Pissing In The Wind

I have several posts coming up the pipeline, and since I am fucking tired as all hell I am going to post the easy cut-n-paste one first. A few people (online and IRL) have asked me what the fuck happened with Specialist Douchebag #2 and I did not want to dreg up the horrible badness ever again. However, I needed to write a letter to aforementioned douchebag and his clinic so here it is, edited only to give me a small amount of privacy.

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Arthritis Center of Riverside
4000 14th Street suite 511
Riverside, CA 92501

October 28, 2007

To Whom It May Concern,

I have been a patient of this medical establishment since April 2007. Last month I met Dr. Franco for the first time. Although he appeared to be an intelligent man, I was thoroughly unhappy with his care. For the sake of brevity, I have composed a bulleted list of my concerns:

• He berated me multiple times for not visiting the clinic frequently enough, even though I attempted to explain that I was merely following the schedule suggested by Dr. Lallande.
• I was kept waiting for more than 2 hours for my scheduled appointment and was told that this was commonplace in Dr. Franco’s practice. As someone who drives an hour each way to reach the office and suffers physical pain from sitting in a chair for an extended period of time I found this to be unacceptable.
• Dr. Franco had obviously never looked at my file before and wasted more of my time attempting to read it as I was (still) sitting there in front of him.
• Dr. Franco accused me of lying when I said that I had been taking medication for my Fibromyalgia continuously since it was prescribed by Dr. Lallande.
• Dr. Franco stated that the medication that I had been purchasing locally was low quality without knowing what I purchased and where, when fact one of the medications that I had purchased locally was the EXACT medication that had been recommended by Dr. Lallande.
• Dr. Franco appeared to be more interested in hearing himself speak than to listen to my concerns. I had to repeat myself several times and in the end I did not feel heard.
• Dr. Franco repeatedly asked me questions that were in my medical file in front of him. I attempted to explain that exact dates were difficult due to “brain fog” caused by the Fibromyalgia and he did not appear to listen.
• Dr. Franco asked me to pull up my shirt so he and the male P.A. that was with him could see my naval piercing. I felt that this request was not appropriate and it made me feel uncomfortable.
• Dr. Franco told me that he was going to prescribe me an antibiotic for a low-level infection and yet forgot to write the prescription.
• I requested that Dr. Franco write a prescription for Celexa (40mg) so that I could continue taking the medication under the supervision of his office. He stated that he would but did not like prescribing this type of medication for someone that he “did not know.” Celexa is not a commonly abused drug, is not a narcotic and is frequently used to help treat Fibromyalgia symptoms.
• While reviewing my file, Dr. Franco noted that the steroid shots I had been receiving were not an appropriate method to treat my condition, even though I had explained that the shot were for a hip problem not related to the Fibromyalgia.
• Dr. Franco forgot to review my open prescriptions and renew the necessary ones. I had to call in & ask when I ran out the next week.
• I requested an overall pain medication that doesn’t keep me awake, and instead was prescribed Lidoderm patches. I tried to explain to him that fibromyalgia means you feel pain EVERYWHERE and not in one specific spot, but he did not listen.
• Dr. Franco eliminated me from possible treatment options without asking if I would be willing to go through them. He assumed that I would not want to come up weekly for shots, even after telling us how fantastic they can be for some people & our interest in the subject.
• When it came time to review my x-rays, it was again obvious that he had never reviewed them. He whizzed through them faster than the nurse could put them up on the board which made me feel uncomfortable and unimportant. I don’t want to come to a specialist just to feel ignored.
• I attempted to get a prescription for a migraine medication as the one previously prescribed by your office (Imitrex) was having unwanted side effects. I tried to explain the type of headache/migraine that I had been suffering from and he was dismissive, saying that without “auras” my headaches were not migraines and that I should consult a neurologist. Auras only occur in 20-30 percent of migraine headaches and are not the sole defining symptom.
• I again tried to discuss the headaches with him and he indicated that the pain caused by not having adequate medication would surely make me go to a neurologist sooner rather than later.
• Overall, this experience was horrid. I had greatly appreciated the skill and demeanor of Dr. Lallande and his staff, while Dr. Franco’s behavior and demeanor were unacceptable. I felt belittled and not listened too. My husband sat in on my appointment, he is a very direct and assertive man, yet felt ignored as well, even though he was constantly asking Dr. Franco questions and trying to redirect the conversation towards my treatment and away from such segues as my naval piercing. I have no interest in seeing Dr. Franco again. If it is necessary to see Dr. Franco to remain a patient at this clinic then I will find another practice.

Sincerely,

Sam I Am, Muthafucker!