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how are u supposed to find another pain clinic/ or doctor when they all want a referra and drs refuse to help??!!l

My dad needs help! He has had 8 back surgeries. His lower spine is fused. He had a spinal pain pump implant that grew a granuloma and the dr removed it before trying to move the catheter to a different area. He has taken pain meds for 25 years off and on . He was doing fairly well on pain pump until granuloma was discovered and it was like the meds werent getting where they need to and the dr started experimenting with meds when the first ones had worked.This left him needing more pain meds. including 30 or more oxycontin in one day. Yes I did say that many. He has a very high tolerance.That dr. had lawsuits for malpractice filed against him and my dad was left to find another. After finally finding one and getting as much run around as i dont know. This dr said the pump needed to come out. My mom tried to explain to the dr that my dad could not take oral pain meds because he had such a high tolerance from taking them so many years and he had to take so many to get relief. Dr did not listen. Took the pain pump out and in came the oral meds. Needless to say he is physically dependant on pain meds. He suffers from chronic pain along with diabetic neuropothy. Dr kept feeding him pills (oxycodone, morphine,etc.) and longer he took more he had to take. Do did not beleive he was taking that many pills and would refuse to give him more. Well in the midst of all this,(this July), My grandfather passed away( my dad's dad) . It was more than he could take. My grandfather left a mess of a house and my dad was responsible for the whole mess from unmade funeral arrangements to dejunkifying a filthy dirty hose. He started trying to work on the house and was doing things he shouldnt have been but felt he had no choice. Well more pain equals more pain meds and with the Pain management dr not giving him enough he went to his family dr to get some more. Well needless to say the pain management dr found this out and both his drs dismissed him from their practices around September beginning of October. He went thru horrible detox and my mom and I thought he would die with all the other health problems he has.He was in bad shape. Still is. Somehow he made it through but still suffers from chronic pain in his legs,etc. No one will help him. They wont refer him to another doctor or pain management clinic. All these places want referrals and wont accept him without a damn referral. He is so sick and he needs help not only with his pain but with his diabetes. We live in very small town and word gets around and they think he is a druggie or selling the meds.Today he was getting out of bed and didnt realize both his legs were numb and he fell out of bed. I dont know how my mom managed to get him in the car but she did. She took him to an ER in next closest town and they refused to treat him. not believing he had taken no meds since beginning of october . His blood pressure was also 215/97 and they did not address that and sent him home. I cannot believe these practices. He is only 60 and this has gone on most of my life. What the hell is the matter with this medical care in the world? The amn is going to die before we can find him help. I have called his family doctor myself and they refuse to let me speak to the doctor and say there is nothing he can do? He cant refer him to a pain clinic and blah blah blah. The pain dr was a complete jackass and would not listen and refuses to listen or help. all i can say is HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  HOw can I find him a doctor or a pain clinic when we have no referral and they wont take him without one????? Sorry this is so long. Hard to fit 25 years of details in in a few minutes. I welcome any help. We have tried everything.Thank you!!!!!! (Ohio)
5 Responses
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1182304 tn?1349305951
I would have your mother or father contact their insurance company and explain what has happened.  They can possibly find an opening at another doc who works with their insurance in your area.  
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Avatar universal
I want to thank everyone for caring and responding.I t is nice to know there are people who understand what we are going thru. No one can understand unless they have been thru it. I felt like crying  as I was reading the responses.I keeppraying a solution will come but we have had no luck with anything we have tried. His primary physician along with his pain care dr. both dropped him at the same times. with no offer to help him til he found another dr. I pray someone will help soon. My mom deals with the worst of it as she lives with him. I amm arried with a family of my own but my family and my parents are all I have. I just dont understand how drs can be so cruel!
Thank you so much.
Helpful - 0
1176986 tn?1264917842
That is so terrible that the hospital wouldn't treat your dad! they refused treatment altogether? did they at least stabalize him before they sent him away? I am under the understanding that a private hospital.. Meaning a for profit hospital that doesn't get money from the gov. can turn you away, IF it;s not a life threatening situation.. but if you have Insurance, they have to at least stabalize you. But a community or public hospital HAS to to treat you, (not for profit) they cannot turn anyone away. But I am by all means no expert on the subject, that's just what I have been told in the past.   So don't hold me to that.    

