Would you tell a doctor you know their staff lied and gave bad information?

I’d just change doctors.

Yes.

This particular situation my doctor is a cardiologist and the cardiologist was the one who suggested the medication. They must know it is a newer drug and it is likely to get rejected by insurance initially. This last time that I was there they even told me the rep had been there yesterday and that he would see what he could do to get me reimbursed if I pay for the drug. I assume that is not a full reimbursement.

I forgot to tell you the office manager told me maybe I should get different insurance. WTF?! First of all it is March, you can’t just get different insurance. Secondly, it is cobra through my husband’s work. It is Blue Cross Blue Shield, not some fly by night.

Sorry for the vent, it is just so frustrating, and most of you jellies know I am annoyed with the medical situation a lot anyway.

@SnipSnip Three years ago I tried to switch and it wasn’t easy so I let it go, but yes, I should probably change, but even so, I feel like I want to let the doctor know, one, because I’m angry about it and it is so annoying to be condescended to; two, because I think it will help her if she listens; and three, because I think it will help other patients. I actually think it will likely be similar with most doctors’ offices, that is my experience. Not all, but most.

I would be tempted to tell the doctor and I would be tempted to switch doctors.

I think doctors’ offices are short staffed and I think often the staff has an “us vs. them” attitude.” I also think they will tend to view a complaining patient as crazy or a pest. I think because they’re probably short staffed, the doctor will spend two minutes to listen to your complaint and try to placate you, but won’t do anything. It is also possible that the doctor is not wanting to make waves amongst the staff so won’t do anything.

Not that the things I listed are reasons why you shouldn’t follow your instincts and complain if you want to, but I am not sure if anything will get done.

I would probably feel more satisfaction from changing doctors and hoping the new doctor’s staff is more attentive.

I get my doctor recommendations from a friend who is an RN and who lives not far from me. If she tells me a doctor is good, and thorough, and all good things, I use that doctor and she is always right about them.

@jca2 I would not want the doctor to address it with my specific case, because medical staff does sometimes take things out on patients who complain. I would have to rely on her to address it in a generic way with her staff, say nothing, or just be ready to have to switch doctors. I actually am ok if she does nothing about it as long as I feel she understands what happened in my situation and seems to agree it was a problem. I might do nothing, I know in the end it might be a waste of time to do anything about it, and might backfire on me.

When I left the office I thanked them for all they have done and let them think I was accepting their explanation.

It’s like having a cheating boyfriend who says, “you didn’t see me with another woman.”

The whole thing is taking more time because of their incompetence, it is costing the doctor (owner) money because of them not because of me. That’s why I think talking in business terms she might care about it, but her office is very busy, so maybe she won’t care.

Edit: Most medical professionals don’t seem to understand that a “complaint” is actually valuable feedback. They aren’t usually customer service oriented or trained. I did have one doctor I complained to one time that gave a perfect response, just one. Not that I have complained a lot, I know it can backfire so I usually stifle.

@JLeslie My ‘yes’ answer was saying I would let the doctor know. I insisted on the doctor coming to the front of the office where the lying person was sitting. I told him right in front of her. She did not say a word. He walked me to the door and told me to consider the problem handled. I told him that if she no longer worked in that office the next time I called, I would. She didn’t just lie to me; she lied to Blue Cross and about them.

@JLeslie I think you have good ideas about how the doctor should or could handle your issue, but once you let the cat out of the bag and address it with the doctor, you can’t control how they handle it with their staff. They might do something you feel isn’t helpful or is detrimental to you, but you can’t control that. It’s the doctor’s personnel issue to deal with (or even not deal with if they choose to do nothing).

I never get into too much detail with the doc but in your case, I may.
Our office staff is so helpful, I feel very blessed. (Are we all on bcbs?? Ha!)

@jca2 I agree.

@SnipSnip I’m not looking to get anyone fired, just for them to learn something. I can’t understand how when I come equipped with information they can continue to try to talk me down. It takes a lot of chutzpah.

