It's useless, isn't it? :(

[jules]

yes one needs to be proactive

[DottyG]

Ok, now this nurse lady is angry with me.

I finally was able to get in touch with someone with my insurance company last night that was a little more helpful than anyone else I've talked to. And, she gave me some names of DMEs that she recommended that are in my area, will deliver the unit to me and might be better than the one I thought I was going with yesterday.

So, this morning, I called the nurse and left a message (again, no way to actually talk to them - I HATE having to do all this via voicemail messages). I said not to send the prescription to the DME we'd talked about. That I'd spoken to my insurance company, and I think there's another place that I need to use instead.

The other DME knew what a "fully data compatible machine" was when I mentioned it (I'm hoping they really do and are not just mistaking it for the lesser quality - but that's for another day's stress), they will come out to my home, the lady I talked to was very nice, and I think it'll be a better match.

So, I left another message for the nurse - giving her the new fax number of the place I want to use.

I just got a call from her. She wasn't happy with me for switching. She'd already sent the prescription to the 1st place.

I was told that she "didn't want to spend all afternoon on this" and that I needed to go with the place she'd already sent it to. I kept trying to tell her that that place is quite a distance from me, and they won't deliver and set the machine up. So, it really wasn't a good match for me.

She finally, reluctantly, agreed to send the prescription to the 2nd DME that I want to use. But, now she's angry with me.

I'm sorry. But, I need to get the kind of care that will help me. And, I'm sorry that she's had to spend so much time on my case, but SHE'S the one who couldn't find my prescription yesterday. And, the one who couldn't find the titration part of my sleep study. It's not my fault that I've been trying to get this sleep problem taken care of for months now and feel like no one's taking me seriously.

Once again, they're punishing the patient here. And, the patient's too TIRED to deal with this.

Y'all, what do I do? I don't want to make this doctor's office angry at me. I've only seen this doctor one time, but I really, really liked him. He was so nice. And, he spent so long talking to me and listening to my medical concerns. I don't want to make them mad at me just because of this sleep thing.

[ScrappinMom]

I would not spend one second worrying about whether the "nurse" was mad at me or not. Too d*&n bad for her. She'll get over it. She spent more time arguing with you than it would have taken to just fax the thing. And, the dr probably needs to know anyway. He may be good with his patients, but his staff is obviously not. More than one dr has lost my business because s/he couldn't or wouldn't reign in the hateful staff. There's no reason at all for it. Remember, YOU are the consumer. Would you care if the sales person at the dept store was mad at you? No, you'd go to the manager. Same thing.
Sorry, I'll step down from the soap box now.

If you will get the make and model from the DME that they plan to bring out, we can help you determine if it is data capable.
Hope your day gets better.

[DoriC]

Dotty Dear, please don't waste one more minute of your decreased energy on this incompetent, untrained, glorified telephone answerer. I think I heard it said by Dr.Phil? that we must become medical consumers of our healthcare and not just think of ourselves as ill patients without a voice. You are the customer. And if you like your Dr, he may be interested in what you've experienced with his "front desk". Sometimes they aren't aware and make changes when they are informed. Stay strong, you're almost there. Don't accept any machine with Plus or Escape in it's name. You want a machine that is capable of recording your nightly data, not just hours used.

[Cygnusia]

Nurse: "Wah, wah, wah! I'm going to actually have to work today now! Boo hoo!"
Cram a tinker toy in it, you rude little troll.

Dotty, I am glad to see you're getting more proactive on this. You DO still need to talk to your doctor in person and tell him what a horrible little witch he has employed at his front desk! After all, you're paying their salaries... and if he won't do anything about it, then I'm sure there are some doctors in your area that would be more than happy to take you in and give you the care you need (and deserve!)

Seriously.. go talk to him... even if you have to go plunk down a co-pay to do it. He needs to know what's going on, and you at the very least need to vent at someone that could make an attitude adjustment (or staff replacement) at the front desk.

If THAT doesn't get him motivated... then request all of your medical records he's collected on you so far. You'll have it ready when you go see your new doctor.

[DottyG]

I might be misunderstanding what her role in this is.

All she has to do is fax the prescription to the DME, right? I mean, it's not like there's that much work for her to do. Even if I change my mind 10 times today, all it would mean is that she'd be sending 10 faxes?

It could be that I don't understand how difficult this is on her end. Maybe there's more to it than I realize?

[GumbyCT]

I might be misunderstanding what her role in this is.

All she has to do is fax the prescription to the DME, right? I mean, it's not like there's that much work for her to do. Even if I change my mind 10 times today, all it would mean is that she'd be sending 10 faxes?

It could be that I don't understand how difficult this is on her end. Maybe there's more to it than I realize?

If you will get a copy of the prescription (IN YOUR HAND) - you won't need to bother her any more (today).

If you don't - well then, you get to put up with her and her incompetence.

[BlackSpinner]

It could be that I don't understand how difficult this is on her end. Maybe there's more to it than I realize?

