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From the explanations the surgeons gave me about osteo there's different types, stages whatever. A lot depends on the severity of the original injury and especially the presence of old hardware. As I understand it the bacteria just stick to old hardware and go banannas. I'm afraid that mine will go fulminating again and they won't be able to rein it back in with vancomycin.
Theres a new drug out called xyvox that's supposed to be the cat's meow for osteo. Your local doc might be on it? An oral drug that's as effective as the IV, but VERY expensive. I can't take it, mores the pity. Some types of osteo will show up on an MRI, others need a three phase bone scan and then maybe (like mine) a biopsy to conclusively confirm.
My primary care doc didn't want anything to do with treating the osteo. I'm dependent on ortho and infection specialists for that. That's where I get into trouble because it can be up to thirty days to get in with them and by the time this starts showing outward signs of running away it can turn into a nasty situation in just three to five days. Inside it's already bad by the time outward signs start to show. Unfortunately, vancomycin is my only option to treat it due to allergies to other options. Like I said, hammer meets anvil. All I can do is keep a close eye on things and if the pain level starts going up and starts into feeling like a burning sensation inside and the scar tissue starts looking...bruised I know I'd best be on the phone.
If the "bruised" spot opens into an ulceration I'm looking at IV vanco. No if ands or buts. lol, I've got a high level PhD in this condition as it applies to me. One I wish I didn't have.
Zyvox is a good one if your plan covers it. A few years ago I threatened our Medicaid that I'd have to keep one of their patients in the hospital on IV Vanco if they didn't approve PO Zyvox. And they did.
Zyvox is a good one if your plan covers it. A few years ago I threatened our Medicaid that I'd have to keep one of their patients in the hospital on IV Vanco if they didn't approve PO Zyvox. And they did.
Good for you! Yea, the stuff may be expensive but inpatient IV vanco is worse. I can't take it. had a bad reaction to it. Waking dreams, uncontrolled facial twitching and speech problems and sleepwalking, of all things. I remember dreaming and then found myself walking down the road. How I made it down the stairs in that state..... Scared the hell outa me. A couple days before my lady had been out to visit and said that one night I was laying in bed with my eyes wide open just talking away. The sleepwalking tied it. Doc told me to discontinue which I did but it took three days to level out still. Very weird.
Still, it's been proven to be effective. The price seems ridiculous though. Drug prices are something else doctors have to contend with when determining the best treatment for individual patients. Doctors don't control drug prices. But some, like you, will go to bat for patients with insurance companies.
That's another issue isn't it. The quality of what we pay for. Any other job would be held accountable for such crappy errors. The medical profession gets paid well here, they should try and cut down the errors.
Another thing. A lot of doctors aren't taking the affordable care act insurance. You can't find a place to use this insurance. I pay cash, and a lot of it, just to see the doctor regardless of paying into the ACA. Why? There aren't any doctors who take it.
As a layman, I might not know the in's and out's of being a doctor but as a consumer of their service I'd love to know why they are allowed to make so many mistakes, and refuse to take insurance that I'm FORCED by mandate to pay for. I'm listening. Crickets.
Maybe I'll ask my doctor these questions. "Hey doc, why are medical mistakes something I should fear more than a stroke. lol What should I do about it?
For the salary these nurses, techs, and doctors make I'd expect a bit more as a consumer. I wouldn't buy a car from these people but when you end up in the hospital what choice do you have?
A non profit would allow some government regulation. I think we might need a bit of that looking at the number of mistakes being made in our healthcare system.
The CDC should update its vital statistics reporting requirements so that physicians must report whether there was any error that led to a preventable death, Makary said.
“We all know how common it is,†he said. “We also know how infrequently it’s openly discussed.â€
Kenneth Sands, who directs health-care quality at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, an affiliate of Harvard Medical School, said that the surprising thing about medical errors is the limited change that has taken place since the IOM report came out. Only hospital-acquired infections have shown improvement. “The overall numbers haven’t changed, and that’s discouraging and alarming,†he said.
I've worked in medicine for years. It's not the doctors squeezing the system for the most part. It's the insurance companies, big pharma, and the for-profit, non-research hospital corporations.
You know what all three of those have in common? They are very profitable, and traded on Wall Street.
