Shout Out to our Ab Health Care System

[Zip-in-Z]

Got to love our health care system in Central Ab, here’s my story.

My Doc moved from Sylvan just over 1 year ago, while reading the local paper, there was a notice that two new Doc’s are accepting patients. Made the call scheduled a phone consult with a nurse for July 30th, she called me on the promised day/time, spent 15-20 min in a Q&A, helping build a profile, at the end of the call she said I was accepted and I have a new Doc in Sylvan …. Hooray!

Since May, I’ve been experiencing on & off headaches/migraines or days when it’s just pressure like when your ball cap is too tight, made some routine adjustments, no booze, went to 1 decaf coffee, 8-9 glasses of water, more sleep & still walk 12-14 miles a week on the golf course, but very little to no improvements.

On Aug 31st I call the Doc’s office for an appointment, surprised to get in on Sept 03, spent ½ hour with him checking me out & answering Q’s. He sent me for blood work got in this Thursday morning Sept 10th , also said to get my vision checked got in the same afternoon for eye dilation test in R/D.

This morning R/D Hospital called and said they have a MRI cancellation for tomorrow, Sept 9th at 4:00, so I grabbed it.

Must be good karma or someone in higher places is looking after me. I see a new Doc on Sept 03rd & getting all this done in 4 working days.

Hope my story has a good ending & it’s nothing serious, my health care experience here in a small community next to Red Deer has been amazing.

Cheers

David

[Dean2]

Even though you really hate Trump I still hope you are okay. All the best and glad the system worked so well for you.

[sns2]

Great to see a glass half full story. Right on!

[Zip-in-Z]

Originally Posted by Dean2

Even though you really hate Trump I still hope you are okay. All the best and glad the system worked so well for you.

Trump .... hahaha .... but tks that's kind of you to reply.

D.

[oneshotkillshot]

Originally Posted by Zip-in-Z

Got to love our health care system in Central Ab, here’s my story.

My Doc moved from Sylvan just over 1 year ago, while reading the local paper, there was a notice that two new Doc’s are accepting patients. Made the call scheduled a phone consult with a nurse for July 30th, she called me on the promised day/time, spent 15-20 min in a Q&A, helping build a profile, at the end of the call she said I was accepted and I have a new Doc in Sylvan …. Hooray!

Since May, I’ve been experiencing on & off headaches/migraines or days when it’s just pressure like when your ball cap is too tight, made some routine adjustments, no booze, went to 1 decaf coffee, 8-9 glasses of water, more sleep & still walk 12-14 miles a week on the golf course, but very little to no improvements.

On Aug 31st I call the Doc’s office for an appointment, surprised to get in on Sept 03, spent ½ hour with him checking me out & answering Q’s. He sent me for blood work got in this Thursday morning Sept 10th , also said to get my vision checked got in the same afternoon for eye dilation test in R/D.

This morning R/D Hospital called and said they have a MRI cancellation for tomorrow, Sept 9th at 4:00, so I grabbed it.

Must be good karma or someone in higher places is looking after me. I see a new Doc on Sept 03rd & getting all this done in 4 working days.

Hope my story has a good ending & it’s nothing serious, my health care experience here in a small community next to Red Deer has been amazing.

Cheers

David

Good to hear some good news once and awhile! Definitely hats off to the health care workers forsure, could imagine having to wear a mask all day while your working or having to be so careful, yikes!

[barbless]

Congrats to you and your timing. Hats off to the health services for being able to get you in. Hope they figure it out and nothing serious.

[Ken07AOVette]

Little victories David, we take them and stack them up until they become a big one.

Wishing you the best of luck.

[tirebob]

People can say what they want about our system and I will never pretend like it operates even remotely close to perfectly, but when the chips are down and something might be a serious thing and not solely discomfort or inconvenience, all my own personal experiences for myself and those close to me have been nothing but fabulous.

I am glad it is working for you Zip!

[barbless]

Originally Posted by tirebob

People can say what they want about our system and I will never pretend like it operates even remotely close to perfectly, but when the chips are down and something might be a serious thing and not solely discomfort or inconvenience, all my own personal experiences for myself and those close to me have been nothing but fabulous.

I am glad it is working for you Zip!

Could not have said it better.

[Zip-in-Z]

The purpose of starting this thread was to recognize & thank our AB Health Care System professionals, from the people at the front counter to the Doc's, nurses, lab staff, & specialists that made me feel like a person not a number and all this has happened in less than a week, I feel blessed to be living here in Ab & thought my experience was worth sharing.

As well, many tks for the warm wishes, that was unexpected, but appreciated.

Edit: Getting in a green meeting in the morning and a MRI in the afternoon, they said I don't need to do anything but show up, I will be looked after.

Cheers

David

[Savage Bacon]

That's great to hear. It's nice when your end of the stick isn't covered in crap once in a while.

[Iron Brew]

I've always felt this way about our health system. I'm biased, but I've needed to use emerg more than I care to admit and they have always been great. I've seen a lot of people in those emerge's that don't get the word "triage". All the nurses and doctors and support staff have been excellent. I'm sure there are bad circumstances but I like to think they are the exception.

[Zip-in-Z]

Since my first post, I had my blood work & Popsicle stick FIT test, eye dilation test & CT Scan, all within 1 week. Nurse called last week to set up a phone consult with my Doc, she sent me a link to the Ab. Health Portal were all my test results were posted all within a few days, didn't know they did this ... another wow.

Had a chance to study up and spoke to the Doc this morning, he said my potassium level was a bit high at 5.3 and wants a re-test but everything else was normal and very good. Was pleased to see my good/bad Cholesterol & PSA numbers were low. The eye exam found no changes from last year and the CT scan concluded there was NO intracranial abnormality to explain the patients symptoms, or in other words he's brainless ?

