I had an MRA and a consult with my neurosurgeon on Thursday, May 30th. At that time, he said that he would consult with his partner and call me on Monday. I called his office the following Wednesday and was told by the person there that I was on the schedule to be presented at the conference the next day (Thursday). I thought maybe I’d get a call on Friday, but nope. I waited through the weekend and now it is Monday again. At what point should I call if I don’t hear from his office? I am waiting for a decision on the surgical procedure and a date.
I am terrible at this because I tend to be an impatient sort and I don’t want to make anyone angry, but I am also trying to plan a visit to my daughter and the plane tickets have already gone up exponentially. (I don’t want to buy them just to have a surgery date then scheduled that conflicts with the trip and lose my $$).
My neurosurgeon as I understood works with patients only in Thursdays , other days I guess he is in the hospital , performing surgeries etc . May be the person whom you spoke with wasn’t really aware when results will be available and just gave you wrong information . So maybe either the results of conference are or available yet ( who knows may be it was rescheduled ), or the administration of the office has some administrative problems with communicating patients … I would wait 1-2 days and call …
Could they be working with the insurance company to see what would be covered? Sometimes they have to present the evidence to the insurer who might have consultants who disagree about what should be done or when it should be done. Not sure about your case, but in mine, they had to submit scans and tests so the insurer would pay for my cranioplasty, whether they could use titanium or bone replacement, and how many days I could stay in the hospital afterward. In any case, they shouldn’t leave you hanging. Sometimes, you just have to be a squeeky wheel and call the office every day.
I would call again, tell them you are anxiously waiting to hear from them. Try to establish a relationship with a helpful staff member as you’ll want a responsive person if you need to move forward with a procedure. Then in the future you can call and ask for that specific person. I found that while my neurosurgeon was great in the trench, which is when you need them to be great, but no so great at communication. I hope that you’ve perhaps heard from them by now and wishing you all the best.
I agree with all the replies above. I have learned you have to be your own advocate. I would call back and keep calling back. Each time get the name of the person you are speaking with and the date and time of the call. He said he would call on Monday and did not. I would explain you have plans to visit your daughter. Also ask if it Is safe for you to travel. Do you have confidence in your doctor? I love my doctor, but always got a second opinion. He was fine with that. He actually advised it. I always went back to him to do the procedures. It could be they are checking with your insurance. I have called in the past when the doctors office said they were waiting to hear from my insurance. I then found out they never contacted my insurance. I call the doctors office back and I think they were surprised I contacted my insurance. They then admitted they had not called to get it approved yet. It was approved by the next week. You are not being impatient.
Hi there, I know it doesn’t help you plan for visits and being a patient patient can be so nerve racking, but no news is sometimes the best news… meaning they don’t think it is urgent. Believe me, I had an MRI on a Saturday and got a call on Sunday telling me I had a brain aneurysm. Be well
I found I have had to chase at every stage. Me and the secretary are on first name terms ! My hospital has multi disciplinary meetings MDT once a week where all referrals and tests are discussed. If they run out of time the referral is carried over to the next meeting so it may be that your case wasn’t discussed. I would keep calling and chasing. Just explain your life is on hold until you what is happening. Good luck x
I went to Barrow in Phx, and found the only way to get a response was to use my portal. they even ignored emergency calls when I went to the ER. But if I used email portal, they called back within 24-48 hours.
Thank you so much for all the replies. I ended up calling them on Tuesday to find out that the doctor had to go out of town but they have scheduled the surgery for next month. I am glad I called so I didn’t sit the whole week worrying about it! I do know the names now of the secretaries and nurses too.
@jenniferlgro - that’s great news Jennifer. Glad you now have a date set and I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers as we both go through this in July. I’m getting the pipeline. Which procedure are you getting?
I also have problems getting anyone to call me back.Iam so glad you both got answers.I try to tell them husband has to take time off work.I do think for me what has worked is the 4 day rule.If they don’t call back in that time I call them again.Will be saying prayers for you both.And good wishes too!
The four day rule is a good one Teresa! Never hurts and seems to be a need for us to be our own advocate. You also might ask them when to expect a call back. Sometimes it’s faster to use the patient portal on line if they have one.