As for the doctors, what, you think they should work 12 hour days for 50k a year or something?
Can we also remind OP about the massive about of time, energy, money and commitment it takes to even become a practicing doctor?
This is the same mantra the teachers pushed. Teachers are now overpaid and with tenure have little compulsion to actually perform. They simply collect their dime, wait until they can retire on 90% of full pay and call it a life.
Doctors and hospitals should publish their rates. They should provide a strict rate across the board. If they raise their rates above the competition... guess what... they go under just like anyone else in a business would.
Yes teachers and doctors are overpaid but don't you dare increase inheritance or capital gains taxes for the rich. I'm sorry, but I really don't get this way of thinking at all. Yeah teachers and doctors are really "overpaid."
You cannot simply "increase the supply of doctors." These are doctors, not general laborers. Doctors (like leaders) are born, not made. At most, perhaps 0.26% to 0.30% of the population is even capable of being a doctor. The number of doctors who are qualified or capable of teaching other doctors is even less. No matter what, there will always be a "shortage" of doctors.
I disagree. I think there are a good amount of candidates in our high schools and colleges who would be interested in medicine if it wasn't for the high risk of being sued and the high cost of nearly a decade of education.
I can tell you why. In the past, the drug companies marketed very hard directly to physicians and gave them all kinds of freebies. Back in the 80's, they went so far as to give them free trips and things or a. Ushy well-paid "speaking engagement" ( kickback gig ) if they prescribed enough of the drug.
That was made illegal. In the 2000's they would just buy lunch for the office and bring pens and stuff. Now, nada.
So they market directly to patients. Doctors want to please their patients. This is why they over prescribed antibiotics and pain killers. The patients demanded them. Now they are showing up demanding ex drugs by name. Some of these drugs cost thousands per month. Since govt payers are not allowed to negotiate drug prices, Medicare and Medicaid patients? CHA CHING $$$
I know this is a simplistic way of thinking ... but shouldn't pharmaceutical companies just focus on providing medication when needed instead of selling it like its a soft drink?
The doctors, health insurance companies, and hospitals do. There should be no unconditional right to extract unlimited profits from sick people. It's just the humane thing to do.
Same thing. Maximum caps on liability for individuals.
You could say that about almost anything. Should pharmacies give away medicine for $1 per bottle in the vein of not making a profit from sick people? How about dentists, eye doctors, etc.? People in healthcare need to make enough money to live, pay off student loans, etc. There has to be a decent incentive for people to want to go into fields that are physically, emotionally and mentally difficult.
I don't think unlicensed people should operate medical imaging equipment or read the study.
CT scanners, for instance, have to be calibrated by a nuclear physicist. If it's done incorrectly, you could give somebody a big fat dose of radiation. There was a huge scandal in the industry when a bunch of patients got radiation burns and had their hair falling out after getting CTs at a prominent facility a few years ago.
It's good that you are looking for solutions. I wish more people would. Here's the root of the problem, there's a TON of profit being made in healthcare, but not by doctors and nurses. Insurance companies, medical suppliers, for-profit hospital chains, and big pharma account for an awful lot of our healthcare spending, and this means fewer dollars to take care of patients.its hard to properly diagnose when you have to see thirty or forty patients a day to make a living.
Here's an example. I went to my doctor when I had one of the big insurance companies. I paid my copay of twenty five dollars. Guess how much the insurance company paid? Thirteen dollars. Total for the office vist $38
When a box of gloves costs $25, and the EHR software is expensive, and the referral coordinator has to be paid
it means no time to spend with each patient. All that profit for vendors and the patient is getting screwed.
I agree with you for the most part. However, I think medical technology costing a lot of money shouldn't be a surprise to anyone. Look at all the manpower behind these machines - R&D, engineers, medical professionals, etc. That expertise and labor doesn't come cheap - nor should it IMHO.
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lol, I've got a high level PhD in this condition as it applies to me. One I wish I didn't have.
. Scared the hell outa me. A couple days before my lady had been out to visit and said that one night I was laying in bed with my eyes wide open just talking away. The sleepwalking tied it. Doc told me to discontinue which I did but it took three days to level out still. Very weird. 
