|
Post by hollywood on Apr 11, 2008 8:13:53 GMT -6
I am new to this forum, but my mom has been a member for a long time. Her forum name is Sage.
She went to the emergency room about 3 weeks ago for severe back pain, pain in her right hip and leg, and numbness in both of her feet and hands.
The Wharton hospital did an X-ray and it showed that she has kidney stones, so they admitted her to the hospital. The next day they did a CT Scan of her heart and said they saw a torn aorta. So she was sent by ambulance to a hospital in Houston and put in ICU.
We went up there that night and the hospital was running more tests. So we came back the next morning and the cardio surgeon said that their CT Scan is better than Wharton's and they do not show that she has a torn aorta. What they did find is that her left kidney is completely blocked with a kidney stone (calcium) and the right one has uric acid stones. They called a nephrologist and a urologist.
About one week later, the nephrologist stated that surgery needed to be done to clear the stone on the left side; however, mom does not have any insurance so the urologist will not do the surgery. The primary care physician that was assigned to mom specializes in cardio, so he sends her information to the Wharton urologist and he said that he would also treat it as an outpatient surgery. They all said that the primary concern is the back pain and numbness which supposedly is not caused by the kidney stones.
Mom's face started not responding on the right side and my sister asked for a MRI to find out if she had a stroke. They agreed to do the test and she did not in fact have a stroke, it is bell's palsey. They also ordered an MRI of her spine and then last week the did a Myelogram. My sister and I have left several messages for the neurologist and this primary care physician, but they will not return our calls. We had mom sign a Medical Power of Attorney, but they say that she is coherent enough to ask questions on her own. She can not even remember that she talks to us half the time, let alone the doctors, so we can not get any answers.
The doctor's ordered physical therapy, but they have not been able to control her blood pressure or her heart rate. The will get it under control, but if she tries to do the physical therapy, it goes up to the 190-200 range. Once it gets that high, they put her back in bed and stop the physical therapy. They over medicated her yesterday and she was down to 74/55 last night.
Anyway, last night the case manager calls my sister and says that they are not running any more tests and they are planning on discharging our mom, but she can not tell us anything about mom's condition and that we have to talk to the doctors. Mom is still in alot of pain and the numbness is now from her knees down and she has a hard time trying to hold things in her hands. The doctors are saying that she is refusing to do the physical therapy and that there is not anything wrong with her.
Can someone please give me some advice on how to argue with them to explain to us what the tests that they have run show as well as how they can just discharge her and put her to the curb without finding some place to transfer her to? We are not capable of caring for her in our homes so I thought that the hospital had to find a nursing home or some place for her to go. I don't know if this comes down to the fact that she has no insurance and they do not want to wait for Medicaid or disability to kick in or what is happening. I appreciate any help we can get.
|
|
texas_gal
Founding Member
aka srvchild
Posts: 3,027
|
Post by texas_gal on Apr 11, 2008 9:16:56 GMT -6
bumping this for you. i do not have any answers, but you and your family will be in our thoughts and prayers. i hope you find answers.....
|
|
DirtyDon
Founding Member
Official Beer Czar
In Cerevisia Veritas! Cogito sumere potum alterum.
Posts: 8,499
|
Post by DirtyDon on Apr 11, 2008 10:12:33 GMT -6
Let Sage know we're pulling for her! AND that's she's in our thoughts and Prayers..
|
|
|
Post by stargazer on Apr 11, 2008 11:22:21 GMT -6
My mom had Bell's palsy...it only affects the facial nerves. If your mom is having pain and numbness from the knees down something else is going on...especially if she can't hold anything with her hands. I'm no doctor...just would be questioning this. My only advice to get any answers would be to be there when the doctor makes his rounds and question him/her. Also, if your mom needs to go in a nursing home, the hospital doesn't do this...it's up to your mom/family to find one. I'm sorry for what you and your family are going through...all are in my thoughts and prayers!!
|
|
Isabo
Moderator
Posts: 2,973
|
Post by Isabo on Apr 11, 2008 15:19:02 GMT -6
Isn't there a hospital in Galveston that is mostly but not totally free? A friend of my daughter's fractured her wrist in multiple places and had to have plates put in and extensive surgery. She did not have insurance. They did the surgery @ a hospital in Galveston and allowed her to pay out the $450 it cost her for the surgery.
