The Burden of Getting Medical Care Can Exhaust Older Patients

My Family Health Clinic has a Doctor of Pharmacy on staff.
We had a 45 minute appointment to review my prescription meds (just two) and the 10 or so supplements I was taking. Her knowledge was remarkable. She felt everything was safe, but after some thought I dropped several of the supplements.
The Urgent Care unit is right next to the Family Health Clinic.
Where we lived before, these services were available, but it took driving to different locations in heavy traffic.

I find my PCP at Mayo Clinic Jacksonville outstanding. He will refer me to a specialist not because he is not knowledgeable of the issue but wants the very best and experience medical professional for me. I have never had any issues with being referred to a specialist at Mayo by my PCP.

When I need to see PCP ASAP and my PCP is not available Mayo Jacksonville does what they call Acute Appointment and they will see you that day or next with available doctor or P.A. Mayo Jacksonville has so many outstanding specialists you cannot find a better medical institution for medical care.

Mayo Jacksonville also offers those battling or recovering from cancer to have the manage your appointments and care. I would do this if my PCP was not so outstanding. He calls me at home many times to clarify and check up on me.

@zin85 mentioned a significant factor in dealing with all that we're talking about. Depression and other mental health challenges compound any medical conditions one faces, with all of the hurdles and hoops. It can easily make a person want to give up. It's just too overwhelming.

I'm totally blessed with a bunch of good doctors - some are even great - and blessed to have insurance that covers 100%. Even if I did have to get old to get it. Medicare and a supplement are way cheaper than Blue Cross Blue Shield!

I would be lost without my phone. It's my external memory, between the calendar and Evernote. If it isn't written down it either didn't or won't happen. Right? I have my med list, insurance numbers, and questions for my numerous doctors, etc. in the palm of my hand. Makes my life organized if not always fun.

Each of my doctors has my list of medications, and most of the time it works. Unfortunately my urologist didn't make the connection between my meds and treatment and what he prescribed as an antibiotic. It was catastrophic. And it still is. My life has been on hold since Christmas, when Levofloxacin caused both of my Achilles tendons to rupture. Frustrating waiting for an MRI that got cancelled, making me wait yet again to get going with surgery. Some day it will be a memory. Right now, in the middle of it, wearing braces on both legs, using a walker - talk about making me feel old - it's a lot to take in. As I said, I'm thankful for the great and not so great doctors in my cor

Corner.

I hate it when I bump the edge of my phone and lose everything I wrote. At least this time it just ended my message.

Jim

I too suffer from depression and it does make navigating the medical world twice as difficult.
I’m so sorry you had that reaction to an antibiotic. I sometimes am prescribed Cipro for diverticulitis. I’m always afraid that my tendons will be damaged.
Hope the best for you in your recovery! ❤️‍🩹

I have a case manager with my insurance company. They will sort everything out for you. Find doctors, help fill out paperwork, etc.

I have been asked to get a (Medicare) “Wellness” appointment. Any advice on that? I am not looking forward to it.

Sometimes they do the memory test....
I'll say four words. Then a bit later I'll ask you to recall them.

linh,
Asked by whom?
Nothing to fear, I think.
I do know that Medicare asks GPs to do a mental status check annually. I have had it. Usually, the doctor will ask a few simple questions to ascertain if you have depression, anxiety or memory loss.
Then they will give you four words to remember and ask you what they are five minutes later.

Thank you for the heads up. I will try to get a good nights sleep beforehand and eat an extra good protein like chicken the night before. I will also bring testing showing that when I was young I was far better at remembering long sentences than single words. If the doctor doesn’t have a baseline how can they measure decline? My father was very gifted with math. When he was tested in his 90s he had dropped into the normal range!