A shot and a miss
Tuesday, November 17 2009
Saturday morning I dragged myself out of bed a bit earlier than usual, so I could walk to the community center where the country was running its H1N1 vaccination clinic. I got there 30 minutes before the clinic started, and there were already 500 people in line. I stood in the rain and cold for a few minutes, and decided the pork pox can just have me. I can deal with a fever; I can’t deal with cold and wet. Most of the people in line were little kids, too, so they probably need it more than I do anyway.
Today, I at least got a seasonal flu shot, even though seasonal flu is probably what I had a few weeks ago. The process was relatively smooth, though the forms did have these questions (among others):
Have you been sick in the last two weeks? [] yes [] no
Are you taking any medications? [] yes [] no Please list:_____
The correct answer to the first question is, of course, “[x] yes” – in fact, I’ve been more or less sick my entire adult life. But I marked “no”, because I know from experience that they don’t care about Crohn’s disease, and I didn’t want to have to explain my answer.
As for the meds, there was literally an inch of blank space fit the names of all my meds. I decided to list only the three big ones, one of which is OTC and probably could have been left off. But a few years ago this would have been a serious problem; given the dozen or so meds I was on, I probably would have needed an extra sheet of paper. Actually, I probably would have brought a print-out with me.
When it was my turn to ride the needle, I handed my form to the nurse. She asked me the same questions again, except for the meds question. This may be back-seat driving, but it seems to me that if somebody hands you a form that names three medicines, you might conclude that said person is in fact sick. But when she asked me the “sick” question, I said “no”, and she bought it. She probably recognized the meds and decided they weren’t relevant to her mandate.
I realize the question really means, “have you had flu-like symptoms in the last two weeks?” Still, it’s not at all clear why they can’t ask that directly, instead of being so vague. Nor is it clear why the form’s author was unable of pressing the underscore key more than five times – or even just holding it down for a while. Like this: __________________________________________
It’s that easy, folks.
(Photo from Flickr user nchoz by CC license)
Hi! Be grateful. When I was at emergency with severe hivees/allergic reaction, the emergency room doctor told me to first write down ALL the meds that I have ever been on – in my whole life and to list the dates started and stopped and the dosage of each. I have been having surgery for 26 years so far with crohns, have 5 major disabilities, and my meds for income tax just last year was an inch thick of printout from the pharmacy, multiply that by 26years- I told him I simply couldnt do all that and he SLAPPED my face and yelled – How do you expect us to help you when you dont give us ALL the information we need to to it? Then another lady screamed at me that I should know all this and have it all ready for him and not to come back until its ready – and still no meds for the hives. I got taken by a friend to another hospital where they quickly gave me the injection I needed to breathe properly. So much for my being prepared with my current list of meds and doctors names and numbers – that is not good enough anymore, and they refuse to call the pharmacist or treat me without more documentation. Great care here in BC. NOT
Slapped you? I hope you filed a complaint with his employers. There is no reason whatsoever for a doctor to treat a patient like that. Our malpractice system in the US is far from perfect, but at least it keeps physicians from beating their patients. I’m sorry you had to go through that, and glad you were able to get the care you need.