Fan-TASTIC

[annathepiper]

So just before dinner, I got called by a perky-voiced young woman working for Swedish Hospital who wanted to confirm assorted things in their database about me and to ask me if I could come in for a pre-op appointment and a blood draw.

"Wait a minute," I said, "I just went to the Polyclinic TODAY for a blood draw. Why do you guys need to do a blood draw on me too?"

(For those of you who are not local to Seattle, the Polyclinic is a medical facility right near Swedish Hospital. It's called what it is because dozens of doctors of various disciplines have offices in one huge clinic. My surgeon, Dr. Stickney, actually borrows the surgical facilities at nearby Swedish Hospital because they're bigger and better-stocked and such.)

The perky-voiced young woman did not give me an adequate answer to this question, saying only that the doctors apparently perform "different tests". Also, they didn't pull this on me last year, and I pointed this out, and asked what was up with that. It seems that Swedish has changed its procedures in the last 3-4 months, such that they are trying to reduce the amount of waiting time on the days of actual patient procedures. The idea here is supposed to be that I show up on this earlier day, they do blood work, have me talk to the nurse/anesthesiologist/whoever else, so that on the actual surgery day all I have to do is show up, get prepped, and go right onto the table.

Meh. Yeah, okay, fine. Looks like I leave work early on Friday, too. Ordinarily I would be pleased by an opportunity to leave work early, but this is just... annoying. It feels redundant, and I didn't think to properly ask why the heck they couldn't just contact the lab at the Polyclinic, who already has my blood, and ask them to do whatever tests they need on it. I'm not quick enough on my feet thinking of this kind of thing, especially not when I'm all "AAAAAH SURGERY" in the first place.

And this kind of thing is in no small part WHY I get all wiggy about the surgery. The procedure itself, not so annoying. It's all the paperwork and bills and such that brings in all the vexation.

Comments

[mizkit.livejournal.com]

Call them back and say, "Can you not call Polyclinc and ask them to do these blood tests?"!

Also, *hugs*

[annathepiper]

I'm too cranky to deal with it right now, and also, I forgot to actually get the name of the person I spoke with.

I think I'll call back my doctor at the Polyclinic tomorrow and talk to them and try to see if I can figure out what's up, if Swedish actually does need different information than what the Polyclinic will be getting out of me today (i.e., the signed consent forms, including the one from the anesthesiologist, and the blood draw).

Right now, though, I just want to sit quietly in a cool room and think about my book.

*hugs back*

[mizkit.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I was thinking of it as a thing to do tomorrow rather than today. *hugs* What a lot to deal with.

but go go writey Anna!

...you're kicking ass and taking names with this writing thing, I just want you to know that. You've become all Ms. Discipline about it. Good on you!

[annathepiper]

Awwww, thank you. I needed to hear that. :) Mostly the writing bit, but the sympathy is good too!

I am bound and determined to bang on Lament to get this thing done by the end of the year. Which probably means I'll spend all of NEXT year editing it, but hey! I need to get me another book into query-able shape--Faerie Blood's all lonesome, out there doing the rounds by itself!

[jesshartley.livejournal.com]

*hugs* Just wanted to let you know that our thoughts are going with you! :)

[annathepiper]

*hugs* Thank you very much. :)

[firni.livejournal.com]

That's why they call it the PRACTICE of medicine.

My dad's doctor didn't like what he saw on some test, so he stuffed Dad into an ambulance for a ride up to the hospital. In the ambulance, they drew blood. Then at the hospital, they drew MORE blood because the AMBULANCE-DRAWN BLOOD wasn't GOOD enough.

It was good enough for them to bill my dad, though. *eyeroll*

[annathepiper]

Hell, this isn't even the "medicine" part of the entire process. It's the "paperwork" part. I'm totally cool with the actual "medicine" part of all this, having gone through this once already with the same doctor. I know she's on top of things.

The paperwork, on the other hand... bleh.

Though your dad's double-blood-draw makes NO sense, indeed.

[firni.livejournal.com]

When bureaucracy takes control, no one has absolute rule. Well, except them and their ISO bullshit.

For example, on Tuesday my friend undergoing chemo had to get a MUGA scan, so they wheeled him downstairs at around 2:30pm. There was a LINE, so they LEFT HIM IN THE HALL. Largest piss-off point? WITHOUT HIS ANTI-NAUSEA MEDICATION ON THE IV TREE. He kept telling people he felt sick but they ignored him. So he finally gets back to his room on the heme-oncology ward at SIX PM and is sick as a dog. His nurses were really ticked; I hope they went down to cardiology and chewed someone's ass.

I had half a mind of stealing some scrubs, gloves, mask and a stethoscope, slinging my old UW ID on a loop around my neck and going down there myself to perform some anal justice, but they talked me out of it. DAMN.

