How would you approach this ?

Call all the relevant drs. and keep calling until you get an answer that makes sense to both of you.

I totally agree that you should try getting some straight answers instead of asking a few questions and following up with a GI, hopefully the person you spoke with can help you with some answers, best wishes to you and your husband.

Hi,
What an uncomfortable situation for you and your husband! The doctor should have informed you why he recommended that procedure! I would suggest making an appointment to see the doctor since he isn't calling you back. With an appointment the doctor can take the time as he should have done to explain why he wants your husband to have this procedure. Of course, if he does finally call you back and explains things you could always cancel the appointment. You also might just want to do some research on a GI procedure so you are both aware of exactly what it is and what it entails and why people have it done.

Also keep in mind that it's your husband's decision. It's his body and his money. He doesn't have to agree to any procedure if he doesn't feel comfortable with it; even if there is a referral. My husband had lung cancer and because the side effects from Keytruda and Chemotherapy treatments were so bad, he finally refused to have anymore. They weren't happy because those treatments cost $25,000 per infusion! But it was my husband's decision. As a result, my husband lived for 14 more years with lung cancer and no bad side effects from those treatments.

I hope everything works out for your husband. I'll say a prayer for you both.
PML

@fingerlessknitts
Usually, a gastroenterologist is the person doing the colonoscopy so would know right away what was seen and what was biopsied during the procedure. Every time I have had a colonoscopy (I am in my mid 50s and have had 3 so far), my gastroenterologist came to me afterwards before getting dressed, to tell me what was found and next steps. My first was back in 2012 and this is what was done since then. I had a polyp removed and needed to go back every 5 years. They hand me a piece of paper also summarizing what the doctor did and what, if anything, was found.

What was the reason your husband had a colonoscopy, how old is he, what type of doctor did the procedure and where was it done? Usually, you see a gastroenterologist before having a colonoscopy for evaluation. I also saw a gastroenterologist due to stomach issues and they did an exam, sent me for bloodwork and ultrasound before moving to endoscopy and HIDA scan of gallbladder function.

@fingerlessknitts
P.S. I also have never heard of such a thing as a colonoscopy being inconclusive. The gastrointestinal doctor sees immediately anything suspicious, takes biopsies of anything abnormal, sends the samples off to pathology, and results are received. If the “inconclusive results” means the pathology could not easily determine the abnormal cells, they may have wanted to do a 2nd colonoscopy for additional biopsies. After the first colonoscopy, your husband should have had a conversation with the doctor about what was found and next steps. If an additional colonoscopy was needed, your husband should have been clearly told why. The 2nd colonoscopy and even the first colonoscopy samples could be sent to cytology for microscopic analysis to determine what any abnormality was found, if any.

The lack of clear communication sounds really off to me.

@fingerlessknitts
P.SS. They also usually ask for height and weight before doing the colonoscopy to determine amount of sedative needed.

Something sounds really off. Did you go with your husband for the colonoscopy? Do you feel your husband is telling you everything correctly the doctor is telling him or is he hiding anything from you due to fear?

You can also ask the medical practice to send all records to a new specialist of your choosing and make sure his primary doctor has them, too. I would want to take control of my healthcare if I didn’t trust what was happening was appropriate.

You should check all recent bloodwork results, imaging reports, etc. What are his current symptoms? He may need follow up testing (ultrasound, MRI, etc. ) depending on what is going on.

How long has your husband had symptoms before having his recent colonoscopies?

The colon might not have been cleaned out properly so the test was inconclusive.

My main gripe with office staff is usually the ones answering the phone are the most clueless. Ask to talk to the office manager and present your questions to her/him.

@fingerlessknitts
How frustrating! So many of the docs that do the colonostomies these days are crazy busy and I have noticed that personal care/communication can suffer or be extremely delayed. With many, it has been my experience, if you don’t have an appointment to physically see them and have that dedicated time, then communication is hard. But appointments can take months to get.

If you can get a timely appointment, that would be great—to get the info straight “from the horses mouth”. If not, I would arrange for all findings to go to your PCP (and depending on your insurance plan and your PCP’s role in referrals, maybe they already have it?). And get an appointment with them to explain it all.

Also, most specialists these days have portals you can sign up for and receive results, communicate, etc. It might be even more expeditious to get signed up for that if available, and review notes and findings that way.

Best wishes in navigating through this!

I would advise an irrational explosion of anger at a broken system. Throw dishes at the wall while cussing at the medical bureaucracy

Seriously, poor communications hurt patients. You deserve explanations.

Will two sleepless nights do?