NOT HAPPY w/ HEALTHCARE

I'm a little miffed right now. This has not been the greatest week in Click Healthcare History.

Here's the 30 second summary:

Monday - Avery throws up in Target. Yes, I said, in Target ... not in Target's bathroom. The most puke I've ever seen come from a child, btw.

Tuesday - I leave for a 3 day work trip. Don stays home with Avery (who also has diarrhea) - Piper goes to school. Pediatrician won't see Avery. Says it's a stomach bug, so no need to come in. I didn't know the doctor could "not" see us. I was "not" happy. (PS - I miss our Franklin pediatrician SO much!!!)

Wednesday - 6:45 AM Don calls to tell me that now he's throwing up and has diarrhea. He and Avery are dueling banjos at this point. Both drag Piper to school. Thank goodness we live close.

Thursday - I pull into town and go straight home to bleach the entire house (Don/Avery still sick) BEFORE I get Piper from daycare. As I'm pulling into our street, daycare calls - Piper's throwing up and has diarrhea.

Friday - Send Avery back to school. Don's still sick, Piper's still sick. I stay home to get everyone uncontaminated. Around 3:00 PM, Piper quits throwing up/diarrhea and starts running a fever. WHAT??? Where did this come from? With that, she starts this deep cough (think 70 year old man that has smoked for 67 years.)

Saturday - Doctor finally agrees to see Piper. She prescribes a breathing treatment for which we have to rent a machine. Can't find a place to rent a machine.

Sunday - Finally figure out that Kroger rents machines. Start Piper on treatments.

Today - Everyone is back to work and school. Hallelujah.

Tomorrow - Don gets the epidural with steroids in his back to help alleviate the pain he's had (since January 8) from the herniated nerves.

UNTIL .....

Don gets a call from the surgery center. He happens to ask what the co-pay will be. (Our policy says that if it is an out-patient PROCEDURE, then the co-pay is $50. If it is an out-patient SURGERY, the co-pay is $500. Big difference.) It's $500. I'm not kidding.

This is especially not cool since we already KNOW that we've reached our $1,000 deductible getting MRIs, X-rays, etc, getting prepped for this PROCEDURE. I'm waiting for the bills to start rolling in on that.

Here's the catch: Don's deal tomorrow is a PROCEDURE, but because he's having it done in a SURGERY CENTER - we're expected to pay the SURGERY co-pay. Seriously.

Needless, to say, he immediately called the doctor to see if we could schedule this PROCEDURE at a different place, but they are out to lunch. Of course.

Pray for this to be sorted out. That Don can get the treatment and that we don't have to rob a bank to pay for it.

Oh, and Aetna ... you can suck my foot. We're not friends anymore.

Don's Neck Trauma

Don's had some horrible neck problems lately. It started on January 8, and as of today, he has still not gotten any relief. He's been to a Family Practitioner, who then sent him to a Neurological/Orthopedic Surgeon. 4 co-pays, a set of x-rays, and an MRI later (not to mention the LOAD of drugs he's been prescribed) - he's still in pain.

Yesterday, we got word that he will need to have four weeks of Physical Therapy and three deep injections of cortizone in his neck (OUCH!!!) Should the PT not work, then the only other option will be surgery. We're praying hard for the therapy to effective and provide some immediate relief. As is usual for us -- the therapists are on vacation this week, so it will be Monday before Don can even be evaluated!!!

Bless his heart ... I hate to see someone I love in pain. He's been pitiful.

Sinus Drama

I don't know what it is about the weather lately. It started with Piper on Saturday - I noticed that she was starting to sniffle a little. I woke up on Sunday stopped up. Now, today, we're both a little sickly. Not to the point that I'd pronounce I'm officially "sick" ... but enough that I'd pronounce that I'm "annoyed".

I've narrowed this down to two things:
(1) It's still really warm here. It's not been cold enough to kill the germs. I'm in short-sleeves today and ran the air-conditioner in my car. (Seriously, weather ... it November 24. Enough with the heat already.)

(2) Kindergarten germs. I think all the other little germ-y children are infecting my house. Their little germs are coming home on Avery's backpack. Yuck.

So, tonight, we're bundling up with spaghetti, Christmas lights, and Vicks Vapor Rub. What could be better?