What's up with tucson medical center? (Page: health insurance, university, live in)

[clearwater66]

We are here for the winter and the day after Thanksgiving, I took a cab to the emergency room at the Tucson Medical Center for extreme pain from lower back to ankle. Was referred to new orthopedic center, which was closed for 4 days over Thanksgiving so waited a total of 4 days to be seen and I made it but once there, there was a mob of people checking in. I mean, I am seeing a long line of people standing uncomfortably..no where to sit with various bone problems and thankfully, I found a wheelchair.

Staff was cool'ish...not very friendly or as compassionate and very busy... too busy.

I did not have a good feeling and as I waited cold and half dressed for another 20 minutes in the exam room to be seen by a doctor, I wondered. Staff had been curt, not anxious to answer questions, not waiting for sentences to be completed before beginning to speak and reacted a bit defensively. Overall, doctor's, nurses and others morale seemed down and they were distracted by one thing and than the next. I wondered if this is the kind of environment where a patient could fall through the cracks and I decided it wasn't going to be me.

Doctor ordered an MRI...imaging center cannot perform MRI for 2 weeks??? Let's see, cannot endure much more pain, cannot get pain medication like Vicodin because doctors have been over prescribing and now there's a backlash and people are suffering, cannot get treated in a timely manner and just decided to stay in bed and see it if heals on it's own.

Does anyone know what is going on?

Is this a large corporation that presses staff to push for maximum profits? (I have seen this kind of leadership in the private sector).

Is the ACA affecting this? Maybe the transition as of the first of the year is stressing people out?

Or, is there some inside information not public?

Is this because of a city with large population?

Is the University of Arizona any better?

Thanks for your help; if someone can direct me to more competent care, I would really appreciate it.

[mtnbkr5]

Nest time try Carondelet at St Joseph's on Wilmot. I've been to their urgent care several times and I've always had excellent treatment from staff and doctors.

[Jukesgrrl]

Wow. That's terrible. I feel for you.

My elderly, disabled mother lives with me so I spend more than my share of time in medical offices of all types. It's been my experience that it's hard to get an appointment with most specialists in Tucson (orthopedic doctors or any other specialty needed by elders are the worst). A three-week wait is typical, more if you are first-time patient; many places will tell you they are not accepting new patients. A two-week wait is required for my mother to see her primary care physician (who has treated Mom since we moved here eight years ago) — and my mother requires her services about every two weeks. No favoritism, no "I'll fit you in." Once when I was particularly upset with her lack of attention to my mother's needs, I called every single physician listed in the Yellow Pages as a "geriatric specialist" and every one told me they were accepting no new patients — I could get on a list but the average wait time was more than a year.

I have also had frustrating experiences in urgent care centers. Private ones as well as ones run by hospitals. If the problem you present with doesn't have an immediately obvious diagnosis, they tell you (after a typical wait of 2+ hours) to go to the emergency room. If you tell an urgent care intake person you have chest pains, they will call an ambulance and have you transported to the ER. So I've learned to cut to the chase. If my mother has any issue I think needs to be seen immediately by a physician, I go straight to the emergency room. We usually have to wait more than 3 hours before she is taken in, but at least we see a doctor that day. And they have triage, so I have no doubt that anyone who looks worse than my mother will be seen before her.

I hate to clog up the emergency room but I don't feel I have a choice. When an person who is nearly 90 tells you they have a really bad pain on the side of their head, are you going to wait for two weeks to seek care? I'm not.

And one thing you will need to know if you are going to stay in Tucson any amount of time ... don't expect anyone to be in a hurry. Not just medical personnel. Anyone. When people describe this as a "laid back town," they aren't kidding.

Good luck. Sounds like sciatica to me.

[azdr0710]

Originally Posted by Jukesgrrl

And one thing you will need to know if you are going to stay in Tucson any amount of time ... don't expect anyone to be in a hurry. Not just medical personnel. Anyone. When people describe this as a "laid back town," they aren't kidding.

maybe related to the TMC story...sorta:

worked many years ago at a small, local, well-respected resort....a guest from back east was pacing about the lobby and then checked out....he was somewhat upset and suddenly exclaimed, "All you people move so damn slow around here!"....we thought he meant the employees....after further research, turns out he meant everybody in the West in general

[clearwater66]

Jukesgrrl....sorry about the situation with your mother; I will keep you in my prayers.

Maybe ACA will change whatever is wrong because there will be more accountability and fines involved but I wonder when doctors can't take new patients because of the sheer numbers of people joining the health care system for the 1st time, next year.

There must be a lot of older people and maybe it also has something to do with Medicare...seems to be a secret we don't know.

Given what I learned, I will keep my plans to return to Idaho in the spring. Overall, life is more manageable in one respect and in another, there are fewer choices so one has to find balance; I'd like to come back, somewhere in a warmer spot during the winter....after I get a physical in Idaho.

Yes, I believe it is the sciatica and it's much better with rest and my husband's loving massages.

You may have better luck at the University medical for a specialists. My husband got in in 10 days to see a liver specialist.

Thanks for responding and Happy Holidays.

Please post anything more you can think of...I would like to hear more about how the ACA is going to impact this area.

[Marcy1210]

I got dropped by my private health insurance provider because I no longer live in that state, and because of the ACA, they weren't offering their PPO plans anymore, but changing people over to HMO's. I applied to the ACA, but am still waiting to hear if they've got my application straightened out. When I told my PCP I had to go throught the ACA (pre-existing conditions for myself and my son), he said that their medical group, Arizona Community Physicians, wasn't going to honor ACA plans because they were too limiting in the # of office visits a year, referrals, and tests. So, even if I get a decent health plan, I still can't see my family physician; I'll have to find new doctors....

[yellowbelle]

I am so sorry to read about the experiences in this thread. I, too, have found similar situations at other MDs. LONG waits to get in even when the patient is clearly quite ill, rude and slow office staff, packed waiting rooms, disorganized offices. It's just a mess.

Dentists will fight for your business though!

[motormaker]

If it is sciatica, would a chiropractor help? I know it works for me.

[clearwater66]

thanks motormaker for the suggestion. It's a good one; if we're not able to give names on this forum, can you please send me a private email with the name of yours?

You are very kind.

I am hoping that in red states like Arizona, the population's health will not be held hostage, after aca goes into effect...that is the same passive/aggressive behavior from the medical community that reflects the republican position and it all creates harm to us.

Idaho is also a red state but I think it may be more cooperative.

Overall, I believe, from what I have seen here and at home, it's going to be a tough ride and we'll all have to support each other through the process and fight back for a law that was designed to help us.

[CheyDee]

Originally Posted by clearwater66

I am hoping that in red states like Arizona, the population's health will not be held hostage, after aca goes into effect...that is the same passive/aggressive behavior from the medical community that reflects the republican position and it all creates harm to us.

Idaho is also a red state but I think it may be more cooperative.

If this is what you believe, you may wish to consider wintering next year in a blue state, such as California, instead of Arizona.

Doctors boycotting California's Obamacare exchange:

"An estimated seven out of every 10 physicians in deep-blue California are rebelling against the state's Obamacare health insurance exchange and won't participate, the head of the state's largest medical association said."