@Beth Gallagher all the ambulation questions are probably part of their Fall Risk Protocol. As annoying as it is, falls among seniors is one of the categories evaluated by the Joint Commission when evaluating hospitals and large clinics. As far as the "mood" questions, I know the VA has put that into their standard questionnaire due to the high numbers of suicides among vets, and it is not related to age. They ask everyone those questions. I don't know about the private places. The last time I was in the VA and was asked all those questions, I told the questioner, "You do realize that suicidal people are not going to answer those questions honestly, don't you?" Her reply was "yes".
All I could think of when you said that you ambulate is "That's funny. She strikes me as the punctual type."
John I figured out what the problem with my throat was myself. My visit to the doctor was no help. The form of GERD, caused by me stopping my daily antiacid.
@Tony Page My wife had severe GERD for over a decade. Conventional doctors just kept adding antacids and PPIs to her regimen. I awoke one night and found her doubled over in pain on the sofa. I convinced her to go to an Integrative doctor, and he put her on a couple of amino acids and Oregano oil, as well as an "elimination diet". She found that she could not tolerate ANY grains well, not just wheat, so she eliminated all grain from her diet (rice was the worst), and she has gone off the meds ever since. She takes a Tums once in a great while, but nothing on a daily basis.
I called today and made an appointment with another guy...for May 15! I'm gonna try another practice and see if I can find someone else sooner. This LPN I am seeing is the 3rd person I tried at this place because of these conflicts (saw the first guy once and the second guy 3 times.) You wouldn't believe the way the other 2 doctors were. I hung with them because the University of Virginia (UVA) Health System has bought up a ton of practices here and in surrounding counties...my GP got bought by them. Hospitals as far away as 100 miles have been bought by them, and they would have marched further had they not been stopped at the boundaires of where other conglomerates have already taken over. Everyone in the UVA system has immediate access to my records and also updates them, and my GP can make instant referrals on his computer as I watch...and there's never any resistance because he's keeping the money within the business. The other thing is that UVA has a ton of resources, like that in-house urodynamics equipment. When I had my bladder stone removed and a prostate biopsy, I let UVA do the diagnostics and then went elsewhere to have the procedures done. Now that I have the urodynamics results to share, I'll take it to another provider. So I want to walk the line as to how hard I cut these guys off. I recently found out that--being part of the university--it's a "teaching" practice. All of the doctors have a role in the university. Some of them teach, some do other things there. But they all wear 2 hats. I don't know how that impacts the culture of these practices. When I see someone outside the system (as I did with a gastroenterologist), I just make certain to get the info. to my doctor so he can put it in the UVA computer. Interestingly, when I went to the non-UVA emergency room on Easter Sunday, I discovered that the 2 major players can sign into each other's systems and share info. It's just the smaller guys I need to stay on top of. I think I can wrap my head around my issue once I get in a less hostile environment. I just need to stop reacting and get in front of it (which is what I'm doing now.)
I'm glad it was that simple. Swallowing issues can also come with age, as I discovered. I had really bad G.I. issues for a while, and that's what started me on this urinary tract path I'm on now...the bladder stone was discovered in a CT Scan I had for something completely unrelated. I also got a bunch of other scans & tests at the time, and paid out-of-pocket for a vascular screening, showing that everything else is fine. My head was in a very bad place at the time because of all the cancer that killed my male relatives in their 50s. That's another reason I need to get my head around this...the rest of me seems to be in reasonable shape. This is not an incremental issue with me...it's the only issue (as far as I know.)
I gotta clarify something, because upon further review of the officials, my comment "shut up, Beth" reads more hostile and push-back than intended. It was not in reference to your friendly hand on my back for what we both know I gotta do...that is much appreciated. It was in reference to the double entendre of "wrap my head around it." I thought you would jump on it (see, more D.E.s) and fully expected you would see the joke. I meant nothing else.
@Don Alaska If an infirm individual is convinced suicide is a desirable "out", why constrain him/her? Frank
They simply have a suicide prevention protocol they have to go through. Anyone who truly wants to commit suicide has the ability to do it unless they are so disabled they cannot accomplish the task.