"please keep me updated about oximeters "
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Frustrated
Just wanted to vent a little, hope you don't mind. I have been trying to get answers from my sleep doctor about how my last sleep study went and he is not communicating well! This was his last reply to the 3rd message I sent him...Dear Ms. Toliln:
I did review your results. You responded well to the BiPAP and required a lower pressure. Also, the leg movements were not a problem. See you soon.
That's it??? I told him I want details and a copy of the report and this is all he sends me. I previously got a hold of the respiratory therapist and they can't change my pressure until the 12th. Gosh and golly geepers!!!!!!!!!
Sorry guys. I think another health condition related to apnea is high blood pressure due to stress in dealing with doctors and suppliers and respiratory therapists, etc.
I did review your results. You responded well to the BiPAP and required a lower pressure. Also, the leg movements were not a problem. See you soon.
That's it??? I told him I want details and a copy of the report and this is all he sends me. I previously got a hold of the respiratory therapist and they can't change my pressure until the 12th. Gosh and golly geepers!!!!!!!!!
Sorry guys. I think another health condition related to apnea is high blood pressure due to stress in dealing with doctors and suppliers and respiratory therapists, etc.
Views: 16
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Mike on
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Never feel bad about venting. That's part of getting through all this, and to be expected here.
Your doctor's conduct is typical.... AND unacceptable. You have an absolute right to your medical records. I would march into the doctor's office and refuse to leave until they make you a copy of your full sleep study. it shouldn't take them more than a few minutes.
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AFTER you get the xerox of your records, you should find another doctor who from the start you can establish new ground rules with: that you want and expect to participate actively and fully in your treatment and that you want full copies of studies/reports to help make that happen. keep moving on until you find someone who will be not only open to it, but enthusiastic about it.
bonesigh said:Thanks Mike. I'm not giving up and your right, it's unacceptable!
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Permalink Reply by amott1973 on
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I had a similar result from my primary care doc. I ended up having to go back to the sleep lab to get the full report. They hadn't even sent the full report to my doc, only the summary from the sleep doc I never met.
Keep trying! You're definitely your own best advocate.
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Permalink Reply by Dan Lyons on
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Bone,
Here are some additional items, which may obtain the desired results.
1. A letter, delivered in person to the physician's office. The contents of the letter should contain what exactly you wish to obtain. It should also state that failure to comply with your legal request, which is within your rights; you will be filing complainants with the following agencies:
A. US Department of Health & Human Services, administrators of HIPAA compliance.
B. Your state Health Services administrative government body, also engaged in HIPAA compliance.
C. The state medical board for violations of HIPAA laws.
D. The state insurance board for violations of HIPAA laws.
E. The state Attorney General's office for violations of HIPAA Laws (btw - if these folks get involved, they tend to start looking at the business's books and record keeping. - Hope his Medicaid and Medicare records are perfect)
F. The local Better Business Bureau for bad business practices and violations of the HIPAA laws.
G. You insurance carrier for the physician’s violations of the HIPAA laws.
H. The local newspapers for a nice story.
Basically, you want to bury his staff and the doctor in the bureaucratic red tape to which he is trying, illegally, to do to you.
He started the pebble down the hill; you finish it with a rockslide.
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Permalink Reply by susan mccord on
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I TOTALLY AGREE ABOUT LOUSY FOLLOW-UP AND LACK OF EDUCATION!
It makes ME mad too!! What is UP with that? I'm beginning to understand that this apnea business truly does require treatment and that CPAP is the gold standard. For me, being a heart patient as well, the O2 factor is critically important. So why isn't there more comprehensive care after diagnosis???
I've said it on here before and I'll say it again--I've gotten WAY more information and support from SleepGuide in just a very few days than I've gotten in 6 weeks, or whenever I was diagnosed. Thank God for Mike starting it, and for EVERYBODY on here. If you're new, STAY! You'll be so grateful you did.....and by the way, the MD is legally required to let you have a copy of your labs.
Susan McCord
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You don't have to put up with that from ANY doctor. You're absolutely entitled to any and all of your lab results, complete results. And I agree with Mike or whoever said, the best thing ANY of us can do is take an active role and participate as part of a team. IT'S YOUR BODY!! If the MD doesn't buy the team concept, fire him. There are doctors out there who do, and who welcome it. I have two that do--my family doc and my cardiologist. They welcome patient input and fully cooperate with patients having full access to records. As it should be.
