Sometimes It's OK to Pitch A Fit

I actually had this really fun clever little piece I was going to do for my Writing Monday blog. But life took an unexpected turn today and I feel like I need to get on my soapbox and encourage you to be your own and your children's medical advocate. Warning: this is a long post.

I have spent a big portion of my life sick and now that I am the mother to three children I am dealing with 3 times the illnesses. One thing I have learned is that sometimes you have to stand up for yourself because honestly the nurses, the receptionists and every other frontman out there in the medical establishment is not really your advocate. Although if you work it right you can turn them into one. A receptionist and even the army of nurses at a doctor's office are really gate guards. Sometimes we have to bully our way past them to get the care we need.

Lia has had a sore throat for two to three months. I have lost track of the time because it has become such a chronic problem. After her initial week of sore throat complaining I took her into the doctor for the strep test. Nothing! Tey told me they couldn't see anything wrong with her. Two weeks later I was back in there with the same daily throat problem. Still no strep on their strep test and they told me it was possible she was having a little irritation from some minor nasal drip into her throat. They told me to try zyrtec and If I wanted I could start her on an antibiotic if that didn't help. The antibiotic was up to me.

#1 I have issues with giving an antibiotic to a three-year -old on the off chance that she might have some infection. It was an extremely iffy diagnosis. In hindsight maybe I should have tried the antibiotic, but it would not have helped her with the actual problem anyway. I tried the zyrtec for a week and it didn't even phase that poor girl's throat. I started to think she was faking it for the yummy tylenol and candy like cough drops.
Still nothing seemed to help her.

Finally, I decided to see an ear, nose and throat specialist in St. George. I am not really a fan of Cedar's choice. Another tip of being an advocate. Don't go to a doctor you don't trust.
I am glad I trusted my gut instinct to get a specialized opinion. The specialist did a throat and nose culture that he sent to the lab. He put her on antibiotic (just in case). Unfortunately, Lia has strep pnuemonia. The first "just in case" antibiotic was basically useless and I spent today spending an exorbitant amount of money on one of the few antibiotics not resistant to this more rare strain of strep which is not detectable with a doctor's office 10-minute strep test.

Now I feel terrible. Who knows how long she has had this strep, or how many people she has exposed to it. Fortunately, she has not contracted pneumonia or meningitis, both side effects of a rogue strep pneumonia. But here is where the real advocacy comes in.

I knew my daughter needed better advice and I got it. I also knew my other children needed to be treated immediately. Of course both my pediatrician's and my family doctor's staff told me they could not prescribe for my kids because Lia had not been diagnosed in their office. I had to come pay the office visit and the strep test fee (which would not have shown this particular strain, as I found out later) in order to get the prescriptions I needed. Let's just say I was mad. The pediatrician probably should have found the strep in the first place. If they had diagnosed Strep it is the pediatrician's policy to immediately treat the siblings. I had already been there twice with no results. I was not about to shell out $300 for office visits and tests, before I even got the needed prescriptions. This is when I started to advocate.

I knew my doctor would help if he knew the real situation. Lia had actually seen the other doctors in the office instead of my regular pediatrician.
Sometimes we have to stand up and say No to the explanations we are given. I demanded to speak with my pediatrician today and when the nurse explained the situation to him, he was happy and in fact insisted that my children get the treatment and prescriptions they needed immediately. But ladies I had to get a little snippy to get the nurse to go to the doctor. And that is not the first time I have had to demand better service or that I have a conversation with my doctor or even that I see my doctor instead of the Physicians Assistant. I occasionally will see a PA but I picked my doctor because I trust them and they know my history. I don't want to pay a PA for a visit I know requires a doctor. Like I said, there are some basic visits that I believe a PA is perfectly capable of handling but if you are getting passed off to the PA every time you make an appointment, just stand up and say No. Usually they will find a time to get you in.

One of my friends told me today that she needs to get better at standing up for herself at the doctors or for her children, when she feels like she is getting passed off or over. And I say yes, yes you do. A doctor is usually your advocate but his nurses and receptionists are his advocates, not yours. If you feel like your child needs better care, don't be afraid to find or demand better care or a second opinion. I should have gone to the specialist sooner. I am just grateful I finally did and I am grateful I pushed my way past the policy police in the doctor's front office. Just remember to thank those same policy police when they do go the extra mile and ask the doctor to take time out of his busy schedule to deal with you.