May 1st my mom fell down a few stairs and badly broke her shoulder. I was almost defeated with the way the orthopedic department of St. Jude treated my mom, my stepdad and subsequently me, because I went a long with it for awhile. The first question I was asked not 12 hours after her accident was, Is your mom involved in the community? Was the doctor asking me if she was on City Council, running for Mayor? What the heck? My first reaction to that question was, no? The real question was about my moms worth. I mean does she do enough to warrant a surgery, or do they just let her shoulder heal incorrectly due to her age. The doctors, not just one, decided to leave it alone and see how her shoulder heals. That means the level of pain never went down for my mom. 3 weeks later, they tell us she can go to physical therapy. I have another story for that one. Through the attempt at physical therapy her shoulder became more painful and was obviously worse. We begged for another x-ray where it was obvious her shoulder was even more separated then before. I called around for the second or third time, looking for another opinion and this time someone at UCI Orthopedics listened to my story, my moms age, said that it did not matter she was 85 and fit her in to see someone that very next Monday. We only had the weekend to wait. We were first greeted by Dr. Zamorano who specializes in acute fracture care. With credentials like these two doctors, you could give them a pass if they acted aloof. But, Dr. Zamorano talked directly to my mom. Looked over all her x-rays and told her that her shoulder would not heal on its on and that with her great health it would be no problem to fix her shoulder. He sent a text to his boss, Dr. Ranjan Gupta, - Chair of the Department of Orthopedic Surgery and right after his surgery he was doing he came and saw my mom. With patience and kindness he talked with my mom, complimented her on her health, geez the lady doesnt have high blood pressure, high cholesterol, is not diabetic, never smoked or drank and besides arthritis that comes with the territory in great health for an 85 year old, let alone someone younger. He told her that her shoulder would not heal and that he would do surgery. He did the surgery 3 days later, last Thursday. Now my mom is already home, with a new shoulder and finally will be given the opportunity to heal. Its been a horrible 64 days, but my faith and hope is renewed by the UCI orthopedic staff and doctors. I plan on writing an in depth article to help others know when its time to get a second opinion and once again be your own advocate, or your parents, children or anyone you love advocate. My mom came home Saturday, and to top off the long haul, my father-in-law died that same morning. Its been a heavy run, but no matter who you are, or what situation you are in, you do not have to accept being treated unfairly or with disrespect. So, to you Dr. Zamorano and Dr. Gupta, and your staff - THANK YOU! Im not as concerned with growing older as I was knowing there are doctors like you willing to treat people as they should be regardless of age. (Ill be sharing the link to the full story when Im finished)
Posted on: Mon, 30 Jun 2014 03:38:44 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015