Thot of the day:
As we get older, it seems like there are more to be squeezed in.
Our time in Chicago is always centered around DOC Appointments. As we get older, it seems like there are more to be squeezed in. This year, I needed to see no less than THREE cardiologists! My original Cardio, the Heart Failure guy (even though I apparently have none), and now a Chicago Electrophysiologist was added. The latter was in addition to the EP who did my pacemaker down in Texas. The rationale is that the Texas EP wants a Medtronics Device check every 6 months, and, at least at Advocate, a device check cannot be scheduled without an EP appointment. I guess it makes sense…if the device check surfaces an issue, an EP is going to need to deal with it!
Anyway, for the time being, I will keep the EP in Texas AND Chicago to accommodate the device check…something the guy in Chicago said they only recommend every 12 months…
At one point, I asked my original Cardio whether I needed four…he suggested STRONGLY: yes! Rationale: you are very stable and asymptomatic at the moment, but it is likely as you age you will need more from each of us…and if you see each of us every year…even if we do nothing for several years in a row…you already have a team in place! Weirdly, and proactively, good advice!
One of the Cardios said I should be getting an Echocardiogram every year, and since they did not disclose this to me last year, none was scheduled! First available: August! The doc said there was no way he had enough pull to get us squeezed in in the next week, so It was agreed that this could wait until next year, and it is already ordered!!! We have learned (and Our Docs have learned!) to order all tests beforehand, so we can get them done BEFORE our appointments, and the results will be available during our appointments…in case any action is indicated.
And there are always at least one Doc that throws a monkey-wrench in the works! Remember, we schedule these all a year in advance, so we can accomplish what needs to be done in a consecutive couple of weeks. This year there were 2 snafus…First, Liz’s General Doc called to cancel/reschedule. The call was the week before, and the next available time was not until AUGUST. That wasn’t going to work, so we negotiated, begged, cried a little, and they found a time the week after we were scheduled to leave. We had to extend our Chicago Residence, and the State Park ABSOLUTELY does not allow extensions beyond 14 days, so Liz’s sister offered their driveway for a few.
The second issue was when Liz’s cardio’s office called to cancel/reschedule because her Doc had left the practice. Next available appointment with a random Cardio: October. Also not going to work! Even though this was for routine followup on very benign, super-cautious results a couple years ago, Liz found out where her doc went, called his new practice and they were able to squeeze her in. It’s actually good…she LIKES that Doc a lot, and the new office also uses EPIC Medical Records, so he would be able to see the result of the Echo that had been scheduled for a year, and which could not have been rescheduled…until AUGUST!!!
WE have to control the logistics of our care
Anyway, after 3 weeks in Chicago (including the added week), we departed with a “clean” bill of health. Well, relatively so since we are getting older. Liz had to have a Derm procedure, and at first said we’d need to return in 2 weeks to get stitches removed….we would be 1,000 miles away in 2 weeks! The Doc thot for a minute, then said he would use glue instead of stiches so she wouldn’t have to find a place to get stitches out on the road. As I said above…WE have to control the logistics of our care, which the Docs are happy to accommodate if they are aware and can do so.
All of this leads me to a brief digression about the state of our medical system. Feel free to skip over this…
What I am about to describe may sound political, but it’s not, and that is part of the problem. Since when does politics have any role up in our medical business?
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You have to proactively manage your care…even down to details like insisting on Labs beforehand and the types of surgical closures. Our medical system is not at all used to patients in control, and when you try to do so, there will be extreme resistance. It is really a different mindset…that you need to drive the process separate from seeking care. When a doc needs to reschedule, their scheduler thinks nothing of a 4-month postponement in care. “It’s the next available appointment,” you will hear. Persistence overcomes…people WANT to help, they just aren’t usually asked to help a patient with THEIR logistics. All of our docs understand now what we need from them.
