You have a history of heart problems, and been having crushing chest pain for the last week whenever you exert yourself, so you:
A. Go to the ER, like your cardiologist told you to.
B. Go to the ER, like your internist told you to.
C. Go to the ER, like your wife told you to.
D. Listen to some guy (who owns a furniture store) that you met at a cocktail party, who told you it's just a pinched nerve and you should go see a neurologist.
If you answered (D), it was a pleasure meeting you yesterday, sir. I'm sorry it was so brief, but if you hadn't run up the stairs to get to my office we likely wouldn't have had to call 911 as soon as you hit the lobby.
33 comments:
I've a day off studying Medicine today. Don't make me answer such tricky questions.
Some people should have their head examined!
wv: dudall, for a bad case of dude-itis
Someguy always gives the best medical advice. He has these cousins or friends that have always had the exact same symptoms as I have, so he knows just what to do.
Th denial is strong with this one.
It's obviously a pinched nerve. In his brain. Pinching off the "self-preservation" part.
Sheesh.
@ Jennifer George agree this is denial in the purest sense of the word.
Silly me, for thinking that if one is having chest pains, one should listen to their cardiologist.
Unfortunately, the guy at the cocktail party, or the guy in the locker room at the gym is ALWAYS more knowledgable than the professional one is paying for.
More unfortunately, this is not restricted to the medical field.
I have been tempted to run a blog called "The Demented Designer" to vent on frustrations in the aerospace field, but my blood pressure is already high enough.
Word: herses
The guy's possible next ride?
::laptop:head:repeat:: Geez Louise! When my husband had a heart attack while we were dating he called 911 within half an hour. He called me up going, "Have you seen my meter? I'm sweating so badly that my shirt is soaked through & my chest hurts. It must be my blood sugar because I'm too young to have a heart attack." (he was 44 at the time) I replied, "It's on my kitchen table right where you left it. And diabetics are prone to having heart attacks at a younger age." "Oh! Well, I'd better get off the phone and call 911 then."
The funny part was that the ambulance started going the wrong way to Vanderbilt and he had to give them directions! ::chuckle::
I know studies show that men are reluctant to seek medical care but...
Nice... maybe he'll ask his cardiologist for advice on buying his new couch though.
In all fairness, the furniture guy actually told him to see a urologist.
Why does this happen?!? I have a "lady part" problem...I'll see my allergist. I have headaches...I should probably head to the dermatology office!
Come on, people! Match the hurt-y part to the doctor that actually deals with that part of your body.
The end.
People are stupid.
Idiots 'R' Us...
Wait. "History of heart problems?"
As in: My not-so-healthy body-part has gone all hurty, so it must be something *totally unrelated*?
Uh-huh. You know, once the emergent cardiac issue has been resolved, a neuro consult might be a good idea. Or a psych consult.
It must not have hurt enough.
Did you blast him with Neurontin I assume? Cuz, duh, it's obviously neuropathy.
Denial. A bad heart will kill you so it had better not be that.
I think that in this case Dr Yahoo Group or Dr Google would have given much better advice for once.
I'm pretty sure I talked to this person a few months back when I was on call... except it was a woman...
It's just Darwin's Law at work.
"Bones, the Romulans are attacking and we need that bedroom set NOW!"
"Damn it, Jim, I'm a doctor, not a furniture salesman!"
This is a case where "hit the lobby" can be taken literally.
If all his docs know he is having a cardiac issue, must he go to the ER/ED? Couldn't his cardiologist admit him without stopping in the ER first? I don't know how that works but it seems that everyone (but him) knows what the problem is.
Alas, but heart attacks don't seem to take people out of the gene pool before they breed...
Wow. Just wow.
Dammit! I got them all wrong!
you wouldn't believe how many people will not take the advice of someone with years of education in medical related studies, yet will take seriously every single word from someone who has none at all-giving advice that is off the wall.
I run into that all the time.
It's frustrating.
Yes, it is frustrating to have people think this is like bargaining with Hassan down at Rug-o-Rama for a new Oriental rug for the living room, because you "should always bargain".
No, you should not seek out better opinions/prices so much when you could drop dead any minute!
well some guy seemed like he genuinely cared and spent more than 15 minutes with me. Clearly he knows better.
Veterinarian Alf Wight, alias "James Herriot", once noted that the same people who would take the postman's or the feed salesman's advice over his when it came to their livestock's medical problems, were just as likely to take his advice over their doctors' when it came to their own health.
I agree with the above - dude needs a psych consult. Send him to me. I'll slap him around a bit. Luckily I haven't graduated yet so that sort of treatment is okay.
E. You do nothing because your mother was an MD and dismissed all your childhood illnesses, fractures etc as trivial, convincing you that you are not worth an MD's time, so you suffer at home for things anyone else would go to the ER for.
Not that I have a chip on my shoulder, or anything like that.
As someone with a heart problem who is always being told to go to the ER for chest pain (when I know perfectly well it's actually my crappy lungs), I can kind of understand the annoyance of having to go to the ER again.
But good grief....crushing chest pain? Never had that. I would get myself to the ER come hell or high water. Good grief. As a doctor friend of mine would say.....diagnosis......doomed!
Melissa
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