I have spent 5 of the last 7 weeks in SoCal but of course had to cancel the one trip that would have let me lay over and take my rental out to Goatfest but this adventure makes up for it......
Last Thursday I had to run from SD up to Oxnard for a meeting late in the a.m. Rolled out of North Island around 3:30 a.m. While driving across Pendleton on the 405 my lower back began to hurt. By the time I got up to San Luis Obispo it got bad enough that I stopped and had stretch it out. It didnt help so back in the car and suck it up. Around 5:30 (after stopping a couple more times) the pain was bad enough that I was loosing focus and getting a little hazy. It was also becoming painful to breath. Stopped again, fell to the ground and darn near passed out from the pain when I moved to get out of the car. Got up off the ground and wandered into a gas station. Asked directions to the nearest hospital.
"Make a right onto Normandie then a left onto Carson. The hospital will be on your right you cant miss it".
I was starting to loose it while going down Normandie so picked up the pace to something like way the heck to fast. Good thinking huh? Going to pass out? well then hammer the throttle!!
Parked very illegally, stumbled into the ER sort off, got lost, blew through the metal detector and was "gently" assisted to the ER. About this time I realized I was in a unique place, half airport half prison with a distinctly Soviet era feel to it. Saw a sign about average wait times of 18 hrs. Got it together enough to realize I better play the shortness of breath/painful to breathe card heavily (a very very good move in a flash of lucidity).
Triaged in under a minute. A nice admin with a thousand yard stare filled out the forms for me since I couldn't focus enough to write (no questions about insurance, that's weird). O2, EKG, vitals all within a few minutes of arriving. Place on a gurney and monitored by a nurse practitioner. Doctor saw me soon there after. Within 30 minutes the pain is gone and I feel great. Prelim diagnosis: Kidney stone. 90 minutes after getting there I get an X-ray series AND a CAT scan. Both machines looked well worn and very old, complete with MacGuiver wiring and duct tape (no joke, duct tape on the CAT scan machine). Like I said a very Soviet era feel to it all. An hour after that the diagnosis was verified with the stone about to pass out of the kidney (still waiting for the other shoes to drop) I was given some GREAT pain prescriptions and cleared to leave. By the way the breathing pain came from the diaphragm pushing on the inflamed and swollen kidney.
Once my head cleared and the pain was gone I really looked around while waiting to be radiated and began talking to the staff as much as time would allow them. Nice folks, way overworked but despite it all very professional. The building and equipment was really beat up but still marginally functional. Other than a couple of way sick indigents I was the only white guy there. I am so glad I wasn't in a tie and suit jacket I already stood out enough in a T shirt and jeans. Chatted with a young girl who was all alone on a gurney in the hall. She had been laying there since the previous morning waiting on a room. Dropped off by "friends" who took off. There but for the grace of God go I. She may still be there for all I know.
The final kicker to the story was that when I "checked out" a guy came by with Medi-Cal forms to sign. I explained I was from out of state and wasn't on Medi-Cal. He shrugged and handed me a Medicaid form for out state residents. I passed over my insurance card and he about shit. He had to run off someplace and find a different form. He came back about 30 minutes later and apologized for the delay as he had to print out a "special" private insurance form since he never uses them, carries them or sees anyone that actually has insurance.
White guy, with insurance and no gunshot wound. No wonder they paid such good attention to me I was the strangest of all critters in that strange land.
Oh yeah, I made my meeting. Once I told my Oxnard host this story everyone agreed to delay the meeting until 2 pm.
Hats off to the folks that work at UCLA Harbor. Tough conditions, poor support and despite it all they make the best it with a better attitude than I could have under similar circumstances.
John
Last Thursday I had to run from SD up to Oxnard for a meeting late in the a.m. Rolled out of North Island around 3:30 a.m. While driving across Pendleton on the 405 my lower back began to hurt. By the time I got up to San Luis Obispo it got bad enough that I stopped and had stretch it out. It didnt help so back in the car and suck it up. Around 5:30 (after stopping a couple more times) the pain was bad enough that I was loosing focus and getting a little hazy. It was also becoming painful to breath. Stopped again, fell to the ground and darn near passed out from the pain when I moved to get out of the car. Got up off the ground and wandered into a gas station. Asked directions to the nearest hospital.
"Make a right onto Normandie then a left onto Carson. The hospital will be on your right you cant miss it".
I was starting to loose it while going down Normandie so picked up the pace to something like way the heck to fast. Good thinking huh? Going to pass out? well then hammer the throttle!!
Parked very illegally, stumbled into the ER sort off, got lost, blew through the metal detector and was "gently" assisted to the ER. About this time I realized I was in a unique place, half airport half prison with a distinctly Soviet era feel to it. Saw a sign about average wait times of 18 hrs. Got it together enough to realize I better play the shortness of breath/painful to breathe card heavily (a very very good move in a flash of lucidity).
Triaged in under a minute. A nice admin with a thousand yard stare filled out the forms for me since I couldn't focus enough to write (no questions about insurance, that's weird). O2, EKG, vitals all within a few minutes of arriving. Place on a gurney and monitored by a nurse practitioner. Doctor saw me soon there after. Within 30 minutes the pain is gone and I feel great. Prelim diagnosis: Kidney stone. 90 minutes after getting there I get an X-ray series AND a CAT scan. Both machines looked well worn and very old, complete with MacGuiver wiring and duct tape (no joke, duct tape on the CAT scan machine). Like I said a very Soviet era feel to it all. An hour after that the diagnosis was verified with the stone about to pass out of the kidney (still waiting for the other shoes to drop) I was given some GREAT pain prescriptions and cleared to leave. By the way the breathing pain came from the diaphragm pushing on the inflamed and swollen kidney.
Once my head cleared and the pain was gone I really looked around while waiting to be radiated and began talking to the staff as much as time would allow them. Nice folks, way overworked but despite it all very professional. The building and equipment was really beat up but still marginally functional. Other than a couple of way sick indigents I was the only white guy there. I am so glad I wasn't in a tie and suit jacket I already stood out enough in a T shirt and jeans. Chatted with a young girl who was all alone on a gurney in the hall. She had been laying there since the previous morning waiting on a room. Dropped off by "friends" who took off. There but for the grace of God go I. She may still be there for all I know.
The final kicker to the story was that when I "checked out" a guy came by with Medi-Cal forms to sign. I explained I was from out of state and wasn't on Medi-Cal. He shrugged and handed me a Medicaid form for out state residents. I passed over my insurance card and he about shit. He had to run off someplace and find a different form. He came back about 30 minutes later and apologized for the delay as he had to print out a "special" private insurance form since he never uses them, carries them or sees anyone that actually has insurance.
White guy, with insurance and no gunshot wound. No wonder they paid such good attention to me I was the strangest of all critters in that strange land.
Oh yeah, I made my meeting. Once I told my Oxnard host this story everyone agreed to delay the meeting until 2 pm.
Hats off to the folks that work at UCLA Harbor. Tough conditions, poor support and despite it all they make the best it with a better attitude than I could have under similar circumstances.
John
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