Migraine

Hey there JJ,

While both my wife and I are sorry about how that Doc treated you and agree that a letter should be written, we agree with Teri 110%.

If you are having the WORST headache of your LIFE that you really should go to the ER as soon as possible.

My wife has gone through two brain surgeries for aneurysms and with the first one had she not gone to the ER she would be dead. To this day when I speak or write about what my wife went through I get chills and all choked up.

I am not saying that the way the Doctor treated you was right but I am saying that I agree with the Doc that the ER is a better place to go when you are having the worst headache of your life.

Another point and case before I go check on my wife....

About a year ago someone we know took their Mom to the Urgent Care because she was having the worst headache in her life, vomiting, confusion etc...

By the time they got there (the ER would have been closer) his Mom was in acoma. He whispered to the Doctor that if his mom was NOT going to make it to blink his eyes twice (so that his mom couldn't hear) and when the Doctor blinked twice our friend's heart sank.

Urgent care arranged for the paramedics to come and transport her to the hospital for any possible treatment but by the time she arrived she had passed on.

Our friend has a lot of guilt and all we can do is console him and assure him that he did what he thought was right. In an odd way there was some comfort when the Neurosurgeon told Him that even if he had taken her to the ER she most likely would have passed on shortly after arrival.

Bottom line is if you are truly having the worst headache of your life then please get to the nearest ER right away. Even if that means calling 911.

Peace,

Dave

Tracie,

Currently there are only 43 states, plus the District of Columbia, that have some version of a Patient's Bill of Rights. Unfortunately there is no federal Patient Bill of Rights.

quote:

Originally posted by tracieB:
It's a great thing you filed a complaint with the hospital regarding your inadequate ER care. Did you know that in order to treat Medicare and Medicaid patients, hospitals are required to be certified by an organization known as JCAHO? One of the things they must accept as part of their certification is the patient's Bill of Rights which INCLUDES the right to adequate pain relief. Your rights were violated! The hospital should follow this up, or they run a chance that you might file a complaint with JCAHO, the Joint Commission of Hospital Accredition. When a patient is mistreated so often as we migraineurs are, it's a least some small consolation that the doctor doesn't have the law on his side. I've actually invoked my patient rights a couple of times. Can't say I had a happy doctor, but I had a letter from my neurologist, so deserved to get my drugs, and frankly I don't care if his feelings were hurt!!!!!

tj

Welcome to the forum, ELFTRN. We're glad you found us.

I get an MRI/MRA every year....so when I get a headache that is as bad as I've ever had them....I don't always feel the need to go to the ER. I feel like they'd be doing imaging every month!! I don't know what to do sometimes!

I'm just the opposite; while the ER is one of my least favorite places to be, especially when I'm in so much pain I'm carrying a roll of toilet paper around to catch my tears and blow my nose; I know that I need to be there when the pain is severe.

quote:

I get an MRI/MRA every year....so when I get a headache that is as bad as I've ever had them....I don't always feel the need to go to the ER.

I am so on the same page with you on this one! For some reason my migraines tend to flare up after midnight so I am usually forced to go to the ER at night and while I was pregnant recently with my daughter I was not allowed to be on my Topamax or my Maxalt so my ER visits became even more frequent because I had lots of migraines and dehydrantion from vomiting. To make a long story short, the doctors in my ER here treat me like ####! Just recently I was refused fluids or even a steroid injection. They gave me an oral Zofran when I had been vomiting for 12 hours and sent me out the door with level 9 pain. Even when they call my PCP and he tells them that I am NOT a drug seeker like they assume, and that I am truly a sick girl who needs treatment for a disease that keeps me in dire pain..they still treat me like a leper. I feel for you, I truly do. It's even worse when they won't treat you when you have a child and a husband that has to leave you for work. They can't help it, they have to work and you have to take care for your child..but the doctor doesn't care. All they care about is covering their own backsides. But, I really hope you're feeling better!

Please do all you can to let this doctor's bosses know that this type of treatment of you is NOT acceptable. Migraine pain is totally under treated and appreciated here in America and it needs to be more recognized.


Edited by moderator. Please remember to use family friendly language. Thank you.

That is truely shocking treatment. No on else who has any other type of pain but migraine/headache has to put up with such poor pain relief and "attitude". And what do they think you live on if they can't accept that your husband needs to get to work. I bet doctors are all full of "everyone should work and not bludge off the system" but when a patient pushes for treatment so they and or someone else can work which their condition is stopping it's a different story.
Anyhow I do encourage you to complain to the bosses.
Hugs DJ

We have a form your doctor can fill out that may help with your next visit to the ER. Emergency Migraine and Headache Care - Forms To Help

quote:

Originally posted by Mommabear:
I am so on the same page with you on this one! For some reason my migraines tend to flare up after midnight so I am usually forced to go to the ER at night and while I was pregnant recently with my daughter I was not allowed to be on my Topamax or my Maxalt so my ER visits became even more frequent because I had lots of migraines and dehydrantion from vomiting. To make a long story short, the doctors in my ER here treat me like crap! Just recently I was refused fluids or even a steroid injection. They gave me an oral Zofran when I had been vomiting for 12 hours and sent me out the door with level 9 pain. Even when they call my PCP and he tells them that I am NOT a drug seeker like they assume, and that I am truly a sick girl who needs treatment for a disease that keeps me in dire pain..they still treat me like a leper. I feel for you, I truly do. It's even worse when they won't treat you when you have a child and a husband that has to leave you for work. They can't help it, they have to work and you have to take care for your child..but the doctor doesn't care. All they care about is covering their own backsides. But, I really hope you're feeling better!

Please do all you can to let this doctor's bosses know that this type of treatment of you is NOT acceptable. Migraine pain is totally under treated and appreciated here in America and it needs to be more recognized.