Do you wait for medical treatment?

[musik]

Serious question.

I believe the situation is the same in England as it is here in Sweden. Approx 200.000 operations to be canceled here in our little country (10.000.000 citizens) in 2020, due to Corona.

It makes me think, what do all these thousands of people within the health care sector do during the Corona crisis. All the nurses and specialist doctors within ear, eye, brain, kidney, stomach, heart, liver, bones ...

I don't get the explanation we focus our resources to Corona now - hardly no doctor appointments and no operations.
How is it possible they need 5000 people to treat 50 persons at the local Emergency Intensive Care Unit just here?

One explanation can be this: they don't want to have this disease all over the place, that's why they close and cancel everywhere?! Or perhaps it's a budget issue. During Coved-19 they can't afford almost anything else?

Or do you have a better one?
Do you also wait for medical treatment?

[musik]

I've got a new appointment with the young "not yet doctor-doctor" on Tuesday ; I'm also on the waiting lists for an appointment with a specialist at our two main hospitals here (which I managed to get my name on, on my own).

Yesterday I looked at the prices for a scalpel, lidocaine, bandage, desinfectants etc after watching some surgery operations videos on You Tube. I know the procedure by now. How hard can it be.

It feels like my arm is stuck ; like someone is holding their hands on me, squeezing tight around the elbow with one hand and around my hand with the other one.

[Vadiation_Ribe]

I've been waiting months for the results of an MRI scan. I'm supposed to be having an x-ray for an ankle problem and who knows when that'll happen. Meanwhile, I'm becoming unfit as I'm avoiding exercise on the ankle (it's been a problem for nearly 2 months now). I also have an infected and swollen finger that's been diagnosed by phone. Antibiotics and steroid cream seem to be keeping it under control but it isn't getting better (2 months later).

There are thousands of people in the UK in much worse situations e.g.:
www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-52876999
www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-52923771

It's going to be mayhem with the long-term effects of this. COVID has killed 40,000+ in the UK so far, but how many deaths will it indirectly lead to?

[musik]

Jun 27, 2020 12:26:38 GMT Vadiation_Ribe said:

I've been waiting months for the results of an MRI scan.

You should be able to get the result from the doctor who ordered the MRI scan?

Good luck w your ankle and finger!
My nerve is very stuck.

[Vadiation_Ribe]

Jun 27, 2020 15:05:46 GMT musik said:

Jun 27, 2020 12:26:38 GMT Vadiation_Ribe said:

I've been waiting months for the results of an MRI scan.

You should be able to get the result from the doctor who ordered the MRI scan?

Good luck w your ankle and finger!
My nerve is very stuck.

The Doctor is apparently too busy!

And thanks. Best wishes to you too.

[salopstick]

What have all the people who go to A&E with the slightest have done?

[Soro's Sorrows]

Jun 27, 2020 16:34:25 GMT salopstick said:

What have all the people who go to A&E with the slightest have done?

It's an interesting one that, presumably with the pubs and clubs etc being closed that has stopped a lot of broken noses, scraped knuckles and such. Also less cars on the road would result in less rta's. From what I can garner GP's will send people to A&E a lot more than they used to and as you can't get to see a GP they are not sending people to A&E. You would think a lot of people are managing illnesses and problems themselves as they either don't want to burden the NHS or are scared of catching Covid at the hospital.

From a personal perspective I had an ultrasound in February, this discovered a potential issue that required further more intensive scans, at this point I don't know when they will be. I tried to go private but as the private hospitals are now contracted to the NHS I can't do that either. One thing is for sure we have a massive health time bomb on our hands.

[salopstick]

I’m waiting for a blood test since March

[musik]

My muscles in my forearm hurt and sting if I strain them and the fingers get numb then. But the doctor hadn't heard of compartment syndrome, which is a bit frightening.

[musik]

Jun 27, 2020 16:52:16 GMT Soro's Sorrows said:

are scared of catching Covid at the hospital.

At my ordinary health central, which has nurses and doctors in general medicine only (and no specialists), the waiting room had 2 people waiting only. Normally it's filled with people, 20 or so.
Got blood tests done.

Probably people are scarred to get Coved-19.

[musik]

I asked the doc where everybody within the health care sector are during the Corona crisis.

The doc didn't think it was a budget reason. The doc didn't think it was to prevent the corona virus to reach clinics and departments.

What's left then?

People within the health care system work with the corona patients, them too.

🤔
In this region, thousands to treat about 50+150 people?

The surgery queues have grown from 115.000 to 180.000 here and will continue to expand for the rest of the year.

