Day Eight - Living Till Dying

 I have finally been considered the customer at the Advent Family Practice (AFP).

As of Thursday morning 8:05, they were full of following their rules...so I couldn't see a new primary care provider till she ok'd me as her new client, and THEN I'd have to have a new patient visit with her (none available until August!) and finally I could THEN schedule a Medicare mandated (?) annual wellness visit!

I may have mentioned their PCP (primary care provider) I'd seen 7 months ago was not recognized by my health insurance because the doctor's office had not sent her certification in yet...so I couldn't see her for the scheduled appointment next week, which had been made 7 months ago. I explained this to a dozen separate people at AFP and had worn myself frazzled.

I needed to have a bone density scan, since I've gone more than 6 years since having one, and at that time was put on Fosamax. I asked the last scheduler I talked with Wednesday if they could get that for me while I continued to wait for the "bureaucratic f-ing nonsense." (No I refrained from being crass)

Sure. So I did, next week!

And then out of the blue yesterday afternoon, (Thursday) the Advent Family Practice (AFP) called to say yes I could have my Medicare Annual Wellness Exam with the NEWLY chosen PCP. When would I like to have it?

My mouth was definitely agape. I even gave a brief background of the certification issue, new PCP, and perhaps their own required new patient visit with her... The scheduler (a new one in all my phone calling) said it had all been handled. New PCP had ok'd me for her patient over the phone. No "new patient visit" since I'd already seen her several times when I had problems. She had been excellent and advised me to have some tests done, I remembered.

So before the end of this month I'll get to have that wellness exam. Holy Cow!

Yes the squeaky wheel does get the oil!

And I definitely squeaked to my limits. I started looking for other doctors taking new patients, considering driving even further from home. (The whole reason I'm at AFP is that my dear former doctor's office was shut down 8 months ago by the corporation that was running it from out of town.) 

The insurance is ok with my new nurse practitioner PCP. I am not going to be around town that much longer, then I get to find doctors when and where I move.

But hey, I now know the things I've suffered through with AFP. I shall not get sucked into these particular things again. Nope, I will find new and different ones.

Oh, sometime I need to make sure my health insurance will transfer to another state. Oh boy oh boy.

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celebrating here!

Day Seven - Living till Dying

 Again I'm in the go-around mess with my primary care provider (PCP).

The health insurance doesn't have her listed, because her administration has not sent the insurance her certification. Insurance doesn't recognize her, she doesn't exist. The health insurance has automatically listed a physician that I have never heard of as my PCP. 

So after 7 months since I did see her in a "new patient" visit, I was scheduled to see her for my annual wellness check next week. Nope, no insurance still. I had spent all afternoon a week ago talking with the Advent office where my PCP works, and someone called late in the day and said it would all be taken care of. So I could have my bloodwork tomorrow and then see the Dr. in a week.

Nope. She's still not recognized. So I tried to change to another Dr. in the same practice. Nope, even though she's on their web page as seeing people on May 8, she's not taking new patients. And that Dr. is one I've seen several times. She also was among those I spoke with last week and she reassured me she'd follow through and get things straightened out. Nope.

So today I let insurance know a nurse practitioner I have seen, who is taking new patients, would be my PCP. But when I called the office back to make my first appointment with her, they said they needed her to ok it (I have seen her before also) and she's out of the office this week.

So no appointment, no blood work, and maybe they'll let me know next week about the new PCP. At that point I'll have to have a new intake interview, even though I've seen her already. Intake visits are being scheduled for August at this time.

 I asked the scheduling person, Jasmine, to try to get me a bone-density test which has been postponed because I waited this 7 months to have a wellness visit...and she said they do that in their office and she'd get it scheduled and would have them contact me.

Do you think it will happen? The certification of my first doctor never has come through.

I quite honestly toyed with the idea of going ahead with the appointment with her, with the attempt to get her certification sent in by next week's appointment. Then I firmly said, NO, I can't deal with all this any more, and canceled the blood work and annual wellness exam.

I may very well be looking for another outfit completely. Can you blame me?

Chinese dragons are wingless. I didn't make very many like that.