I have had billing people lie to me more than once, and it is always the same lie, that I can’t self pay I have to go through my insurance. That is a very common lie, and I think maybe some of the people saying it believe it, but that does not excuse that it is not true. They say it in a threatening way that if we do not pay they will come after us, and it is the office that was supposed to not bill insurance, or who will not divulge what the self pay amount is.

Would I tell the doctor? Absolutely. I’ve done it in the past when the staff gave me bogus information. I don’t go into what I want them to do with the staff, but I do tell them how that is not acceptable to me and that I’m not amused by getting false information.

I understand your frustration. I have no answer for you.
I’m going through kind of the opposite of what you are dealing with.
My cardiologist wants me to take a low dose of statin drug but she can’t justify it adequately for me. She will not communicate with me directly (on MyChart). Instead her nurses respond to my messages. I have valid reasons for not being on statin therapy (too numerous to write here). But the nurses tell me that (according to the cardiologist) I need the statin drug to prevent heart attacks (which doesn’t make sense in my particular situation).

Good luck and good health to you.

@gondwanalon I always say that nurses and other staff should only deliver messages to the patient that the patient will agree with; otherwise, the doctor needs to call or communicate directly with the patient so questions can be answered. It’s just stupid to think a patient will be ok with an answer that doesn’t make sense to them or is in direct contradiction with what the patient wants to do.

Cardiologists and GP’s will always want to put patients on statins with cholesterol numbers that fit whatever parameters they usually use, and rarely consider the whole picture. Have you checked your Lp(a)? I’m learning now statins raise Lp(a) which is scary, since the belief now is high Lp(a) is a big risk factor for cardiac events. Hard to know what to do, there is so much they really don’t know.

I do think statins have kept my father alive, but I don’t say that to persuade you to take them, I don’t know your situation, and it could be very different than my dad’s situation.

Yes. Sadly it takes a lot of effort at times to get this right. Never accept a denial or wrong action. Be a pit bull..

Yes, I would have a candid conversation with the doctor about it.

@JLeslie I never had a lipoprotein (a) test. I’ve always maintained a low cholesterol and triglycerides test results.
Last year my cardiologist ordered a calcium score test because my LDL result was 90 mg/dL (which is not bad) and she saw that a past echocardiogram showed some calcium.

My calcium score is 556. And that was the jumping off point for the following:
-Angiogram catheters in my coronary arteries. Fluoroscope and radioactive dye showed my coronary arteries are wide open with no significant plaque. “The calcium is on the outside of the coronary arteries” according to the cardiologist who did the heart catheterization.
-Nuclear Medicine lung scan (more radioactive dye).
-Chest X-rays (2).
-CT chest with radioactive contrast.
-Lung spirometry baseline test.

All test are normal.

My wife is a retired dietitian and has always fed me a heart healthy diet. I never smoked tobacco, drank alcohol or used recreational drugs. My BMI is 21. I’m 74.

And the justification for me being on statin therapy is it will reduce the plague in my coronary arteries. It doesn’t make sense. Unbelievable.

Yes. I would tell the doctor and then switch doctors as well.

I just confirmed the office never sent over my chart information to the insurance company. They lied. I just called the insurance company again. Looking closer at the paperwork the NP handed me yesterday, it says right on the face 2 pages, the cover and the paragraph she wrote, so not 7, which would have been including the chart information. Disgusting. A flat out lie and she even handed me evidence of it.

@gondwanalon I see. I wonder if your LP(a) is high. Maybe ask for it next time you go for blood tests if you are curious.

Do you get your vitamin D tested? I ask because of how it helps calcium absorption.

I guess the angiogram would show the heart function so you wouldn’t need a echo? I don’t know everything seen on the angiogram. Like my echo shows stenosis on a valve I guess the angiogram would show that too?

