Was what I did wrong?

In general I go to my primary care for that sort of thing, and my GI doctor for gut problems. Don't be hard on yourself if there was a misunderstanding, but try to head to a regular physician for flu/cold issues.

Hope you're feeling better :)

Thanks, Thoreau. I just figured I'd go see my doc since he was the one to prescribe me the steroids and also because the cold and flu stemmed from there. I was just afraid to go see a GP for it since I was dealing with steroids. That's all.

Thank you, Quincy. I see him in another two weeks. I guess I just figured that I'd go and see him for it since the problems did stem from the steroids and since this sort of drug was involved I got scared and didn't want another doctor to mess with the situation.

Thank you for your advice - appreciate it :) My doc is Asian, so he didn't bring it up. I mentioned earlier up above in my second reply that he did seem ticked off but didn't say anything. He's actually a trainee doc. I'll ask him next time what I should do if it happens again.

It does depend on what blood tests I would think...the person handing you the paper should clarify..again, not YOUR fault.

Best to ask your doc for sure, but complain a tad about the rudeness of the nurse who questioned you in an accusingly way. They put you in on the appointment page, correct?
Not like you pushed your way in and plopped yourself there.

q

I'm sorry but if I need something, if I'm hurting, if I'm sick and I'm under the care of a doctor...any doctor, and putting my health and life if his hands I expect to be treated WELL! I demand it. I would not take that from nurses or doctors. I would speak up and ask what the problem was. No need to be nasty about it but...bring it up to him! Ask him if he was in some way offended by your being sick and going to the hospital (sounds ironic, no?). Explain that you thought that was the right thing to do. Maybe you don't have a PCP?

Your health and well being are the most important things and you should not let a doctor (whom is getting paid very well to be rude) walk all over you. Take control of your health and life.

When I lived in Dallas, my GI handled everything that had to do with my health- I moved to Kansas City, and I have about 5 different doctors, It scares me frankly. Ive had 2 major medication
problems, and it seems like the right hand doesnt know what the left hand is doing. I would very much rather have one Doctor. It just seems ridiculous that every Dr has to have a piece.

Why would I get sent from my GP, to a urologist to find out I had a kidney infection? Why cant the GP just dip test for blood/protien and go from there? Its absolutely rediculous-

Carlie

The steroids are not so much immune suppressors as real immune suppressors are. The slight increased risk of a cold (or flu) is generally not a reason to go back to the GI. But I would make sure that my GP knew about the steroids - and why. IF I got a sinus or throat infection secondary to the cold, I would nto let the GP prescribe any antibiotics without 1st calling the GI to determine what will/will-not cause me to flare.

Nurses/staff should give information or suggestions politely, but patients have a responsibility to politely ask followup questions. If you are unsure exactly what is being said or if someone is annoyed, just ask. IT is good to ask us (here online) if some actions seem unnecessary, but it is *great* to ask the medical practitioners involved.

Post Edited (DBwithUC) : 8/8/2012 2:48:41 PM (GMT-6)

I am sorry you were treated rudley.  That is never fun but seems worse when we don't feel well.

Did you make an appointment or were you just a walk-in?  I ask because if you made an appointment and told them you thought you had the flu then they should have directed you to a family pracitce clinic instead of making the appointment with the GI to start with.  I work in a large healthcare organization and don't know any GI's who would treat someone for a cold/flu.  They would all direct their patients to their PCP or to a walk-in clinic.  It is strange that they agreed to see you to start with but if they did then they should have treated you.

If you were just a walk-in patient (without an appointment) then the nurse or front desk staff member should have been polite and told you up front that the GI does not treat patients for that.

Sorry this happened.  You didn't know so you didn't do anything wrong but in the future you should probably go to a general doctor for things like colds/flus and infections that are not GI related.  Even if you are on immune supressing meds a general practioner can treat you as well if not better than a GI for these things. 

 

I would have gone to my GP as well if it was head, nose, throat type symptoms. I would have told the GP what I was on. Then, once prescribed things, I would have definitely called my GI's office to make sure none of the drugs would have a negative impact on my UC and treatment. I also have developed high BP (most likely the result of using steroids for a year at varying doses) and even though it is likely caused by my UC treatment, my GI told me to go to my GP for this issue. I just flat out asked "Should I have this dealt with? Who should I go to for this?" I've also gone to my GP for a strange rash (which turned out to be shingles) - once again my IBD treatment made me more susceptible to this. So all in all, if it does not involve your "insides" - abdomen, stomach, etc. then you might want to call your GP first. The exception is if you think you have a fever/chills/etc. from your UC (as in, you don't have any other symptoms that indicate a standard cold/flu). If the local hospital is too expensive, you might try an Urgent Care (I'm guessing that you are US based in this instance). At any rate, if I were prescribed anything new from anybody, I would call my GI's office and make sure it was appropriate for my UC and given my current UC treatment.