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The medical records system your various Docs and specialists use is important! If they all use the same one, there is no hassle getting records transferred, test results available, etc. You can communicate with all your docs through the same portal, schedule all appointments in the same place, etc. This is ESPECIALLY true if you travel and may seek medical care in other places. I have had visits and tests in Alabama and Idaho – all are on Epic and all results are visible to all of my docs. My Cardio in Texas is NOT on Epic…which is a major pain in the arse. Obviously, with me needing immediate cardiac intervention, we did not have time for an “Epic” search. But if we ever need a doc or a specialist in a new place or for a second opinion, we will ask this question high up in our investigation.
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Traditional Medicare makes most of our medical “care” easier…but can also make it harder. Easier because, so far, all of the docs in all of the places have been willing to accept Medicare Patients. We know that is not always the case, especially in places where a lot of seniors live, and has led to an abomination called “Concierge Care.” Which is nothing more than the same segmentation of the population into people who have/can afford heath insurance and those who haven’t and cannot, much as existed for us prior to Medicare eligibility.
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People completely confuse “Medical Care” with “Medical Coverage/Insurance.” The former is the docs and medical establishment that provides actual service to a patient. The latter is the for-profit industry that is our gateway to medical care. In places with nationalized healthcare, there is no second category. The medical establishment takes care of patients health, and there is no billing department. In our system, you have to run the gauntlet set up by the INDUSTRY before you can access any actual Health”Care” And, for that gatekeeping “service,” the Healthcare Insurance industry siphons off $BILLIONS in administrative fees and shareholder value.
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When we discuss the idea of some form of national healthcare structure (which can take many forms), one of the “negatives” often raised is the idea that you have to wait for service…wait your turn…subject to triage and scheduling. This is put out there by opponents as though we don’t already wait for service in our for-profit system. We absolutely do! You can “jump the queue” here and in other countries if you have the financial wherewithal to do so.
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Let’s not confuse the objections to National Healthcare as anything BUT, perhaps unwittingly, protecting the financial interests of the capitalist organizations built to siphon off $$$$ for necessary, humanitarian service. We do NOT have better healthcare by ANY objective standards AND we pay BY FAR more per capita than any other country in aggregate for our healthcare. AND, even though we spend more for less, there is still a large swath of society that is underserved because they cannot afford to pay the toll to cross the bridge erected by the gatekeepers to meter access to healthcare. If I were a negative person, I would believe that when someone objects to National Healthcare, it is because they have/can afford insurance in order to access care; The inefficient, expensive system we have is working for them, so why change? I am a positive, optimistic person…but even as such, I cannot articulate an alternate explanation in support of an obviously flawed system.
Rant over!!
Soooo… It wasn’t ALL about Docs in Chicago. There are family, friends and MANY favorite restaurants to attend to. And, while there, Liz’s family had a Celebration of life for her brother John. This was really nice – lots of family and friends and memories.
While we were in Chicago, the Thunder had a bit of a setback, and as such opened up a couple of weeks in our calendar that we had expected to spend in OKC. With the extra 2 weeks…we decided to make our way westward slowly, with the ultimate destination being Sturgis, SD for a BlueBird Rally over July 4. This rally had been scheduled for a couple years, and we had put a deposit in for a spot way back then. As the dates approached, upwards of 100 Old Buses registered, and we looked forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones.
Our path towards this destiny began in Dubuque, Ia, where we booked a week or so next to the Mississippi. We had no sooner arrived (like within 10 minutes of parking!), than a very ominous wall cloud bore down on us. We endured VIOLENT straight-line winds at 90° to the bus…VERY glad that Good Trouble weighs 45,000lbs. There were other RVs in the campground…more sheltered by the bluff and under old-growth trees than we were; their occupants mostly chose to ride out the storm in their cars/trucks away from the trailers. I was glad we were NOT sheltered, as there were a few damaged by falling trees. We later learned of the wind velocity – 100mph+ — as the NWS declared that this had been a Derecho.
We did have an issue from the storm with our awning, which had been fully closed and locked. The wind managed to defeat the lock and the awning opened about ½ way. It began flapping violently open and closed…banging loudly against the bus. I was able to open a window slightly and reach out and grab a support arm to hold it against the side of the bus.
