Really trying to find the words I want to say in the letter…

3. Brushing me off numerous times and not taking me seriously. And 4. Legitimately making me question myself and making me believe it was all in my head.
I cannot put into words how this experience had been.

The ONLY reason I was able to get a HIDA and get a confirmed diagnosis of biliary dysfunction was because I was working with a surgeon on ICU and I had an attack. I was double over in pain, pale, shaking, and diaphoretic when he sat down next to me

And started to do an assessment. He opened my chart reviewed everything and within 5 minutes was concerned about my gallbladder and ordered a HIDA through his clinic. If it was not for that encounter with him (which was all by chance) who knows where I would be.

I got lucky because I am a nurse and I was working with a surgeon who listened to me and decided to bypass all the BS and get me in for a scan that my PCP and 2 ED docs didn’t want to order. I could not imagine what would have happened if I didn’t talk to him about it.

This opened my eyes to how flawed the health care system is. Pandemic or not, people still get sick out of Covid. Their pain, symptoms, and complaints are still valid and should be treated. I cannot believe, especially as an ICU nurse, how I was treated by other providers

The arrogance, coldness, and neglect to address my issues is dumbfounding to me. The GI doctor who did my EGD made an off the wall diagnosis of diastis recti because when he shoved his knuckles between my abd muscles I said ow.

He then commented “see I figured out the problem in 30 seconds, you have diastis recti” he laughed then said “I don’t even know why this was ordered”. After the EGD he did not come back post procedure and tell me the findings. I was discharged soon after without

ANY follow up from doctor. He failed to contact me via phone call. I got no report except the nurse telling me “the doctor said everything was normal”. I did not get a call as to where to go from there or what my next steps should be. The ED kept drawing labs

But would not do further tests/images/studied because my labs were WDL. I begged for an US and CT. I was able to get an US the first visit. The ED doc sent his message student (which I’m fine with) to do everything then stood in the door way at the end saying “it’s probably GERD”

We will get you a GI cocktail and get you out of here. Without following up on me to see if the GI cocktail had even worked (it didn’t) the nurse came in with all my discharge stuff and let me go. My 2nd ED visit was more of the same but said that there was nothing

They were going to do since nothing was emergent. They did give me fentanyl and 4 pain pills but nothing more because they were scared I was going to get addicted and chalked it up to plain old “abdominal wall discomfort” and told me to go home and take a hot shower. 3rd ED

Visit I begged for a CT which they complied and it turned negative. Then they questioned me about if maybe this was stress induced and maybe not all physical but mental, then stated how often I had been in the ED the last week and a half.

I left each time feeling so defeated, so dumb, invalidated, and frustrated. So to all the providers who find themselves rolling their eyes when someone comes in numerous times for a complaint, please listen. PLEASE investigate, please make them feel validated.

I went through a couple weeks of absolute hell and would not wish this on anyone.

Really trying to find the words I want to say in the letters I’m going to write to the ED and the GI clinic for 1. Minimizing my symptoms, asking me in a condescending way if I have tried icy hot. 2. Not treating my pain appropriately and making me feel like a drug seeker.

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