Question:
Should i take it upon my self to get pre op testing?
my wls dr.has not required me to do any testing. my insurance had me get a thyroid work up and a pysc eval. mabey i am jumping the gun, but just want to be prepared. shouldnt i see a cardio, sleep specialist, ect.... my surgery is not until june, but i only have one appointment with him before surgery. mabey this is when he will sched. the test, but that dont leave me much time, my appointment is may 21. just worried and confused. — TIFFANY R. (posted on March 25, 2003)
March 25, 2003
Well I can tell you what I have been through I had my first app with my
surgeon in Jan 2003 he gave me a list of things to have done then I went
back and he gave me another finally after all that my test had all came
back and I expected to get a appointment BUT I did not I had to have a
Heart Cath because he ordered a stress test and they thought they saw a
blockage was nothing but fat pockets so after all that I got my date and it
is 3/31/03 My suggestion to you is to do what my friend did call your
doctors off and tell them that you want to know if he/she wants you to have
any test done because you would like to get them out of the way and if they
do he can look at your chart and tell you what you need then you can have
everything taken care of by the time you see him/her in May so you will not
have to play the waiting game and there is a plus to this because if you
have test done and something comes back wrong you will have plenty of time
to take care of it be4 you see him/her and like my friend that went after
me for her first consult she had done this and had her surgery in 2 weeks
after her consult because she had everything done but that is my 2 cents
LOL I hope that can help you cause trust me the waiting game will drive you
INSANE LOL GOOD LUCK see you on the other side :-)
— Kimberly M.
March 25, 2003
Tiffany, I understand your concern. I would ask them about it, but they may
have reasoning behind it. I looked at your profile, and you are only 22. I
am 23 and had the surgery 10 months ago. I was only required to get an
Upper GI, bloodwork, psych eval and nutrition consultation. My surgeon's
reasoning was that I was young, and did not show signs of any other
problems. So it wasn't necessary for me, could be the same reasons for you,
too. Goodluck to you!
— Lezlie Y.
March 25, 2003
you will probably get conflicting answers on this one. I found out exactly
what my Dr. would require, found out from other patients and I got
everything done before and I don't regret doing it and I didn't do anything
less or anything in excess to what my surgeon has asked. I say go for it,
if nothing else, you have more valuable information about your health.
— Sarah S.
March 25, 2003
Hi! I had a 3 month wait for a consult with my surgeon.So I took it upon
myself to have my regular doc submit a referral for a sleep study.I thought
my surgeon might require one.So I had one done and I'm glad that I did as I
do have sleep apnea.When I had my consult with my surgeon,I mentioned that
I had an appointment coming up for the sleep study.She said that I was
young,a lightweight and in moderate health so the only thing that she
required me to do was a psych eval. and to send her the results of the
sleep study.I'm very sorry that I did not get the psych eval. done prior to
seeing my surgeon as this held me up.I couldn't get a surgery date until
the results, reached my surgeon.It took about a month for that eval. to get
done and sent.If I had it done prior.... my surgery date would be 2 months
sooner.
— jennifer A.
March 25, 2003
It may be different with your insurance company, but I had to get
individual referrals from my PCP for each of the pre-op tests. I had to
have the "script" from the surgeon as to which tests were
required. If I had just gone ahead and done the tests on my own, they
wouldn't have been paid for under insurance.
— Jim F
March 25, 2003
Tiffany, if you do it own your own just be aware of the time frame. Most
test results are only good for a certain period, like 30 or 90 days.
— Delores S.
March 25, 2003
Before you do anything, call the surgeon's office and speak to the
coodinator or whomever assists the surgeon in his office. They can fill
you in on the protocol. Surgeons have a routine and sometimes trying to
jump the gun messes things up. For instance, my husband is scheduled for
surgery on 4/9/03. He had his first appointment with the surgeon 3 months
ago. At that time, the surgeon decided what tests he wanted done, based on
my husband's history and physical. (He had a cardiac anomaly corrected as
a teenager.) So he had to do the usual psych eval, support group
meeting,etc., and then see a cardiologist, who scheduled further tests
(echocardiogram, stress test, CT angiogram, then a follow MRI). My husband
had to see the cardiologist again after all the tests were done, and he
felt there were no problems to prohibit surgery. Now that everything is
done, he went back to the surgeon who had all the reports on 3/21/03. He is
a go for surgery on 4/9/03. In the meantime, he had to call and schedule
his pre-op testing (routine labs and EKG) which have to be done within 30
days of surgery. They do some preop teaching at that time. That is
scheduled for 4/2/03. I know the waiting game is hard, but try to go with
the flow. There are tests you may need and some you may not need, but
everything has to be ordered by the proper person in order for insurance to
cover it. I seriously doubt you will need many tests, so that's why you
have a short time betwen the appointment and surgery date. Good luck!
— koogy
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