Greetings,
So, I figured this one was worth the blog, especially because it has some relevance to the overall picture here. Once again, I am going to be writing off the top of my head and not editing it. I have begun to find this most useful, even if the thoughts do get a little jumbled and I do end up a bit off track. I will, however, try and make at least a decent amount of sense.
When I was 15, I was diagnosed with "patela melanasia", also known as "rough knee-caps" undoubtedly a result of over-use and doing too much. Yes, this sort of thing started at least that early if not much earlier in my life. So, the knees have always been a little irritated at times. Now we fast-forward to today....
Still doing too much, add fibromyalgia, a bit of age and you have a pair of knees which are not really happy with me at all. My biggest symptom from fibromyalgia that I get is joint issues. I have joints, they ache or are just plain painful, usually for no good reason whatsoever. For the most part I deal with this myself with exercise and bits of rest here and there, however this is different. So I have taken myself along to my doctor to ask him what I am going to do with myself, etc. So referrals off to the hospital, on waiting lists, blah, blah, blah. I have no idea what the hospital is going to say or do, especially considering I was referred to both Physiotherapy and the Orthaepedic surgeons.
So here I wait. I figure that in the mean time I can keep the doctor up to date with what is going on (situation normal), and see how I can deal with things myself. This is something that I will be discussing with the doctor. What does this all mean? My mobility has reduced quite a bit. I am having more pain in my knees that before. However, I am not quitting fencing, I will find a way around this and lots of other stuff, even if I have to ask for.... help. Something I hate doing. Luckily I get picked up for my school training, now all I have to do is figure out the rest of it. Figure I am going to end up cane shopping a little earlier than I expected.
So, with winter coming on down here in Australia in the next couple of months I can see things getting a little "interesting". I will keep going, I will keep doing stuff, I have no intentions of hiding myself away, though I do think I will have to figure out this "rest" thing, a bit at least. Anyway, I may get around to keeping people up to date with this one, but I do not guarantee a thing.
Cheers,
Henry.
Showing posts with label hospital. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hospital. Show all posts
Thursday, May 1, 2014
Thursday, April 3, 2014
A Patient and the Importance of Being Patient
Greetings,
The entry which follows may be a bit muddled and a bit random in nature as I am writing it off the top of my head. I am looking at this word "patient" and seeing what I can get out of it at the moment. More to the point it is also looking at a person as a patient in a medical sense.
A medical patient is a person who is under medical care for the reason that there is some medical issue that needs to be solved. This issue can be acute or chronic, life-threatening to minor, it does not matter as soon as you come into contact with a health care professional you become "the patient". In some instances it will feel like you have also turned into a number, and this can happen more the more public the situation that you are in.
Hospitals, or more to the point emergency departments, are designed for sick people. In the case of emergency departments this is for people who have an immediate threat of some seriousness to their health, or they should be anyway. In some situations this is not the case and some of the patients really should be going and seeing their private doctor rather than gumming up the system, but the way that the economy goes it is really not surprising that some do it.
In emergency departments they work on a triage system. This means that the patients are evaluated as to the seriousness of their issue and then are seen in turn from most serious down to least serious. The system is not designed for "first in, first seen". What this means is, if your issue is relatively minor you are going to be waiting a long time. Obviously this is suited to the situation for an emergency department.
Waiting is an issue for some people and they will get very angry if they feel like they have been made to wait too long. Some people will even get quite aggressive about this and start causing issues for the staff. This is not the best way to be dealt with in a positive fashion. In most situations with regard to the public health system, and indeed the health system in general, there will be waiting periods. There is no point in getting angry as this will not get you any further along the queue, more to the point it will irritate those who are working there and will result in a negative opinion of you.
One of the keys to surviving the wait is having something to do. Bring a book if you are going for an appointment. Find something to occupy your mind that will take your focus off the wait. Believe it or not your patience as a patient is really appreciated by the staff. You will be remembered for your patience and your consideration and this will also lead to a more positive outcome for yourself and will assist others around you. The patient patient is a boon and those in the health care profession will thank you for it.
Cheers,
Henry.
The entry which follows may be a bit muddled and a bit random in nature as I am writing it off the top of my head. I am looking at this word "patient" and seeing what I can get out of it at the moment. More to the point it is also looking at a person as a patient in a medical sense.
A medical patient is a person who is under medical care for the reason that there is some medical issue that needs to be solved. This issue can be acute or chronic, life-threatening to minor, it does not matter as soon as you come into contact with a health care professional you become "the patient". In some instances it will feel like you have also turned into a number, and this can happen more the more public the situation that you are in.
Hospitals, or more to the point emergency departments, are designed for sick people. In the case of emergency departments this is for people who have an immediate threat of some seriousness to their health, or they should be anyway. In some situations this is not the case and some of the patients really should be going and seeing their private doctor rather than gumming up the system, but the way that the economy goes it is really not surprising that some do it.
In emergency departments they work on a triage system. This means that the patients are evaluated as to the seriousness of their issue and then are seen in turn from most serious down to least serious. The system is not designed for "first in, first seen". What this means is, if your issue is relatively minor you are going to be waiting a long time. Obviously this is suited to the situation for an emergency department.
Waiting is an issue for some people and they will get very angry if they feel like they have been made to wait too long. Some people will even get quite aggressive about this and start causing issues for the staff. This is not the best way to be dealt with in a positive fashion. In most situations with regard to the public health system, and indeed the health system in general, there will be waiting periods. There is no point in getting angry as this will not get you any further along the queue, more to the point it will irritate those who are working there and will result in a negative opinion of you.
One of the keys to surviving the wait is having something to do. Bring a book if you are going for an appointment. Find something to occupy your mind that will take your focus off the wait. Believe it or not your patience as a patient is really appreciated by the staff. You will be remembered for your patience and your consideration and this will also lead to a more positive outcome for yourself and will assist others around you. The patient patient is a boon and those in the health care profession will thank you for it.
Cheers,
Henry.
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