[musik]

Dilemma.

Just got a letter.
Pick an unexperienced surgeon or an experienced one later?

[tuum]

Jul 2, 2020 11:02:31 GMT musik said:

Dilemma.

Just got a letter.
Pick an unexperienced surgeon or an experienced one later?

How is the inexperienced surgeon expected to get experience if people are not willing to let him* practice on them?
When I was at Uni I used to get my hair cut at the local tech college by trainee hairdressers. It was free. It never did me any harm.
Show some civic responsibility and get yourself under the trainee's knife...can't be any worse than me letting a trainee loose on my hair with a pair of scissors.
What can possibly go wrong?

* her - for those who have issues with this kind of thing.

[elystokie]

Jul 2, 2020 11:02:31 GMT musik said:

Dilemma.

Just got a letter.
Pick an unexperienced surgeon or an experienced one later?

If it's an ingrowing toenail I'd go with the former, if it's a heart transplant possibly not.

[musik]

Jul 6, 2020 8:53:39 GMT elystokie said:

Jul 2, 2020 11:02:31 GMT musik said:

Dilemma.

Just got a letter.
Pick an unexperienced surgeon or an experienced one later?

If it's an ingrowing toenail I'd go with the former, if it's a heart transplant possibly not.

I will know more this week.

[elystokie]

Jul 7, 2020 15:17:43 GMT musik said:

Jul 6, 2020 8:53:39 GMT elystokie said:

If it's an ingrowing toenail I'd go with the former, if it's a heart transplant possibly not.

I will know more this week.

Well good luck whatever you decide

[yeokel]

Jul 4, 2020 6:06:27 GMT tuum said:

Jul 2, 2020 11:02:31 GMT musik said:

Dilemma.

Just got a letter.
Pick an unexperienced surgeon or an experienced one later?

How is the inexperienced surgeon expected to get experience if people are not willing to let him* practice on them?
When I was at Uni I used to get my hair cut at the local tech college by trainee hairdressers. It was free. It never did me any harm.
Show some civic responsibility and get yourself under the trainee's knife...can't be any worse than me letting a trainee loose on my hair with a pair of scissors.
What can possibly go wrong?

* her - for those who have issues with this kind of thing.

My mrs had to have some work done on her gums and jaw bone last year which involved three visits to some kind of dentistry training place in London.
They had to do a bit of a bone graft and rebuild part of her jaw, and sort a few teeth problems out and the guy performing the surgery was a trainee, recently moved here from Africa who was a qualified dentist but who was learning about this specialism.

She said that during some of the procedure he had seemed a bit out of his depth but that one of the other ‘teachers’ had stepped in to either show him what to do, or finish the job off for him if it was nearly complete but was a bit exhausted (they were very lengthy procedures).

On our third and final visit, we were chatting to the receptionist about how able the teachers were to step in and show the trainee where he may have been going wrong which had been very comforting for the wife. The receptionist said not to worry about anything as she was in the best possible hands.
She said that one of the teachers was the head lecturer at Cambridge University in this particular procedure, and the other was the surgeon who had trained him, and who was recognised as probably the leading authority on this procedure in the whole world!
She, and the trainee, couldn’t possibly have been in better hands!

[musik]

Got an appointment now finally at the end of August with an orthopedist at the second hospital. They do perform this kind of surgery. They wrote it's very urgent and asked me to decide quick and grab the first available time at them. Well, it happened to be at the end of August, in 7 weeks from now. Moment 22 kind of. Digital communication and time booking.

The first hospital wrote me a letter saying how to tell them if I don't choose them. And on their website this kind of surgery is not even mentioned.
Nevertheless, I will call them to find out if it means they actually don't do this operation at all, or if it's not just mentioned. Also found out they had a job advertisment out a while ago searching for a second surgeon to broaden their capacity. If I decide to go through with them it has to be an appointment not far from now.

The third option is at our leading hospital. I've been in contact with them all by myself and wait for an appointment by mail which they have promised by phone to send me. Only the first mentioned second hospital has been contacted through my doctor in general medicine.

[musik]

My chances of getting an acute operation for this "normally" not acute condition are probably small?!?

But I'm getting worse. I can't feel my arms and the upper side of my hands any longer.
Pain beyond limit.

Covid-19 is the end of me or some miraculous phone answers next week.

[Vadiation_Ribe]

Jun 27, 2020 18:17:46 GMT salopstick said:

I’m waiting for a blood test since March

I'd follow that up. It turns out the results of my MRI scan were sitting doing nothing, but me e-mailing and phoning pushed it through quicker. Though they wouldn't give me the result over the phone initially, around two weeks later they decided they would. A lot of stuff seems to be getting lost/left, so if you contact them, they'll at least be able to get your details up and possibly push things to the next stage.