If she had surgery and got rid of the lower body numbness and so forth could you or your sister care for her then? I'm quite sad about the prospect of putting Sage in a nursing home.
|
|
|
Post by ~WineMe~DineMe~69 on Apr 11, 2008 22:41:54 GMT -6
i hate hearing about your mother..............just the other day i was wondering about her because i hadn't seen her on here lately but i never thought about anything as serious as this. i wish i had the answer to your questions, you sure have one sweet mother and she's actually about the only one i can think of on here that has never had one bad thing to say about anyone. i'll keep her in my prayers and tell her WMDM say's HI!
|
|
|
Post by hollywood on Apr 12, 2008 16:20:35 GMT -6
She has been released and is at home. Neither my sister and I can lift her or care for her at home. We have been spending as much time with her as possible and three of her neighbors are helping her. We are going to call the Texas Department of Health on Monday to find out how Medicaid works and if she qualifies for help if the doctor has not diagnosed her. Memorial hospital said that they could not transfer her to Galveston b/c they could not find anything wrong to explain her symptoms so Galveston would not accept the transfer. I thought that they had to find a place for her to be transferred to, but they said that if I did not come get her, they would send her to a shelter. Who does that to a person? I was scared that if I drove straight to Galveston that they would just turn her away for back pain. Can they turn her away?
|
|
|
Post by september2006 on Apr 12, 2008 21:44:15 GMT -6
Have they ruled out the sciatic nerve ? If the nerve is pinched in the neck area, it can effect the shoulders and arms. If it is pinced in the back the pain is usually felt in the back and leg. Some symtoms do include pain and numbness. My prayers are with you and your family.
|
|
|
Post by Sílený Jízda on Apr 12, 2008 22:10:55 GMT -6
Your mom has the prayers of my family as well. I'll point out your posts to my wife when she gets home from work. She is an RN and would understand more of what may be going on than I and may have some suggestions. From what you've said and my understanding it sounds like the doctors don't want to touch anything until they know they can milk and insurance company or make big money off the situation. My initial advice would be to find another doctor/hospital. To be quite honest I'm not surprised Wharton dropped the ball. I regards to hospitals Wharton County is in a bad way as far as quality of health care.
Again, I'm really sorry to hear about Sage. Let her know we're praying for her.
|
|
speaksfree
Founding Member
Love, Teach and Learn[F4:852684796&]
Posts: 1,619
|
Post by speaksfree on Apr 13, 2008 8:13:49 GMT -6
I saw Sage yesterday and she is so very scared. She doesnt understand what is going on with her legs. They respond if she is sitting or lying down, but the minute she is on her feet ... it is as if they "disappear" and she can not feel that she even has legs. Keeping good thoughts though and giving her encouraging prayers. I am suppose to see her again today.
|
|
|
Post by Sílený Jízda on Apr 13, 2008 12:50:45 GMT -6
That sounds as if there is a pinched nerve situation going on. I have a similar problem with my arms and hands. I have a nerve in my elbows that when pinched or in a certain position will cause my hands to go numb and God help me if I'm holding anything. I saw a doctor about a month back for some severe back pain that extended down my legs to my knees. It turned out to be a nerve situation as well and I was put on prescription Ibuprofen and Flexoril for several weeks. Everything went more or less back to normal however, I still have occasional pain with heavy work loads. I'm told I most likely need to have things scanned and repaired but with insurance I can't even afford it then.
The wife is home today from work and when she is awake (12 hour night shift last night) I'll pass on this information in this thread to her as I mentioned earlier.
|
|
|
Post by hollywood on Apr 14, 2008 5:58:15 GMT -6
It sounds like a pinched nerve to me also but I no absolutely nothing when it comes to the medical field and what to look for.
The hospital in Houston gave us a copy of the MRIs and the Myelogram. I tried reading them and looked up the terms that were in there. There are a couple of sections that I have concerns about that were in the lumbar area. I think they were L4, L5 and L7. We have a disk as well so I am going to see what is on there. I intend to call a neurologist in Victoria today to see if they can assist me in reading these documents and if there is something there the hospital chose to ignore.
The medications that they gave her are Neurontin and Darvocet and they said if she needed it, Flexoril. They did not give her any refills and the Neurontin is only for 5 days. They changed the blood pressure medications that she was taking before. Mom said that she had no problems with her blood pressure. Now she has to check it all the time and if it is over 140, she has to take another medication.
Speaksfree told my mom that it sounds like she has Neurothapy. I looked it up and it does she does present all of those symptoms. Hopefully I can get someone to help me in reading these documents and get her some type of diagnosis and help.
I am also going to try calling a couple of urologists to see how much the surgery is going to cost for the kidney stone. Surely the blocked kidney is a part of this problem as well.
My mom is extremely scared and so are we. This is really overwhelming for all of us. I thought that hospitals were suppose to help you. These just ran tests, gave her morphine and then sent her home. When did hospitals start running like Emergency rooms?
|
|
iClone
New Member
Secret recipies are futile
Posts: 11
|
Post by iClone on Apr 14, 2008 15:51:02 GMT -6
My husband posts regularly in this forum. I just read it, talk with him about the stuff, and then he posts. Anyway, this time I have to say something myself. I am an Emergency room nurse. I am proud to be a nurse and wouldn't want to do anything else at this point of my life. But what I read in this thread about how the hospital treated your mom angers me and I do apologize for that. I work in Ohio and am not 100% sure if the laws are similar, but over here it is not the responsibility of the family alone to find a nursing home. We have social workers on staff that assist and inform the family through the whole process.
