Wednesday, November 09, 2005

Finally

This is not theWife's kneeToday is the day. I am taking theWife to the hospital late this morning, so that she can have her knee operated on. Does it sound like I'm relieved that it's finally going to happen? I am.

Seven months, and 2,600 miles, ago, I was at work going about my normal daily routines when my phone rang. Expecting to hear theWife's voice on the other end, I answered the call. theWife's voice was not on the phone, however, it was an employee of hers. She told me that theWife was hurt and needed to go to the hospital. I rushed over to her work.

It turned out that theWife was coming down a ladder and missed the last step. She landed on her knee and has been dealing with the pain, doctors, physical therapy and workman's comp ever since. Had her boss not been such a stress monger and been able to handle a couple of people being in their store, he wouldn't have needed to yell for her help while she was getting up on the ladder to get at a heavy piece of stock. But, that's why they make workman's comp.

For the next few months, doctor's continually checked theWife's knee and continually recommended an MRI be done. Workman's comp had other ideas however. They denied the MRI each time and replied that physical therapy would be all she needed. It took us moving 2,600 miles away and getting a new doctor, before workman's comp finally approved of theWife getting an MRI. But the fun didn't end there, no sir.

The first doctor that read her MRI told her that the only thing they could do was pain management and physical therapy. He then said that he didn't like to take on long term cases, which is what theWife's would be. I think it more likely that the jerk didn't want to have to deal with an out-of-state workman's comp case.

The next doctor read the MRI, the very same MRI, and came to the conclusion that there is a tear in theWife's cartiledge surrounding her knee. This was good news. It doesn't sound like good news, but it was. It was fixable. Then he suggested arthroscopic knee surgery, an outpatient proceedure with about a 6 week recovery time. This sounded much better than years and years of pain management and physical therapy, don't you think?

Thankfully workman's comp approved the surgery and we will be going in later this morning for theWife to have the operation she has needed for the last seven months. Rehab can then begin and with any luck, theWife will be out on the slopes with us in no time.

Daily Links:
Copy Goes Here, it's a movie...get it?
Argh, why didn't we be having this technology in our days, argh.

Have you ever watched something and then thought to yourself that was a waste of time...
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2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Without years and years of pain management just how do you expect the pharmaceutical companys to survive...

Anonymous said...

Mike,
What's up? Sorry about those Indians this past season. I was routing for them and even wrote a story on them. Listen, as far as the Workers Comp thing, I am on it here in Chicago for a fall in my office. Does your wife have a lawyer? I got one right away because my old company gave me the run around and kept me from getting care.
If you don't have one, email me and we can talk....it was the best decision that I made to get counsel.
Hope that she is better.
Chris

Nice Blog too!!