Clinic Visit Gives Patient Little Relief
I had to go to the Walk-in Clinic. I needed a prescription refilled. Three of the doctors who serve our local clinic are familiar with my health and treatment plans. Today's doctor-on-duty was new; we'd never met.
I explained that I needed a prescription refill. He asked some screening questions and then read the prescription label. "This indicates that you have 2 repeats left on the order," he said.
"The 2 repeats represents 2 doses," I responded. I explained that I had been to the pharmacy yesterday to get the refill. While the original prescription was for a quantity of 32 boxes, the pharmacy dispenses these by the dose. That meant that the pharmacist translated the 32 boxes as 32 doses. "But the pharmacy doesn't actually dispense less than 5 doses, so I need a new order altogether," I finished.
"This is a narcotic," the doc said. "I'm not comfortable to write such a large order for a narcotic."
"I understand that you're at a disadvantage because we've never met, but my history is all here," I said, pointing to the massive paper chart.
He was clearly overwhelmed by my chart. The stack of papers in the folder is more than 6-inches high. It is, in fact, one of 2 folders that make up my chart.
Ten pages into the paper chart, he lost patience (an echo, labs, more labs, a mammo, ultrasound, a dictation, ultrasound, more labs, a fax...) Eventually, he agreed to a short term refill of the 'scrip and I agreed to see my family doctor for a more complete order.
I stopped at the reception desk to make the appointment.
"The next available appointment is," the clerk paused, "October 22."
Three weeks away, and I've managed to get just one week of my pain relief medication. I caught up with the doctor in the hallway and explained that I will need 3 weeks of meds to make it through to the appointment date.
"I'm just not comfortable writing a long-term order for that class of drugs," he repeated. He suggested I return to the clinic before I reached the end of the prescription to get another short term repeat.
How's that going to look - returning each week for a short term refill on a narcotic-class prescription.
Tags: [Doctor's Office] [Prescription Drug Abuse]
[Rush Limbaugh] [House]
I explained that I needed a prescription refill. He asked some screening questions and then read the prescription label. "This indicates that you have 2 repeats left on the order," he said.
"The 2 repeats represents 2 doses," I responded. I explained that I had been to the pharmacy yesterday to get the refill. While the original prescription was for a quantity of 32 boxes, the pharmacy dispenses these by the dose. That meant that the pharmacist translated the 32 boxes as 32 doses. "But the pharmacy doesn't actually dispense less than 5 doses, so I need a new order altogether," I finished.
"This is a narcotic," the doc said. "I'm not comfortable to write such a large order for a narcotic."
"I understand that you're at a disadvantage because we've never met, but my history is all here," I said, pointing to the massive paper chart.He was clearly overwhelmed by my chart. The stack of papers in the folder is more than 6-inches high. It is, in fact, one of 2 folders that make up my chart.
Ten pages into the paper chart, he lost patience (an echo, labs, more labs, a mammo, ultrasound, a dictation, ultrasound, more labs, a fax...) Eventually, he agreed to a short term refill of the 'scrip and I agreed to see my family doctor for a more complete order.
I stopped at the reception desk to make the appointment.
"The next available appointment is," the clerk paused, "October 22."
Three weeks away, and I've managed to get just one week of my pain relief medication. I caught up with the doctor in the hallway and explained that I will need 3 weeks of meds to make it through to the appointment date.
"I'm just not comfortable writing a long-term order for that class of drugs," he repeated. He suggested I return to the clinic before I reached the end of the prescription to get another short term repeat.
How's that going to look - returning each week for a short term refill on a narcotic-class prescription.
Tags: [Doctor's Office] [Prescription Drug Abuse]
[Rush Limbaugh] [House]
4 comments:
And I have to wonder how easy it would be to get a large order of narcotic pain relief medication from one of those online pharmacies
Sigh...
I don't understand how these things work sometimes. It may be a lot of narcotics to prescribe, but if that is what you normally take in the same amount....Then it just makes sense to me to give you the 'scrip.
WHY should you have to sit in the clinic every week, going thru the same crap?
Silly. It's a waste of time for everyone involved.
Oh, but Dalton McGuinty's Liberals are claiming this election season that they've dramatically reduced wait times.
You and I both beg to differ. I am looking forward to seeing a specialist in April 2008 - the appointment was made in June 2006. Thank God it's not a brain tumour!
and John Tory's Conservatives will mandate e-records for hospitals to fund...when they already struggle to deliver services with their current budgets.
With user fees, this prescription refill would cost me $30 or more...
Never mind that there was an error on the 'scrip I got at this visit and the pharmacist couldn't actually process the refill for me until Monday when he could contact the doc to get it corrected.
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