Does it say STUPID on my forehead???

I called my provider last week about getting a new nasal pillow and headgear. I was told that "it was too expensive to order from medicare and that it was ok to use the pillow and headgear longer than necessary." I have been on the CPap for over 7 months.

When I asked about how often I should clean my large hose that leads from the machine to the headgear, I was told, "you never need to clean the hose as the air only goes out one way."

Regarding cleaning the filters, I was told that I only had to clean the foam filter and that the "white filter was too hard to find and I didn't need to clean it ever."

I was told that they would check the SD card about once a month. Yeap they checked it once.

When I needed a copy of my prescription it took two weeks of calling every day to even talk to the provider. The secretary assured me that she mailed the scrip to me. Even after two weeks I never got the scrip. Finally, I got it.

Did I mention that I live in the desert where it is very dusty, windy and hot, getting up to 120 in the summer. Gee I wonder if the nasal pillow will hold up through the summer. I am already using duct tape on the hose to keep it together. Gosh I love this CPap experience, NOT.

Send a copy of your post to Medicare.
They will no doubt take appropriate action.

Consider posting your location; another forum member might know a DME in your area that participates with Medicare and could mail supplies to you the same day you call.

Items like regular hoses ($12) and filters ($12 for 3) are relatively cheap and can be purchased through cpap.com and mailed to you without going through Medicare.

Sounds like you need a new provider... (not that Medicare is an Nightmare for most offices to keep track of, their rules and regs are a quagmire of redundancy and idiocy)

Too often we get patients in that "know better" than the Dr or clinicians.. (and acting like you are smarter than they are (even if true) wont help your case )

Very often, many Dr's and clinicians DONT know more than the patient about some treatments..
I do not fault them for this in many cases as progress is made, many patients are on top of it better than the Dr or his staff... Why? you try to track one issue vs hundreds if not thousands.. Even in specialty practices, there is just too much to keep on top of to be informed on every possible illness and treatment..

As a patient, we can help.. firstly keep in mind, you do not have 12 plus years in school.. being humble goes a long ways and you have a good reason to be humble, you have not dedicated the years to education that Dr's have...

Research and organize your research.. Most Dr's and staff are THRILLED to learn about new stuff (no voodoo please) and are most receptive to input from a lay person.. Sign of a smart person is an open mind and open ear

Keep in mind that very often, you don't know what you don't know..

Many articles leave out critical study data about meds or devices that could be relative to your case, so pass along the information you have and be open to their input as well...

A two way communication seems to be the best avenue IMHO.. if it is strictly one sided? time to find a new care provider

kayursula wrote:I called my provider last week about getting a new nasal pillow and headgear. I was told that "it was too expensive to order from medicare and that it was ok to use the pillow and headgear longer than necessary." I have been on the CPap for over 7 months.


Regarding cleaning the filters, I was told that I only had to clean the foam filter and that the "white filter was too hard to find and I didn't need to clean it ever."

The answer is "That is not my problem. You have a contract - honour it" The replacement schedule is very clear.

Yep, yep. The best advice so far - if at all possible change to a new DME provider. This current one is "less than truthful". With Medicare you are eligible for a new mask every 3 months and a new headgear every 6 months - and if needed a new cushion(s) for your mask every 30 days and new hose every 3 months. This outfit you are currently with is going to be nothing but a less than truthful headache every minute you continue doing business w/them.

It pays to always be diplomatic but also to always keep in mind that this is YOUR health, YOUR sleep, YOUR therapy and YOU are the one paying for it, whether thru Medicare, private insurance or out of pocket doesn't matter, the fact is that YOU are paying for these items AND services.

RJames wrote:
Too often we get patients in that "know better" than the Dr or clinicians.. (and acting like you are smarter than they are (even if true) wont help your case )

Very often, many Dr's and clinicians DONT know more than the patient about some treatments..

As a patient, we can help.. firstly keep in mind, you do not have 12 plus years in school.. being humble goes a long ways and you have a good reason to be humble, you have not dedicated the years to education that Dr's have...

Sign of a smart person is an open mind and open ear

Keep in mind that very often, you don't know what you don't know..

A two way communication seems to be the best avenue IMHO.. if it is strictly one sided? time to find a new care provider

RJames: man-o-man you are opening a can of worms.... the only thing I can think of is that you have not been in this forum very long. It has long been documented here that the DME providers are fairly useless and if you have a good one you are the exception. Don't worry... I'll tase anyone that gets rowdy with you....

Sheriff

Sheriff I totally agree with you and I have a feeling this could turn into one of those very interesting threads.

Boy do I agree.......
First statement me/she made was we get patients that know better than the doctors or clinicions
second statement was you don't have 12 years plus in school.
I think he/she is about to get a couple of "replies"

Medicare will come down on these idiots HARD.
No one hires people so incompetent unless they want to.
There are just too many qualified people looking for jobs.

Thanks Sherrif..
My reply was probably more properly directed towards your care provider and not your DME (I deal with an onslaught of these fwiw, they ALL want your biz)...

On the upside.. the earlier statement about the "contract is clear" usually takes some clarification to the egghead behind the counter giving you a bad time about replacement parts.. When I started this treatment? there were no contracts like that and it was quite difficult to even get insurance to consider the machine, much less the expendables..

squid13 wrote:Sheriff I totally agree with you and I have a feeling this could turn into one of those very interesting threads.

+1...

Whoa, I need a glass of wine to go with my popcorn for this thread! So is there a good excuse for waiting months for equipment to treat a "life threatening condition?"..... the the DME shows up saying, "I'm here to show you how to use this machine, and it's the first time I've ever opened one, let me see, there must be a partial manual in here, because we don't want you to know what we know!" Ha, pass the carafe, hold the salt, I'll need it when I switch to tequila!!!

Actually, kayursula ..... look more closely - it says STUPID on the DMEs' forehead - you've gotten some great advice - don't let the DME bulldoze you.

Cheers,
xena