Are you the jelly who has had the cardiac surgery? I wonder it that might have contributed to some of the calcium collecting there. An irritation to the area.

I understand your reluctance to take a medication. Maybe an aspirin a day wouldn’t hurt. Have you discussed that?

@JLeslie If I were you, I’d show up again at the doctor’s office and discuss what you found.

It sucks that it’s Friday afternoon at this point, because they’re likely closed for the day or ready to close. If I were you, this would piss me off all weekend.

I just wrote a nice letter to the same incompetent nurse practioner telling her I did what Jose told me to do, the NP and Jose were the ones who talked to me the day I was there, and the insurance said all they have is the two pages and never received the chart pages. I tried to word it like I still believe she sent it, but it just never got in the hands of the right people. Total bullshit, and she probably knows it, but this way when the staff below her reads it, and I think they do, she can blame the insurance company or the fax transmission. It’s too hard to try to see the doctor, it is typical gatekeeping in doctor’s offices, and they are all trying to protect each other now. The appointment person is right at the front, and so she will likely not give me any appointment any time soon.

Funny enough, this same doctor was giving out information on being part of a focus group or something about how we patients are treated in the office, something like that. I should see if I can still find it.

Yes, I would: privately and discreetly, but clearly.

Years ago, I was sitting in my doctor’s waiting room after having taken a pregnancy test. I thought the doctor would give me the results himself in his examining room. Instead, one of the nurses stuck her head out of the waiting room door and announced in front of four or five other patients, “You’re pregnant!” She added, “I don’t know if you’re happy about that or not.” I was, but I was furious with her for her crude offhand manner and her blatant violation of my right to privacy.

I did indeed tell the doctor.

@Jeruba nowadays that would be a violation of HIPAA.

Yes, or change.

Yes. I’ve told a couple of docs about a problem with nurses and they were very receptive and wanted to hear about it. But I was able to do it in person, I didn’t have to depend on them to read a half page email or internal communications note.

@JLeslie I’ve never had my LP (a) tested. Only the standard lipid panel. My blood vitamin D levels are normal. The main reason for the angiogram was to look for coronary blockages (cholesterol plague, calcium buildup, blood clots). My coronary arteries have no blockages and the cardiologist showed my on the computer screen that they are all wide open.

I’ve had many echocardiograms done. They show some abdominal aspects but none that limit my physical activity in any way.

Yes I’ve had 4 heart catheter ablations and one mini-maze operation. All of which cause considerable irritation to the heart tissue. And as you know calcium is typically deposited in areas of irritation (much left atrium tissue and pulmonary vein tissue) is irritated through burning. I recently brought this situation to the cardiologist that wants me to take Atorvastatin 20 mg/day and was told by the nurse, “Heart catheter ablations don’t take place within the coronary arteries”. That nurse must think I’m a freaking idiot. That’s when I just gave up trying to communicate. I then cut my Atorvastatin dose down to 5 mg/day. I’m still a compliant patient as I originally agreed to take a “small dose of statin”. What is a small dose?

I don’t see my cardiologist until November. And when I do there will be a good debate about this.

@gondwanalon Statins often cause Lp(a) to go up. High Lp(a) is considered to be a very high risk factor so people with very high cholesterol and very high Lp(a) often are conflicted and worried about their choices in medications and the side effects. Your situation taking so little Lipitor is probably fine and your Lp(a) might be low anyway.

I just wanted to add that all this heart medication stuff is semi guessing and semi based on research. What I mean is, people with cholesterol and calcium issues, and bad genes related to lipids, doctors give all sorts of random medications and doses and patients cut doses because of side effects, or cut doses because of something they read. Also, patients self test when doctors won’t test, and it is just all over the map. More than any other illness or medication I have dealt with I see this in the cardiac community.

^^^ That’s what I was just about to add. My MIL is going through the same thing, plus she has several other medical and allergy issues. Since she switched to Kaiser, she has been getting better care and less issues.