Oh so massively difficult - First she has to get up out her chair and find the file (that she found yesterday) Then she has to READ the file to find the right piece of paper and put it in the fax machine and then OMG she has to enter the right fax number. And then to top of all that work she has to file the paper again and put it back in the file cabinet. How could anyone expect her to do all that? for just a patient? A patient? That medical four letter word - her office would run so smoothly with out them.

Just think how you would feel if she was working for a decorator you had hired for a job for your company? Would you do business with them again?

Same with a cpap machine and your mask. If it was a flat screen tv or washing machine how would you feel about the people who sold it to you?
And that mask - if you were buying $200-$300 shoes would you expect to get the right ones, in the right size and make? Would you try them on? Would expect the sales person to spend time with you? Don't treat your mask and cpap any different then you would Manolo Blahnik High Heels.

[Cygnusia]

Dotty, you sound a lot like me.

You want to make sure everyone is happy and not put out or angry because of anything you say or do.

If there's something I've learned, it's that sometimes one simply ticks people off. It doesn't matter what you say or do, no amount of apology or consolation is going to make this person agreeable.

As for this nurse, don't feel pity for her. You SHOULD feel resentment towards her because she's most likely the monkey wrench in the gears of the system that are trying to get your the equipment you need to... well... LIVE.

If it comes down to it, go to your doctor, tell him you want the prescription yourself and take it to a DME of your choice. No middlemen, no worries, and you'll most likely have your machine and accessories that very same day.

[DottyG]

ARRRGGGGHHHHH....Now she's REALLY angry at me.

She just called and told me that she faxed the prescription to the new DME.

So, while I had her on the phone, I asked her to fax me a copy of it as well - with anything else related to the process. I said I wanted a copy of whatever she has in my file that's related.

She sounded VERY put out by this request.

I told her that it doesn't have to be right this second. That she could just fax it whenever she has a moment - even next week, if things are busy.

I was informed, "Well, I'm not HERE next week."

Is that, somehow, MY fault?!

She was about to hang up when I asked her if she even had my fax number. She didn't. So, she was going to just hang up without even getting it from me?

This whole thing is really making ME angry.

Ok, wait a second. Just as I was typing this, a fax came through. Let's see if it's what I need. (Interesting how it wasn't as "impossible" as it was made to sound, huh?)

[DottyG]

It's just the prescription that was sent to the DME. Not even a cover sheet with my name or anything. Thank goodness faxes come straight to my computer instead of just out in the open here at work. Otherwise, my script would have just been out there with no identifying page to it.

So, at this point, I have the script and a copy of my sleep study (with the titration portion). Is that all I need from this doctor's office? I'm so ready to be done with trying to get anything from them.

[ScrappinMom]

Honey, you've got everything you need. Go where they will treat you with some dignity and respect.

[DottyG]

I swear this never ends!

The 1st DME called me a little while ago. Now, understand that I spent quite some time talking to them yesterday asking where they're located and if they would deliver the machine to me. The lady I spoke to told me that it couldn't be done. I would have to come up there (north side of my city) to get it. I kept telling her that it was really out of my way. And, that I really wanted someone who knew what they were doing to set it up for me at home. Nope. They don't make housecalls. Not only that, but they don't work on weekends, so I'd have to take time off from work.

That's why I called my insurance company and found a place that's 1) closer to me and 2) will deliver it to me. And, why I had to call my doctor's office back this morning to make the nurse angry at me.

So, I told the DME that, I'm sorry, but since they wouldn't deliver it to me, I was going to have to go elsewhere. She said it was ok and that she'd keep my prescription on file for a month just in case it didn't work out with the new place. Ok by me.

She just called back. She'd thought about what I said and wanted to check with her company to see if they would deliver it to me after all. I kept telling her that I'd already questioned her coworker about it the day before and that THIS was why I had to go elsewhere. That I couldn't get them to change their minds when I first talked to them.

So, I guess I do have power. Just offer to switch companies to get someone to do what I want, and suddenly they can change the rules for me.

I'm unsure of which one to go with now. I'm still thinking the closer one would be better. After I get the machine, is there a lot you have to do with the DME? Would I need adjustments and stuff? How much would I need to access them after I get the machine? Does it matter whether or not they're close by or not?

[2ndGenCPAPgal]

Personally, I would stick with the one that offered the better service from the get go. Being difficult regarding completely reasonable request at the start of a relationship does not bode well in my book.

Going forward, you'll need to have at least a minimal relationship with the DME...and the better the DME the more likely you will want to have more than just a minimal relationship. You may want to get replacement supplies (filters, tubing, masks, etc) from them (compare your payment after insurance with online prices before you decide) and you will need to rely on them if your machine ever needs service. Having one that is willing to help from the beginning rather than after being threatened with loss of business probably signals a better chance of getting better service when the profit isn't as great when you need something small.

It sounds like you're making some good progress! Just keep on keeping on and it will all work out in the end. I know it is hard to believe now but the struggles are worth it when you finally start getting the sleep you need.

[ScrappinMom]

2ndGenCPAPGal makes some very good points. I also would probably go with the second. Once #1 makes their "big bucks" off the machine, they may go right back to their old tricks.