Getting extremely frustrated

I know that I should be using this time to make positive changes to my diet and levels of physical activity, and I did for a while.  I guess I have stopped because of growing frustration for how long this process is seeming to be taking.  My referral went in on April 30, 2014.  I had my orientation at HRRH on August 25, 2014.  Now here we are, closing in on November and I still have not heard anything back from HRRH regarding dates for appointments.  I have followed up with the booking line a few times and my chart isn't there and they sound wholly annoyed that I am calling, rather than waiting for them to call me.

I hate being stuck in limbo.  I'm not moving forward.  At least if I had some appointments scheduled, I would have something to be working toward.  Not only that, but TWH would be a better location for me because I don't drive and they are closer to Union Station.  And, they seem to be moving much faster.  Instead, I'm stuck with HRRH for fear of having to start the process over if I want to transfer and I know I will have to take full days of work to go to HRRH when I finally do get appointments.  

Sorry, I just really needed to vent.  I'm so exasperated by the whole affair right now.

Hey Jenny, I understand your frustration! I would feel the same. It looks like HRRH is bit backlogged, only basing this off what I have read here. One positive thing I did notice about HRRH, and again, these are only things I have seen on the forum, is that when people get their appointments, they are usually all on the same day, and the process seems very fast after they get the initial appointments.

With TWH, I was never able to get multiple appointments on the same day. They were all spread out. I was able to get them close together, but never on the same day. This may make a big difference to some people as far as what centre they may prefer. 

I will say, I did call for cancellations. I also work from home, and live about 6 minutes from TWH, and I was able to complete the process from referral to surgery in seven months, and that was with me being SUPERBLY flexible and taking VERY last minute cancels. 

I do know there are a few people who have been waiting some time for a surgery date through HRRH, and I also know when I got my surgery date a few weeks ago from TWH, they had plenty of dates available in November. I don't think they book out as far as other centres. 

So many variables to think over when wondering if switching centres is the best plan. I think its a crapshoot to be honest, and I think there is absolutely no way to know how quickly you may go through the process at one centre versus the other. 

Good luck to you!! Vent away girl, I get it. 

I don't know if this will apply to you or not..

HRRH recent;y had a massive backlog for surgery dates, specifically for Dr. Klein. I was told many reasons.. lack of funding. Dr. Klein does other surgeries, etc but I've been waiting since September for a date and was told they were not scheduling past April of next year. Other centers, and even other doctors in the same office were booking much, much sooner. So many of us have been stuck without a surgery date, despite their policy of giving you one within 90 days of completing the program (per the manager of bariatrics at HRRH).

I'm an impatient and proactive bug so I wrote my MP and MPP and advised them of the situation and a few weeks later I was advised that 75 of us were being transferred from HRRH to TWH. This was 2 weeks ago. Since then there has been some runaround with the files being couriered over from one center to the next, and I have been in constant contact (I'm sure to their annoyance..). I received a phonecall today from the manager of bariatrics from TWH that the files have been received and are being reviewed. YAY!

If HRRH does not have your charts... perhaps you were on this list as well?

I'm sure I'll have many people telling me to wait my turn, suck it up princess..  it's worse for other centers, etc and I'm aware of all of that. I make no excuses or apologies for being so aggressive in this. I would have even been okay with a date in 2016 - as long as I had one. Sitting in limbo is the worst.

You guys are extremely lucky you have even had the orientation, I was referred a long time ago (Feb 2014) and here it is October and I have not heard ONE THING.  I am extremely frustrated.

Have you followed up with your doctor to see if they have received a confirmation from the Bariatric Registry?  Mine took so long from referral to Orientation because my referral didn't go through the first time.

I just had my surgery at HRRH.  See my dates in my signature line. It's true I had all my appts on one day.  Just take this time to do all the research you can.  Read a lot.

Thank you everyone for your replies. 

I'm really hopeful that I was one of the ones that got transferred to TWH.  I don't mind appointments on different days as TWH is so close to downtown... So here's hoping on that front. 

Limbo is the worst.  I just need the next stage to start.  

I can totally relate. I was driving myself crazy thinking that they had decided I wasn't an eligible surgical candidate. I had my orientation session August 18th/2014 and just got my First Surgeon's apt yesterday for November 28th/2014. She also told me when I asked for any cancellation appt's that they don't do cancellation appt's for the first surgeon's meeting. She also advised me that once I seen the surgeon it would be January or February before I got any more appt's. It seems like the process is at least moving forward though. :-) Hang in there !!! If my orientation was a week before yours maybe that means you'll get a call next week, fingers crossed for you. :-)

So... I decided to bite the bullet and ask for a transfer to TWH. 

I called the booking line at HRRH today and the girl knew less about the situation than I did.  She had no idea that people were being transferred to TWH because of the backlog and tried to tell me that she didn't have the charts... that I would have to call the main line.  So I humored her and called the main line and was told what I already knew.  That the charts were upstairs in booking.... It's the same chick that always huffs and puffs when I ask her to check to see if my chart is in.

I'm very irritated with her, but there's a ray of hope now.  I was told that I would have to start the process over again, but luckily, I'm still at the beginning anyway.