Coughing up blood

[poolhustlin1]

My girlfriend suffered a dislocated shoulder during memorial weekend this year and when we got to the ER, the doctors "doped" her so much that she slipped away and they kicked me out of there while they tried to revive her.  They did manage to bring her back and no sooner did they kick us out of there!  The doctor sure had a scared look on his face too.  Lately she has been coughing up blood and her hand gets to tingling from time to time.  She also gets short of breath pretty often.  Without any insurance, where do we turn from here?  Are there any places that do body scans at reasonable prices as we are not made of money.

[kat4]

I may be wrong, but I believe ERs have to see you even if you have no insurance and no money.  You could call the hospital first and ask their policy to save her a trip until you find one that does.

I am just a layperson, but her "slipping away" and coughing up blood worry me.  The shortness of breath and hand tingling could be anxiety, but the slipping away and coughing up blood I know of no non-medical reason for.  Possibly the accident that caused her shoulder dislocation has done something that is causing the coughing up blood and needs attention.

Be sure to warn any new place about her slipping away in case she has an unusual sensitivity to meds.

[Michael J. McWilliams, M.D.]

Probably best to just see a doctor before purchasing a body scan.  coughing up blood is not normal and requires evaluation.  You will have to use your own judgement on how bad the situation is and as to whether she needs to be seen in an ER this weekend.