This probably saved us from a destroyed awning and damage to the bus itself. We were very fortunate, actually…the awning was only slightly bent. The problem is, it could not be rolled back up, and we therefore could not travel with it in that condition.
Liz and I tried to do it using a 2×4 as a fulcrum against the bus in the center and then pushing against the ends to persuade the roller straight(er). Problem was, Liz weighs far less then me, due no doubt to unequal ice cream intake. As I pushed, she was pushed backwards off her feet, and no anti-bending was being done. Ultimately, we drafted a passerby on the nearby bike trail to help on her side, and we successfully straightened it enough to at least travel. More permanent repairs would be undertaken in Sturgis at the Rally.
Dubuque sits at a unique position on the river…to the south of the bridge is Illinois and to the north is Wisconsin. We used this to our favor… drove over to Wisconsin to obtain some Spotted Cow beer for the rally. Spotted Cow can only be obtained in Wisconsin, and several Rally Attendees asked for a shipment. Personally, I think the beer itself is overrated, but the adrenaline caused by smuggling and interstate transport of contraband makes it taste so much better! Adding to the experience…we acquired the mystical Spotted Cow at a grocery store in Dickeyville, just down the street from the “Grotto Shrine.” Making it not only contraband, but somehow morally enhanced, if not downright HOLY!
Storms have turned out to be THE THEME of our travel so far this summer. None have been quite as bad as the one in Dubuque in our immediate vicinity, but we have spent more than one evening carefully monitoring the weather radar. One storm happened while we were camping at a Harvest Host .. a Brewery!!! Bummer, having to hunker down in a Brewery for safety!!! In Sturgis, the National Fireworks Extravaganza at Mt. Rushmore was impacted by significant hail (we were NOT in attendance…more on July 4, later). As I write this, we are stopped for a day in the small town of Huron, SD, which had a HUGE storm last week. Two tornados reported (in Sturgis we really missed all that excitement). Lots of Metal Grain Bins destroyed, lots of trees down, lots of cleanup going on.
In South Dakota (and Wyoming and Montana), there is a saying: Don’t pet the Fluffy Cows (referring to tourists who enjoy engaging with Bison). We have a new saying: Watch out for Marshmallow Clouds (Mammatocumulus).
It wasn’t all about storms, though. We spent a week in Sioux Falls, SD, and really enjoyed it. They have some GREAT Bike trails, which we fully enjoyed.
One day, we started riding, and did the loop all the way around town. About in the middle, Liz asked: “How far are we going?” Usually, much to Liz’s chagrin, it’s a lot farther than expected because I don’t really look at the map too carefully. This time, I responded: “We have E-bikes, why do you care?!” For the record the distance was ¾ Battery (or 22 miles).
While in Sioux Falls, we watched the opening of the Obama Center in Chicago on TV…VERY inspirational and made us very proud to be from Chicago! And, being distinctly in a Chicago Frame of mind, what a happy accident that Lil’ Ed and The Blues Imperials, a Chicago band, was playing at the Levitt Center in Downtown Sioux Falls…For free! Storms were coming (of course!) but expected later so we grabbed a Sammy and a couple chairs and enjoyed a magical evening on the lawn!
Liz sez, “It is coming from the steering wheel!!!”
While in Sioux Falls, we developed a bit of car trouble. Just a bit. Sitting at a light — Liz smells smoke. I smell Smoke. I Think it is from outside. Liz sez, “It is coming from the steering wheel!!!” Liz was ready to bail out in the middle of traffic! Well, I got pulled over…the smoke had stopped, I felt no hot wires and everything was working. And it hasn’t happened since. But, the car is having intermittent electrical issues (for example, nothing happens when the key is turned every now and then), and Liz just doesn’t trust it. So, we now carry a fire extinguisher on board, and will probably buy a new(ish) car this fall. We have been talking to other RVers and looked at a few options in Sturgis… I think we are most interested in a small truck like a Ford Maverick or Ranger. I figure the VERY BEST place to buy a truck is in Texas; hence the idea to wait until the fall. Unless the car burns to the ground first!
So onwards and westwards, TOWING the car (all electric off!). More in the next post!