[annathepiper]

Guh, that is just criminal negligence right there. Geez, you don't do that to a patient. I'm not a doctor or a nurse, but that just seems beyond debate to me right there.

[chamois-shimi.livejournal.com]

I'm no medical person, but I've had enough blood drawn for tests in my life to float a barge, I think. They seem to need a fair amount of it for each test (last time I was at the doctor they took 5 whole test tubes worth out of my elbow), so chances are they can't, at this point, get the other place to do tests for them. All the blood /they/ drew has already been either put to use or autoclaved away, I bet. Whee! They have very strict prodedures to follow about blood and handling it- that whole blood-borne pathogens thing. There's quite an amusing story about the day the lab tech thought she'd lost my blood but what she'd really lost was me, but... um.. ok, probably not really that amusing.

[annathepiper]

*giggle* Well, Dr. Stickney's assistant Carol very specifically said that no, I didn't need to go to Swedish for the second blood draw, so as near as I can tell they were just being redundant about it. What I suspect happened was that the front desk people at Swedish were just following usual procedures for anybody admitted to the hospital at all, and I'm a weirdo case because all the prep stuff is being handled by the Polyclinic--since Dr. Stickney is not actually one of Swedish's 'real' medical staff.

Anyway, no extra blood draw for me, so that's good. And I got out of the pre-op visit, too.

[starfallz.livejournal.com]

*hugs* That sucks. :/

[annathepiper]

*hugs back* Yeah--though I just called up Dr. Stickney's office this morning and got her assistant on the case. SHE has hit Swedish with a cluestick and made them understand that I don't need an extra blood draw, kthxbye, so now apparently all I need to do is a pre-op phone call. Whew.

[starfallz.livejournal.com]

Yay!

[kissare.livejournal.com]

Oh geez, I'm sorry to hear that. That sucks. It's nice to reduce waiting times for actual surgeries, but not if it means MORE hassle for the patient, having to come in multiple times instead, and engage in senseless redundancy. Hopefully what they are asking is really legit, and not stuff they can do by 'sharing' the Polyclinic's blood. Too bad they couldn't have been more organized about it and just had enough drawn at once to cover both sets of tests.

Good on you and your goal for Lament - get it out there to keep Fairie Blood company!

[annathepiper]

I've called up Dr. Stickney's office at the Polyclinic this morning, and sicced her assistant Carol on the case. Carol says that NO, I shouldn't have to do a second blood draw. She called up Swedish, hit them with a cluestick, and made it so that I just have to call in for a pre-op phone interview. I can do that.

And thank you. ^_^ The tough part of querying Lament, I think, is going to be writing up the synopses for not only it but also for the other two books that go with it, since it's one big three-book story. But I'll worry about that when Lament is done!

[(Anonymous)]

greeting Anna....your bud Rob C. from Attachmate days. popped over to Murkworks site on a whim..caught up on some journal entries for some mild entertainment ;) surgery is lurking eh? my, my - a lovely experience I am sure you are thrilled to partake in...the best I can do is to send positive endophins via telekenisis your way! Hope all else is well

Stay strong and godspeed
RC

[annathepiper]

Oh wow, hi there! Glad to hear from you again. :)

Yeah, I have to have thyroid surgery. This is actually my second round of it; the first round was last summer. The short form is, my thyroid's making big lumps that might turn into cancer if they go unchecked, so my doctor's all "um, let's have that out then". Rah.

Aside from that, doing software contract work and writing like mad on my second novel while I wait for word from a publisher as to whether they want my FIRST novel. The writing part's way better than the surgery, I can tell you. :)

What's life like in your neck of the woods these days?

[(Anonymous)]

a novel?! kewl! I respect that as I can hardly muster up enough gumption to write a legible email! (smile).
Rob is doing the dad thing and workin' at Cingular, still, here in Redmond - project management stuff. The crumbsnatchers are keeping me busy. Emma is 3 1/2 and Olivia (not sure I've communicated with you since her blesses arrival) just turned 1 in June. So Rob is outnumbered at home (and loving it of course). To help keep your mood cheery pre-surgery, I've attached a hotlink to view my lovely ladies -
http://www.geocities.com/rcimino/SlewGirls.html

Today's words of wisdom (not impying that I am wise of course):
"When fate shuts the door, come in through the window"

RC

[annathepiper]

Yeah, I've been trying to formally pursue a writing career, inspired by mizkit, a very good friend of mine whose first novel has just come out! (Urban Shaman, fantasy novel set in Seattle! You should go buy it, and read it, for lo, it is cool.) So far I've finished one novel and am sending that one around, and I'm working on an unrelated novel in the meantime.

I was unaware of you having two kids, yeah! I remember the first one being on the way, but not the second. Congrats on that, and on continued employment. :) Your little girls are total cuties, too!