What a relief no major issues & having access to my test data was a bonus, it was all there & in plain english. So the Doc suggested it may be a sinus problem which could cause a tension headache or perhaps I need some physio/massage therapy and uploaded a letter on the Portal & sent an R/X for nasal spray to my Pharmacy, who called me about 2 hours later and said it was ready for pick-up .... great service.

I recently qualified for Ab. Blue Cross, gave the pharmacist my card he said, he needed to print off a new receipt, the R/X price went down from $18.05 to $1.43 ... another example of our excellent AB. health care benefits/system looking after us.

Still feeling blessed to live in Alberta.

Cheers

David

[Hawkeye]

I had really bad sciatica (pain on the back of my legs) that progressed to the point where I was using a cane for several weeks and thinking about a walker.
I got linked with a fantastic surgeon who really advocated on my behalf. I was scheduled for surgery mid-March, lost the date due to COVID, but my surgeon got me worked in and I had my surgery in mid-May.

In my lower back, I had narrowing of the hollow part of the bodies of two vertebrae, so they did a 'roto-rooter' job to remove some bone and create room for the nerves. When I recovered from anesthesia, I could feel my legs, but they did not hurt and they have not hurt since. I was on some heavy duty pain relief, that was very quickly stepped down and after 2.5 weeks, I needed nothing for pain. So, I went from barely able to move to being able to move without pain.

To say that I am PROFOUNDLY GRATEFUL is an understatement. Of course, everyone's situation is different and not everyone has my experience. Over the years, I have had surgery for cancer (and a lot of diagnostics, but no other treatment) and a ruptured appendix. So, I have had some experiences in the medical care system.

Two things that I think are really critical are to:
1) advocate for yourself, or have someone else do that for you,
2) be very generous with your praise when something goes well.

Stay healthy and well
Hawkeye

[270person]

Sinus infection Maybe? Been having those issues myself. Migrates into my eyes and causes big time pain. I'm prone to them huge and they're bloody awful.

[Bushmaster]

Zip, good to hear things are working out.

In the last 7 years I have had prostate cancer (requiring 2 months of radiation), open heart surgery and 3 stents installed. And I have nothing but good to say about how I was treated.

Well, OK, except for the morning I came to after my surgery !! The nurse who came in to check on me accidently kicked my catheter tube !! LOL

[Zip-in-Z]

Pleased to read all the positive stories & tks for sharing, hope others here who are feeling somethings not right go see a Doc .... our health care system surprisingly works and a tip of the hat to all those who work in or support the medical community.

D.

[RandyBoBandy]

Originally Posted by Zip-in-Z

Since my first post, I had my blood work & Popsicle stick FIT test, eye dilation test & CT Scan, all within 1 week. Nurse called last week to set up a phone consult with my Doc, she sent me a link to the Ab. Health Portal were all my test results were posted all within a few days, didn't know they did this ... another wow.

Had a chance to study up and spoke to the Doc this morning, he said my potassium level was a bit high at 5.3 and wants a re-test but everything else was normal and very good. Was pleased to see my good/bad Cholesterol & PSA numbers were low. The eye exam found no changes from last year and the CT scan concluded there was NO intracranial abnormality to explain the patients symptoms, or in other words he's brainless ?

What a relief no major issues & having access to my test data was a bonus, it was all there & in plain english. So the Doc suggested it may be a sinus problem which could cause a tension headache or perhaps I need some physio/massage therapy and uploaded a letter on the Portal & sent an R/X for nasal spray to my Pharmacy, who called me about 2 hours later and said it was ready for pick-up .... great service.

I recently qualified for Ab. Blue Cross, gave the pharmacist my card he said, he needed to print off a new receipt, the R/X price went down from $18.05 to $1.43 ... another example of our excellent AB. health care benefits/system looking after us.

Still feeling blessed to live in Alberta.

Cheers

David

I used to have severe sinus issues that would feel like a screw driver stuck in the head...every time I had a sinus issue was due to a TOOTH issue...Get your Dentist to check you out

[GummyMonster]

Good to see some positive stories about our HealthCare system.
Unfortunately for me, I have had a huge amount of interaction with the medical community in Alberta through much of my life.
Bad experiences have been rare. To the point I can remember almost all of them.
I shake my head and laugh inside at many peoples reactions. It's common to see people complaining about wait times at Emergency, or the doctor's office. A lot of these start around the 20 minutes of waiting mark, and get worse from there.
My thoughts are this, and I tell people this when appropriate. We could easily be living somewhere with little to no healthcare , which is common in the world , or somewhere that health problems will ruin you financially.
Sitting in a heated / air conditioned building for an hour to get your health straightened out is not what I would call a big , life altering problem.
To the O.P. - glad things are working out for you. They'll get you all tuned up.
Ken

[KegRiver]

I am glad things are looking up for you.

I also have received great health care in the past few years.

Some years ago a not so impressive doctor said I had interstitial lung disease.
Then a new doctor arrived in town. He ordered tests that showed I did not have the disease but that my lungs were badly scared. No one seems to know why.

I was put on an effective treatment program that allows me to live a fairly normal life, with the condition.

Next this new doctor diagnosed me with Diabetes, once I got my blood sugar down to safe levels life improved even more.

Then last winter I had a heart attack that set me back to where I had been. That is struggling to get things done.

But through it all the health care system has been awesome. Beyond the treatment, they take my situation very seriously,they provide me with helpful information, they keep me informed and treat me with respect and concern at all times.
I couldn't be happier with the care I have received in recent years.

We've had a lot of very questionable doctors in this town over the years.
Now we have two very good doctors and a hospital staff that are the best.