Orientation done and next appt booked

So I went for mu orientation March 2. I must say after all the research I did there was not too much new stuff. But a lot of things were confirmed and a couple new things learned. I was then told to wait 3 months for my next appointment. I have that booked now for May 12 at 8:30 am...eek that is early (I have a 2 hour drive)! I am being sent a rec for blood work. At orientation the nurse said the blood work is preferred to be done in Ottawa so that it is in their computer system. I live far away. Does anyone know if I can get blood work done on a weekend? What happens at this next appointment? Review my history and blood results? I hope May comes soon!

For your appointment on May 12, who is it with? That will help us tell you what happens at that appointment. I think my appointment after orientation was with the dietitian and the behaviourist; I saw both of them during one visit to the hospital. Those folks will see how you are suited for surgery and how prepared you are, what sort of support you have, etc.

As for bloodwork, if Ottawa is 2 hours from you, then I would suggest that you can probably have the bloodwork done where you live, as long as the requisition says that it needs to get back to the docs at OWMC, it'll find its way there. Yes, they prefer that it be done in Ottawa for electronic transmittal purposes. I usually go to the Riverside to get my bloodwork done. But all Labs associated with the Ottawa hospital are Monday to Friday only. So you'll probably end up at Gamma Dynacare or one of the other labs around town if you need to go on a weekend. And then you're not in the OWMC network anyway, so you might as well have it done nearer to your home. Unless perchance you happen to be in town on a Monday to Friday workday (I wonder about whether they'd be open on Good Friday or Easter Monday... if you're off?) then it might work for you.

I hope you can get it sorted out. Good luck!

Thanks for the reply. I was so excited to get the appointment I can't remember what the lady said on the phone! When I get the blood work rec I will see if it says who the appointment is with. You make a good point about Good Friday and Easter Monday. I do have them off so if they are open I could go then. Do you know how far in advance I can get the blood work done before my appointment? 

The bloodwork requisition won't have the name of the person at OWMC that you will have your appointment with. No. But if you call them back, and tell them, "Hey I have an appointment on this date... who is it with again?" they'll tell you.

As for how far in advance you can get the blood work done, that depends. Were they looking for something in particular? Fasting? Not fasting? Just general blood work? If it's just a baseline, you can get it done anytime pretty much. Just follow your normal diet and follow their restrictions if you need to fast before the blood draw is done.

Congrats Molly! That's one step down.  Why were you told you had to wait 3 months for your next appointment?  Was that just the earliest it was available? Or is 3 months 'a thing' with them?....  I notice in a lot of people signatures on here that they seem to book one appt at a time with a couple months in between each visit.  I've been wondering why the hospitals don't just try to book all appts as close together as possible.  Did they mention cancellation lists at all?  Did you get to talk to anyone on a one-on-one basis?  Or was the group too big for individual discussions?

Hi,

I was told the next appointment was three months off because of how busy they are. In the mean time they gave a list of behaviours to try and change. As for booking appointments together I am going to call and check on that, actually see if I can get two done in a day because of my drive. I also plan on asking if there is a cancelation list. I also need to ask who the appointment is with. I was so excited to hear I had an appointment I forget everything but the date and time!

The group was probably 30 people so there were questions throughout the presentation and she gave a copy of the power point at the end. She also stuck around afterwards to answer questions though the presentation is quite thorough.

Sounds great.  Good luck on your journey, I'm sure i'll have lots more questions for you as i'm just behind you by a few weeks. :)