I'm sosrry to hear about your dad, i know how hard that is. I am a total daddy's girl and I would be devastated if he were in pain all the time.   But he is lucky to have a daughter that looks out for him the way you do!

Jax
Helpful - 0
1168180 tn?1265337332
I am a chronic pain patient and know how hard it is to get in and then you may or may not have doctor that is compasionate and understanding. I recently moved to N.W. Florida from Orlando and an experiencing a hard time trying to get in somewhere. When I was in Orlando I was going to a clinic that had a high turnover rate for the doctors so I saw 3 different docs while I was there. When I moved I had to start all over. Most of the places would not even see me as a patient because of the amount and type of medication I was on. I called and called every place I could find that I thought might be usefull and only got negative results. Finally I tried a different approach. I called a family practice and explained that I had just moved, told them my medications and said that I just needed to be treated short term and get a referral. They gave me an appointment and gave me a weeks worth of meds and a referral. Unfotunately, all the pain management places around here only want to give injections and write no narcotics at all. Now I am having to try to get set up with a doctor further south where they are not so up tight about narcotics. I have found that I do not need a referral if I can prove that I was already being seen for pain management and recieving meds. This may not be true in your area. This is just from my experience.
Until I made it clear to the primary care place that I was only looking for short term treatment they didn't want anything to do with me. I think the short term thing is the key to getting in the first time because not many primary care docs want to treat chronic problems. I have found that once I get in the office, most docs are willing to give a referral because they won't treat chronic pain. I would recommend that your father try a new primary doc and explain to him/her the situation and ask for the referral. Hopefully they will be understanding. Good luck.
Helpful - 0
547368 tn?1440541785
Hello Julie,

Welcome to the Pain Mangement Forum. I am so very sorry to hear about your fathers painful history. He is fortunate to have your support and understanding. My heart goes out to both of you.

You present a very complex problem. I do know how small communities operate. When patients that are labeled, red flagged if you will this information is shared with other community hospitals. They all had the same "list."  You may get a narcotic if your leg was cut off but even than I would not bet on it.

Thirty Oxycontin a day can absolutely kill someone, regardless if they have a high tolerance or not. If this was his former physicians usual practice I can understand why he had lawsuits. That is not the answer for your father. But I am not sure I have any either.  

Your father made a very poor decision when he was obtaining narcotics from both physicians.. Unfortunately he is paying the consequences. They simply do not trust him. I doubt you will ever change that. The DEA is very strict with physicians and if they suspect an abuser and continue to prescribe they are in serious danger of losing their medical licenses. No physician wants to risk that possibility.

You are correct that you need a referral to see a PMP in all instances that I have heard of. Have you tried changing his PCP? He will still need medical records but if he finds a kind, compassionate physician and your mom and maybe you go to the first appt they may listen to him. Write everything down so their can be no misunderstanding or nothing important left out.

If your father is seeking the pain pump maybe someone will treat him rather than provide him with oral medications. He may have too much scare tissue and past complications for the pump to be an option. I honestly do not know all of the details that are connected to the pump.

Failing to treat his elevate B/P does not make any sense to me. In my opinion your father's systolic (upper number) was dangerously elevated upon admission and required treatment. Is his PCP aware that his B/P is elevated to that degree.  If not he certainly needs to be notified. Untreated hypertension can be life threatening. It is also true that pain and stress can elevate your B/P temporarily.

So please contact his PCP with his latest B/P readings. I would also consider locating another PCP.  It can't hurt to try that route. Don't give up.

Our members may be able to provide you with other suggestions. Sometimes a weekend can be slower than a week day on the PM Forum.

Please keep in touch and let us know how your father is doing. I will look forward to hearing from you again with interest. I hope you father knows how fortunate he is to have your support. You sound like a wonderful daughter.

Best of luck to you and your dad.

Peace,
Tuck
Helpful - 0
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