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It's truly amazing

I find it truly amazing that it was my primary care physician that had the foresight to send me to the ophthalmologist for evaluation for cataracts, rather than the optometrist I saw for evaluation of my rapidly changing eyesight and prevalence for infections.

It's like I've always said, it's not the health care system that determines your quality of care, but rather the doctors. The only problem being there are good doctors and bad doctors, and it's not always so easy to determine which are which.

Anyways, as a result of the visit to the ophthalmologist I've been approved for cataract surgery. It's just not going to happen as soon as I would hope. (I'm looking at early March.)

Apparently there are few other people seeking cataract surgery as well. (And here I thought I was the only one with such a problem.)

I find it hard to believe that many people are in need of cataract surgery, but I was also told there is a possibility I could get in sooner, as patients have been known to change their mind. It is mostly old people getting the surgery after all.

Oh well, I guess that's one more thing to blame on the Affordable Care Act (AKA ObamaCare).
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Comments

Alan said…
I don't understand whats "amazing". Why wouldn't your primary care doctor send you to an ophthalmologist for evaluation for cataracts. Optometrists don't treat cataracts?
I do agree there are good doctors and bad doctors and non doctors usually can't tell the difference.
12:53 PM
Marc said…
I know optometrists don't treat cataracts, but I would think they would have more knowledge about problems with the eye than my PCP.

Although based on my latest experience with this optometrist, I have discovered that not to be the case.

This optometrist told me the cataract was worse in my right eye, when in reality it is worse in my left. He also told me it is the policy of Kaiser not to treat cataracts as long as vision can be corrected to better than 20/50, while ignoring the fact my vision decreased significantly over the past year (-9 to -11 in my left eye).

The thing was, I was willing to accept all that until I went to my PCP again for another eye infection, after which he referred me to the ophthalmologist for cataract evaluation. (Something I wasn't even thinking about after the comments by the optometrist.)

After less than a one minute examination by the ophthalmologist, she recommended cataract surgery.

For me it was all a learning experience, but that's why I thought it was amazing.

Next time I'll talk to you first. :)
2:05 PM
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