Connect
← Return to Need Help With Asking PCP Again for a Referral to a Specialist
Discussion
Need Help With Asking PCP Again for a Referral to a Specialist
Diabetes & Endocrine System | Last Active: Mar 7, 2021 | Replies (75)Comment receiving replies
Always glad to hear from you, @sunnyflower. Yes, I am doing well; have had the 2nd Moderna Covid vacc and my pcp agreed to place a referral to the endocrinologist for me. Nurse called back yesterday to say that my annual lab report would be mailed and that I might get a referral appt. in a couple of weeks. Things are looking up. Hope you are doing well too?
Weather is playing havoc across the U.S. so hope you and all are staying as well, safe, dry and warm as possible!
Replies to "Always glad to hear from you, @sunnyflower. Yes, I am doing well; have had the 2nd..."
Connect
So glad you got the referral!! I'm surprised you can't get your lab results online through secure messaging like I do. Hope this endo is a perfect fit for you and that you get some clarity on the direction you want or feel you should take. Unfortunately, working in patient care for over 20 years and being a patient myself for longer than that, I've learned that everything in medicine is a risk/benefit ratio and often seems like a no-win. A tool proven valuable in my life for making decisions is to write the pros/benefits and cons/risks to a situation such as whether or not to take a medication for example. Make a pro/benefit column and a con/risk column. So you may have 8 pros/benefits in that column and maybe less or more cons/risks in that column. Then assign each pro/benefit and con/risk in their columns, a numerical value of meaning or importance to you. Then add up the scores at the ends of each column and you will be able to see which direction to go. If the pros/benefits outweigh the cons/risks, then you would take the medication. If the cons outweigh pros/benefits, then you would not take the medication. We just have to hope and pray for the best outcomes b/c our decisions will never be without some risk and even the pros/benefits can be uncertain. We can only do the best we can do.
As I mentioned quite some time ago, I had a total of three endocrinologists who wanted to start me on IV bisphosphonates, starting over 5 years ago and then 2 who did ever since he and my next one retired or left or move their practices. Now my third one is moving on. I love her! She is so sweet, patient and kind and spent so much time, so many times, teaching me about bisphosphonates, even sending me links to trials, etc. That's where I learned that most of the trials are sponsored/paid for by the manufacturer of the drug! That blew my confidence in the trials!
I chose to beef up w/ extra nutrition and I changed my bone health supplements, instead of taking any medication. We'll see what my next scan says but it won't be for a while; about 1.5 years.
Warmest wishes and prayers, Sunnyflower