Personal adventures in our US health care system: Part five

Post-operative visit to Dr. Real Surgeon.

BIL and I on this run. MIL ready, wheelchair down to car, over to Dr. R.S.’s office. Kept MIL downstairs while I ran up to sign in, verified that x-rays were needed, ran down with paperwork. X-rayed. Looked absolutely amazing. Straight…wow. Those bar thingies work!

Back up the elevator to Dr. R.S., co-pay, in office for exam. Should have had warning. Dr. showed up with several papers, mid-talk went out to retrieve another insurance form. Discussion about seeing a physical therapist at the hospital. We accepted this, worked it in for that day. (MIL, wheelchair, parking lot, car, wheelchair).

Over to hospital, waited for physical therapist. He checked her arm and hand. Showed her how to keep moving her fingers and shoulder. Waited about an hour for about five minutes’ worth of finger wiggling. Oh, well. A flyer would have been as helpful.

Now almost two months had gone by.

Home care by care-givers and family meant cleaning the bar with peroxide. Daily program to get MIL to wiggle hand and fingers, but all for naught. The splint and bar weighed too much, prevented movement, and her hand turned into a useless club. Well…when the stuff comes off, then we will work it hard.