Don't worry about venting on here. Lord knows I've done MY share of it, and maybe someone else's share as well. This is a GOOD place to be. And more important, it's a safe place....
-Susan McCord
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Permalink Reply by bonesigh on
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Amott, Sounds just like me. I've been in therapy for 2 years and only just met this doc. I told him I wanted to be pro active with my therapy and he said..."I understand it is frustrating not to feel better after receiving treatment for sleep apnea. On the other hand, I am not sure regarding your expectation of being "proactive". I saw you only once."
That was the only time my insurance sent me to him! I didn't know I needed to see someone other than the respiratory therapist they sent me to.
I'll probably have to go straight to Sleepmed to get the reports.
amott1973 said:I had a similar result from my primary care doc. I ended up having to go back to the sleep lab to get the full report. They hadn't even sent the full report to my doc, only the summary from the sleep doc I never met.
Keep trying! You're definitely your own best advocate.
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Bone, lol, that's funny. Just in case you are wondering my log in "bone-sigh" is the proper pronunciation of that popular art of miniature trees "Bonsai".
Thanks for the ammo Dan. If he does not reply favorably to the email I sent today I'll do just that.
Dan Lyons said:Bone,
Here are some additional items, which may obtain the desired results.
1. A letter, delivered in person to the physician's office. The contents of the letter should contain what exactly you wish to obtain. It should also state that failure to comply with your legal request, which is within your rights; you will be filing complainants with the following agencies:
A. US Department of Health & Human Services, administrators of HIPAA compliance.
B. Your state Health Services administrative government body, also engaged in HIPAA compliance.
C. The state medical board for violations of HIPAA laws.
D. The state insurance board for violations of HIPAA laws.
E. The state Attorney General's office for violations of HIPAA Laws (btw - if these folks get involved, they tend to start looking at the business's books and record keeping. - Hope his Medicaid and Medicare records are perfect)
F. The local Better Business Bureau for bad business practices and violations of the HIPAA laws.
G. You insurance carrier for the physician’s violations of the HIPAA laws.
H. The local newspapers for a nice story.
Basically, you want to bury his staff and the doctor in the bureaucratic red tape to which he is trying, illegally, to do to you.
He started the pebble down the hill; you finish it with a rockslide.
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Okay, I emailed him back and the reply I received was this:
Dear Mr. Tolin:
I think you need a follow up appointment to discuss your results. If coming here is too much of a problem, there is now a sleep specialist at the Penderbrook Center.
I am mailing you the sleep study reports. The tracings are not stored in the Kaiser system. I don't know whether you can get them from SleepMed. What information do you need that is not available in the report?
I am not sure what you mean by "fully data capable bipap". What model do you have?
In the first place I'm a Mrs. not a Mr. I never indicated that it was too much trouble to see him in fact I asked to see him ASAP. I guess since I'm a pain he want's to get rid of me, thank goodness! All they have is the dictated report and no graphs or anything. Since I haven't gotten the report and he hasn't told me any details how could I say what info I need that's not in the report? And finally how does ones sleep doctor not know what "fully data capable" means and not know what model I have. Especially since the first time I saw him I brought my machine and asked him about if it had a data card at all and he looked at it and said he did not know and would talk to the tech and get back to me. Needless to say, that never happened. I hope the new doctor is better. I'm kind of limited within Kaiser insurance unless I branch out on my own with no insurance. I can't really afford that! Sheesh!
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What a freakin nightmare. I've gotten tired of the run around at my primary care doc too. I've flat out asked them for a specific autoPAP data capable machine and they said they didn't know how to go about getting that approved with my insurance. I asked them to write the script for my DME and then let the DME try for approval.
And in the meantime I'm going to follow up with my pulmonologist's office. He treats me for asthma, but he has another doc in his practice that specializes in sleep medicine. So hopefully he's worth his salt. I looked up the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, but the closest certified sleep doc with them was in Miami (about 8 hours away).
I'm determined to get the help I need though. I KNOW how good I can feel when it's working right, and I want to get back to feeling that way again! (Been having issues with my pressure or something since March or so.)
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