New Primary Care Physician

[Susan10]

OK with Medicare starting, I finally had to get a new PCP. My long-time dr passed away 7-8 years ago and I ended up relying on walk-in clinics to get any antibiotics I needed. A friend recommended this Dr. :grin: Was a little concerned when his nurse had apparently never heard of ALS and I had to spell "amyotrophic" 4-5 times for her to find it in her computer. :roll: Well, he knew all about it and made several very good suggestions fror vitamins, nutrition, etc. Probably won't see him but once a year but it's nice to have someone for the ordinary stuff. Blessings abound!

 

[Ms. Pie]

Good! It's so I portent to have Dr.s with which you're comfortable.

 

[VoiceforLinda]

Susan,
That is great news. Having a good PCP is so important. And one that is up to date on ALS is a true blessing.
Linda

 

[guguy]

I had an appointment with my GP last week because I thought I may have pneumonia starting from aspiration. He gave me an EKG, chest Xray, etc. then asked if I was a hypochondriac. He said I needed to do some exercise and asked if I could do one pushup. I said I didn't think I could because I have ALS. He looked shocked and repeated ALS? I guess I could have been a little more diplomatic about telling him but when he basically accused me of being too lazy to do any physical exercise, I blurted my response. It turns out the last ALS patient he has seen was a Viet Nam veteran 15 years ago. He said if he were me he would max out his credit cards by taking a big vacation. My 3 month appointment with my neuro isn't until February hence the visit with my GP. I thought this was somewhat funny and wanted to share my experience.

 

[hjlindley]

It was my GP who sent me back to neurology. They had been following my hand weakness and footwekaness, and running gobs of tests. My GP notice a very elevated CRK3 and fasiculations. When they did the next EMG, they saw the rennervation that made the diagnosis conclusive. Turns outit had been in the neurologists notes for 3 years, but he had to be sure before he tossed that term out. But my GP was on topof it, manages my meds, and keeps in good contact with the nuerologist (who is 45 mins away). Nothing like a good team havinjg your back!

 

[Susan10]

Love your stories about your GPs. My FIL was a GP/surgeon and I know how hard they work. It was a great experience overall with my new dr. They can be an invaluable resource! For example, our long-time dr who died helped us decide whether to adopt out daughter. She had some (minor) heart problems and he explained it in layman's language and assured us she would be ok. Sure enough, she outgrew it by the time she was in middle school.

I wouldn't suggest to anyone that you max out your credit ards b/c the credit card companies will come after your estate. I'd rather my family get the life insurance than Visa.

 

[vzandt]

My guy had two nuros and one gp who all knew he had als a year before he did. They all thought the other had told him. (his gp kept asking him if he was still working?...He didnt know why). we finally found out when one of the nuros asked me in the hall at work (at the hospital) how he was doing and during the conversation he said "well he has als...theres nothing I can do except comfort him" I about fell on the the floor. I couldnt even talk after that and had to go home and tell my husband. He called his gp..went to see her and said "why did he say that" she said"because you do"....kinda sucked. But it would have sucked a year earlier to.

 

[Georgia Peach]

My husband's gp picked up the phone during his exam and got him an appointment with a neurologist the following hour who ran all the pertinent tests and diagnosed Motor Neuron Disease and said that he was 80% sure that Scott had ALS. He was 100% correct.

 

[upthecreekals]

it seems georgia is the state to be right now. are you far from emory clinic

 

[Georgia Peach]

We go to the Emory ALS Clinic and for the DEX clinical study. He was diagnosed by Dr. Glass in April 2011 for our second opinion. We also receive care through the VA Hospital in Decatur.

Good luck to you. Stay on top of this disease. It can progress very quickly. My husband has use of his left hand and arm.

 

[guguy]

Love your stories about your GPs. My FIL was a GP/surgeon and I know how hard they work. It was a great experience overall with my new dr. They can be an invaluable resource! For example, our long-time dr who died helped us decide whether to adopt out daughter. She had some (minor) heart problems and he explained it in layman's language and assured us she would be ok. Sure enough, she outgrew it by the time she was in middle school.

I wouldn't suggest to anyone that you max out your credit ards b/c the credit card companies will come after your estate. I'd rather my family get the life insurance than Visa.

I agree with you about not maxing out the credit cards. Doctors know about health but not necessarily about wealth. I believe that even before I knew what a neuro was, my doctor (who performs my endoscopy and colonoscopy every 5 years) knew I had a neurological disease because when he met with me after these tests he looked very unhappy and usually he is happy to tell me no polops, etc. Then when he met with me and my wife he said I needed to see an internist and that I should stay off from the internet. I suspect that when I was under anesthesia, likely he saw fasics. I would think since he is a surgeon that he would be obligated to tell his patient if he saw something like fasics. Guess not.