It is very understandable that yall are scared. I can't do much from Ohio but if you have any questions about the terminology and the test results, write me and I will be more than happy to answer as much as I can.
About the kidney stone, I am not sure how bad the blockage is, but I wouldn't wait too long to have it taken care of; it can lead in much serious problems. I know the situation seems hopeless, especially without insurance. But as I said, write me and I will try to give you as much information and explanation as I can. Meanwhile, my husband an I will be praying for yall.
|
|
|
Post by hollywood on Apr 14, 2008 19:30:21 GMT -6
I talked to El Campo Memorial Hospital and they are trying to get Mom on an indigent program. They could not tell me how it works. They want her last 4 paycheck stubs. Does anyone know if that is based upon what she makes? If so, she can not work anymore so how does that play into the decision?
I sincerely thank everyone here that is helping us.
|
|
sage
Member
Where there is love there is life.
Posts: 609
|
Post by sage on Apr 15, 2008 13:52:03 GMT -6
Thank you all for all the good wishes and especially your prayers. I am working hard at trying to keep some kind of muscle strength in my legs. They aren't working yet as far as walking, but I have complete faith that they will. I know it will just take some time. I refuse to believe any thing else. I will walk again!!
|
|
sage
Member
Where there is love there is life.
Posts: 609
|
Post by sage on Apr 15, 2008 18:40:07 GMT -6
OMG!!! I stood up for a few seconds today!!! I even took a tiny step forward and back with a walker and did not fall. It's small but for me giant. I am still very wobbly and have a long ways to go but I am going to keep trying. Thank you again for all your prayers.
|
|
|
Post by humbug on Apr 15, 2008 18:43:01 GMT -6
That's great sage. Never give up. Prayers still coming your way.
|
|
|
Post by ~WineMe~DineMe~69 on Apr 15, 2008 19:04:16 GMT -6
Sage get back on here and let us know how you're doing..................i'll be looking forward to your 'new' post!
|
|
speaksfree
Founding Member
Love, Teach and Learn[F4:852684796&]
Posts: 1,619
|
Post by speaksfree on Apr 17, 2008 1:11:45 GMT -6
I am still keeping you in my thoughts and prayers. If I can do anything just let me know.
|
|
|
Post by hollywood on Apr 17, 2008 7:35:09 GMT -6
I called Galveston to see about getting a second opinion for mom there. They said that Mom has to go to a primary care physician first and then that doctor would give her a referral. Once Galveston receives the referral, they send it to Urology and Neurology for review. If accepted, Mom has to go there for an appointment to talk to financial counselors. Then if she gets approved at that appointment, they will then make her appointments with the necessary doctors. Galveston is 3 hours away and I am unable to take off for that many trips.
I found a neurologist at Gulf Coast Medical Clinic named Dr. Pankiewicz. They do the EMG testing on Tuesdays so I can possibly get Mom in really early that morning for the consultation and have the EMG done the same day.
|
|
|
Post by ~WineMe~DineMe~69 on Apr 19, 2008 12:36:41 GMT -6
Sage where are you? c'mon back and let us know how you're doing
|
|
sage
Member
Where there is love there is life.
Posts: 609
|
Post by sage on Apr 19, 2008 14:15:12 GMT -6
Sorry...I've been having a lot of back pain and night before last I took a new prescription I was supposed to be taking. It was for depression and supposed to help me sleep. Well.....it didn't. It had me wired all night and I got up about 5 AM and was extremely sick to my stomach. I was that way all day long yesterday. Needless to say... I am NOT taking any more of it. It was called Lexapro or something like that.
There hasn't been any major changes. I try to stand a bit each day with the walker and push it a bit further on time if I can. I made it to a whole minute yesterday. My knees are way too shakey to try to take steps. Today I think I feel a tiny bit less numbness in my right foot's toes. That is a new improvement. That is my worst foot as far as pain and numbness so that is a good thing.
I can't sit at the computer for long but I will try to keep you posted a little more often. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. The prayers are definitely working.
|
|
|
Post by ~WineMe~DineMe~69 on Apr 19, 2008 14:22:33 GMT -6
keep trying and we'll keep praying, thank's for letting us know how youre doing
|
|
|
Post by ~WineMe~DineMe~69 on Apr 21, 2008 4:29:31 GMT -6
come back and visit us again Sage!
|
|
|
Post by ~WineMe~DineMe~69 on Apr 26, 2008 23:43:32 GMT -6
|
|