Knee surgery/injury ?

[Crazy K]

Ditto on Dr. Lemak and any dr. practicing with him. He did my rotator cuff repair 6 yrs. ago. Doctors in Destin didn't think they could put it back together, but I haven't had any problems with Lemak's surgery. Good luck on the knee. I've been scoped and then partial knee replacement. Been 3 yrs. and it still hurts like hale!!!!!

 

[scooterbug44]

Keep your fingers crossed - we have now hit the wall of "health insurance" which doesn't want to pay for her MRI!

Apparently even though she had to go to the ER, is on crutches, in an immobilizing brace, has a script for Vicodin, will probably need surgery, and it will be weeks until she can see her doctor ......... they don't want to pay for it because since they were too full w/ emergencies to do it yesterday it is now "outpatient."

I am not being allowed near the phone. :angry:

 

[bluemtnrunner]

Find a different doctor, especially if this doc who can't see her for weeks is the one who performed the surgery. She, or you, will have to become her advocate. Do not take no for an answer. You can also negotiate with the insurance companies and push them to cover expenses. Often times it is simply persistance that will get you through the doors and treated.
A trip to the ER and no follow up for two weeks? Tha is absolutely not right. Did they explain why they were making her wait?

 

[scooterbug44]

Because she didn't get the MRI the same day (only because they didn't have room in the schedule because people were injuring themselves like crazy on the ski hills) they consider it non-emergency and outpatient - and her health insurance doesn't cover any non-emergency out of state care. And because she was too nice and didn't want to overstate her problem when dealing w/ the insurance people they already have it down as non-emergency (despite my protests in the background).

We have been on the phone all day (she REALLY loved having to go back to the ER to sign a release form so they could send her medical records to her home doctor after being recalled for her MRI) and are now running into the New Year's holiday hours.

Latest plan is for her to schedule a consult with an ortho at home tomorrow (already has the required referral from her doc) and then maybe fly home if necessary to expedite the situation (still cheaper than a minimum $2000-2500 MRI).

Either way, no more skiing for her and I have a very unhappy patient on my hands who keeps claiming that her crutches and her keep ending up in separate locations by "magic"!

 

[Minnie]

No, she hasn't been on a plane since spring and they had her on aspirin for 6 weeks post-surgery to prevent any clots.

It is definitely aggravated by skiing, but they said that skiing wasn't going to be a problem and she got her knee "back in shape" prior to the trip w/ PT and resume dher normal regime.

Thanks for the suggestions!

I am really surprised they told her skiing would be no problem.

My husband had the same surgery and his Ortho told him, he hoped he was not a skier because those days were over. That skiing is very hard on even healthy knees and only a young professional skier who is willing to concentrate daily with exercise specific to skiing can regain the use after major surgery. That your post operation therapy would totally have to be geared toward what would be needed to ski.

I hope she is better soon. Even walking and climbing stairs bothers my hubbie at times.

 

[scooterbug44]

We'll have to see - she's going to the doctor back home first thing monday and if she has to do massive rehab to ski, she will!

She doesn't do inactive well - my battles w/ her over the last several days have gotten pretty funny, especially when I threatened to cut her alcohol & chocolate if she was worried about her calorie intake/being inactive and told her amputation was not a valid option because it would puck up her shoe shopping.

 

[Minnie]

We'll have to see - she's going to the doctor back home first thing monday and if she has to do massive rehab to ski, she will!

She doesn't do inactive well - my battles w/ her over the last several days have gotten pretty funny, especially when I threatened to cut her alcohol & chocolate if she was worried about her calorie intake/being inactive and told her amputation was not a valid option because it would puck up her shoe shopping.

Scooter she needs to be sure and tell her Therapist she wants to ski again. They can specialize her exercises for that type of movement.

Good luck to her.