Kaiser Permamente– getting that doctor
Hi All:<br>I went to a lecture for Pacific
Bariatric (a surgery group in San Diego) a few weeks ago
and was totally sold on WLS. I finally had hope after
all these years of being so fat. I found out at the
lecture that I qualify without question per Kaiser’s
standards (BMI 50+) and that I don’t need any documented
comorbidities. The panel at the seminar said all I needed was a
referral from Kaiser to their group. Well my OBGYN was my
primary care provider for the past 3 years. I made an
appt with him and found out he can’t refer me, it has
to be a general medicine doctor. Well so I signed up
for a general medicine doctor and he didn’t have any
appointments open for 2 months. So I switched to another one
and same thing– no appts for 2 months. So I
complained and got an appointment to be squeezed in. When I
saw him, he wouldn’t even look at my paperwork. He
just referred me to Kaiser’s weight watchers program
called Healthy Ways. They want $125 for me to join a
group that I know already won’t work for me. So I
changed doctors again and this time to a woman. She was
very compassionate and said she didn’t have a problem
referring me and that she would refer me either to Pacific
Bariatric or to Kaiser’s surgery group in Redwood City. I
was so relieved and joyful that I cried. The next day
I got a call from her saying that after some
thought, she wanted to see me for a year before referring
me because I wasn’t the smallest patient she’s ever
seen. The largest was 700lbs+ and compared to that I’m
little. Also I’ve only been morbidly obese for 8 years
and this surgery should only be used for people
who’ve been morbidly obese for decades. She then also
referred me to this Healthy Ways thing and told me she was
referring me to a shrink for behavioral therapy and for my
crying in front of her. DOES ANYONE ELSE THINK THIS IS
DISCRIMINATION?!?!?!? I e-mailed the online lawyer "Obesity Advocacy"
but he never contacted me. I called him and got a
recording that he’s flooded with business and he’ll get to
you when he gets to you. What should I do next?
Should I try going to patient advocacy?
April 13th, 2003 at 10:13 am
I would definately try to get yet another doctor.
ha ha… She has probably never had a
Waiting two months for an appt. may sound like a lot of
time, but if that is the only way, then I would do it.
What did she mean "this surgery should only be used
for people who’ve been morbidly obese for
decades"?!?!?!?<br>I am having my surgery in five days and I am only
2.3 decades old, ( and have only been obese for about
five years)!
weight problem, right? I cried in front of my referring
physician too. It is just a natural emotion. Especially
when trying to talk about the emotional strain of
being obese.<br>Keep trying… Don’t give up and don’t
let them get to you. I would keep trying different
doctors and maybe try a different lawyer. Sometimes if
you go in person, they won’t put you off as if it
were just a phone call. Good Luck and God
Bless!<br><br>Lisa Boone<br>23 yrs. old (5′11") (304lbs)<br>RNY
scheduled for July 13<br>Approved July 1 from Tricare Prime