a patient and if the patient is back in the ER after a couple of days?
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Post by vweiss824 on Aug 28, 2014 6:28:13 GMT -5
I don't think they get in trouble because every time I've been to the hospital (not counting surgeries), the discharge papers usually advise you to follow up with your doctor and then of your symptoms become worse to return. My pain has been at that "feels like my organs are being mauled by a bear" pain, and after days of people trying to talk me into going i finally agreed. My boyfriend usually never takes me and tells me to be more aggressive about getting my point across and I guess not act like life is great and yesterday he saw first hand that I am in fact extremely descriptive of the type of pain, where it's located, my medical history which they have my surgeries on record. I left in worse pain than when I arrived and there's nothing more discouraging than when a health care provider thinks you just are there for pills and it makes everything hopeless
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Post by bamabalacha on Sept 1, 2014 11:17:06 GMT -5
I'm so sorry OP, I've had the opposite experience. If I have severe abdominal pain (even if I can tell it's not endo related), I go to the ER at the hospital that my gynaecologist is based out of and where I've had my laps. Even if my blood work and imaging shows nothing (or even if they don't order imaging!), they take one look at my surgical history and load me up with pain medication, even if I don't ask for it. I think it may have something to do with the fact that OB/GYN is one of the hospital's specialties and they have the only ER in my city with a designated gynaecology area.
Do you have any options like that in your area? Even if it's just going to the ER at a hospital you've had surgery at in the past?
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Post by omaklackey on Sept 1, 2014 23:06:12 GMT -5
I had this happen with a PCP one time. She was literally ANGRY with me because I refused Narcotics. I was trying to find out what was wrong not get pain medication. My husband was fortunatley with me. It was the turning point to finally make him realize I needed to see a specialist. I can't remember have you found an Endometriosis specialist? So the other thing about the ER. Its posted in every ER these days but its worth a little reminder. The ER is NOT the place to go if you are in chronic pain. If you go to the ER for an outburst/extra pain worse than usual there is still a good chance you could get ignored. There are a lot of dingbat patients out there who ruin it for those seeking real help. (i'm an ER Nurse and I dealt with one today that bipased two hospitals to come to us because she knew she would be refused at the other two) Your best bet is to always go to your PCP if possible, and even better go to your specilist. If its something that you KNOW is brand new, it didn't hurt like this before, those are the "magic" words to get you taken seriously (in most places). When I went in for my burst tube about four years ago that's what we said. That's not to say that sometimes they are going to still treat you as a seeker. There are a lot of people out there seeking and its super frustrating for the medical professionals out there trying to help people. I had a SBO two years ago and we did the same thing. I don't take any narcotics, can't because they make me vomit like a prom queen after a week long bender but I did take Tramadol at the time. They took that very serious as with my history, and really any of us ladies with endo who have multiple surgeries are at a very high risk for Small bowel obstructions. Its very important to bring up the surgeries and risk for small bowel obstruction, if you still have your tube/ovaries extreme pain could be caused by burst tubes, burst cysts, or even ovarian torsion... all in all. The ER shouldn't ignore you really! I'm sorry that you felt that they though you were a drug seeker. I'd like to beat upside the head all the idiots like my gal today for the rest of us. Grr!
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