I HAVE called my GI when I've had stomach related issues that may or may not have been the flu. I was throwing up uncontrollably every hour. Since it involved my digestive system I called my GI's office. They prescribed me several drugs. I've also called when I've had new/different abdominal pain. I've also called for generalized fatigue and extreme dizziness, worried that I was anemic or dehydrated from the UC.

I will tell you that I was treated badly over the phone one time. I had received some meds for my shingles and called my GI's office to make sure they were ok for me to take. In addition, I wanted to make sure they were strong enough since I was on Remicade. So I can definitely be understood about your concern for being immune suppressed. The nurse kind of snapped at me and said "the prescribing physician should make sure your drugs are ok to take. Call the GP or the pharmacy" - I admit it kind of shut me down. I couldn't even explain what I meant - I didn't need to check for drug interactions - rather I needed to check if they were ok for me to take given that I have UC and was immune suppressed. Those reactions can make you feel AWFUL - and I consider myself a a person not afraid to ask questions/etc. When I talked to the nurse later the same day or the next day, she was much nicer to me. Your appt may have been a one time incident, I wouldn't read too much into it. I'm not excusing their behavior, but maybe it was a bad day in the office? If their behavior continues, then maybe be concerned. At any rate, she should not have snapped at you. And maybe your doctor was looking at you to see if you had any other questions or needed anything else? I sometimes wonder how in the world they keep track of all of the information they need to keep track of. Your current test results, your previous test results, potential treatments, what you've been on already, how you are progressing, the questions you are asking at the time, what they are going to prescribe to you next, etc. So, don't read too much into his reaction either.

I echo the sentiments made earlier - you see your GI ALOT. I'm not sure your extent of disease, but I only see my GI every other week when I'm really really bad. Get out of the hospital - an appt. two weeks later. I had abnormal blood work in the ER one time (pancreas/liver) and I was seen by my GI the next day. When I changed meds drastically (i.e. from Lialda to Imuran; from Imuran to Remicade) - I had two to three week follow-ups. I can't tell you how many medication adjustments I've made via phone calls (up prednisone, lower prednisone, add back enemas, etc.). I have very uncontrollable UC though - so that's why I'm in the office so much. Driving an hour each direction for each appointment has got to be tiring! Especially if your disease is causing fatigue and other issues. But I guess if that's when he wants to meet then that's when he wants to meet.

Thanks, everyone, for your comments. Appreciate it. I guess it's just been a bit difficult for me here and a lot of getting used to. When I lived in the states, I had a stable doctor for 3 years (I went to see other doctors but nobody knew what my problem was until I saw him), and with this doctor, I only saw once in like 5 months or so, and was able to get my prescribed meds from a local pharmacy 24/7. I then had to move to Asia and things are very different here. You have to be seen in order to get your meds, and on top of that, my current doctor is a trainee so he's transferring out next year, so I have to fond myself a new doctor which kind of sucks since I actually think this one is good. Anyway, I kind of went off topic, but that's how it is here.

When I had hemmorhoids, I asked him if he could refer me to a specialist and he said no because it involves UC (the hospital actually has a dept. just for patients who suffer from hemmies. Anyway, since he seemed like the kind of doctor who liked to handle everything and also since he's the one who prescribed me the pred I thought I'd just go see him for it. I guess I just wanted to know how others viewed my situation. Thanks again, though. It helps to get various perspectives :)

Penny you live and learn. And nurses sometimes can be very rude and harsh mainly because they are mostly overworking and stressed. I have many friends nurses and it's a very hard job however most of them deep down are really kind and care about patients.

You can surely see a gp for cold and flu. And do not worry about the prednisone treatment as all gps are very aware of this medication and they used steroids in many occasions. So no doubt they would be able to assist a cold or flu medication that doesnt interfere with your treatment.

I see a nurse practitionner for mainly everything except my colonoscopies and UC flares. Then again she's the one who prescribes me my medication for my uc because im on the 5ASA. If I had a bad flare up I can call my GI, see him and then in accordance to my gp or nurse practitionner we would seek other treatments.

Twice a month is a lot to see a GI especially you need to give it a bit of time when you test a new medication for your flare. Id say you need at least a month to judge if you see improvements if not 2-3 months sometimes.

Don't be affected too much by it. Next time you see your GI just say to the nurse you didnt know about the situation and you found a clinic next to your house.