Jul 11, 2020 21:45:30 GMT musik said:

My chances of getting an acute operation for this "normally" not acute condition are probably small?!?

But I'm getting worse. I can't feel my arms and the upper side of my hands any longer.
Pain beyond limit.

Covid-19 is the end of me or some miraculous phone answers next week.

If Sweden works anything like it does in the UK with the NHS, keep pushing if you're seriously worried about your health, which it seems you are.

After 2+ months, my infected and swollen finger quickly became a swollen hand a couple of days ago. Another phone appointment, and I've been prescribed antibiotics again. It was very quick and convenient but given it's been 10 weeks now and no one's actually examined my finger (and now hand), I'm not confident the problem isn't going to get even worse. I'm still waiting to hear back about my ankle and will chase that up on Monday.

[musik]

Jul 11, 2020 22:13:51 GMT Vadiation_Ribe said:

If Sweden works anything like it does in the UK with the NHS, keep pushing if you're seriously worried about your health, which it seems you are.

will chase that up on Monday.

I will make some calls on Monday too.
However, I've never heard of a person here changing their queue position.

Let us hope for the best!

[musik]

Jul 11, 2020 22:13:51 GMT Vadiation_Ribe said:

Jul 11, 2020 21:45:30 GMT musik said:

My chances of getting an acute operation for this "normally" not acute condition are probably small?!?

But I'm getting worse. I can't feel my arms and the upper side of my hands any longer.
Pain beyond limit.

Covid-19 is the end of me or some miraculous phone answers next week.

If Sweden works anything like it does in the UK with the NHS, keep pushing if you're seriously worried about your health, which it seems you are.

After 2+ months, my infected and swollen finger quickly became a swollen hand a couple of days ago. Another phone appointment, and I've been prescribed antibiotics again. It was very quick and convenient but given it's been 10 weeks now and no one's actually examined my finger (and now hand), I'm not confident the problem isn't going to get even worse. I'm still waiting to hear back about my ankle and will chase that up on Monday.

How did it go?
Ankle, finger, hand?

I managed to get an appointment with an orthopedist, in only three weeks from now, on the first day they return after the summer break.
It is a young unexperienced doctor, and not exactly within my body problem area, he has it only as #3 on his speciality list.
I had the option to wait and choosing Aug 17th instead, to have another orthopedist at the same clinic, who has this problem area as #2 on his list.
But I didn't want to wait too long. My impression was noone of them was an actual surgeon.
Hopefully, the doctor can direct me to a #1 specialist, surgeon or let me have sonographs, mrt and/or x-rays done.

On Aug 26 I already have an appointment at another clinic with an orthopedist where they are specialists on my problem. If pics could be taken at the first place, the results will be ready for them.

Also, still waiting on that letter call from the main hospital.

Since Sweden will cancel a total of +200.000 operations this year , due to Corona (2nd wave and all), waiting too long isn't good. Normally, swedish surgeons perform 645.000 operations per year.
My goodness! Every 16th person!

[Vadiation_Ribe]

Ankle: still awaiting x-ray, but it should be "soon."
Finger/hand: not getting any smaller, despite the antibiotics. A small part of my thumb by the nail is very sore and dark-ish brown in one bit and orange next to that.
MRI scan results: next is a lumbar puncture/spinal tap (who knows when that will be), which I'm scared about despite it being one of those routine things.

[musik]

Jul 13, 2020 16:31:58 GMT Vadiation_Ribe said:

Ankle: still awaiting x-ray, but it should be "soon."
Finger/hand: not getting any smaller, despite the antibiotics. A small part of my thumb by the nail is very sore and dark-ish brown in one bit and orange next to that.
MRI scan results: next is a lumbar puncture/spinal tap (who knows when that will be), which I'm scared about despite it being one of those routine things.

How does the Emergency unit work where you live? Here the priority is, especially now, life threatening conditions only.

I'm thinking of that dark thumb area. Have antibiotics into a vein would be a possibility - if they don't work. Keep it clean.

I can only give you one suggestion, something my father used on his diabetic wounds on the legs. Darker small spots the doctors were monitoring only and waited out ... But he had skepticism by his genes, so he bought some gel called Silica at a Health food store here. It contains silicon. After he'd put that stuff on the legs for some time the marks he had for months disappeared totally. The doc couldn't believe it! Called it a miracle.