Saturday, November 9, 2019

I am just wrung out, physically but especially emotionally. Surviving Maria had nothing on this.

I think you know about our nephew Ben's lymphoma. Twice a week we leave Aguadilla at 5:00 AM to drive to San Juan for treatment. Other days, depending on the week, there are other trips to local laboratories and doctors. There are some issues peripheral to the cancer that are causing him a lot of problems. We've been trying to get these dealt with but the whole "gotta have a Primary Care Physician who will sign off on this" thing - whatever the thing is, an X-ray, MRI, prescription, whatever - has stymied us. He was assigned a PCP when he first got insurance but we've never been able to talk to her. She's two towns over so it's almost as bad as going to San Juan (not really; nothing here is as bad as driving to San Juan in the morning). It took us a month to get a new PCP. Now we're trying to get her up to speed on all that's going on. We're also trying to transfer Ben's care to an oncologist in Aguadilla so we don't have that drive twice a week. Guess what! You need a PCP to request the transfer! It's been frustrating for all of us, including his doctors in San Juan.

One of the on-going issues is a really painful swollen knee. We've been trying to get an MRI of the knee for two months. Guess what! We need the orders to come from the PCP which we didn't have until a week ago if we want insurance to pay for it. We could pay out of pocket but that ain't happenin'. Because at this point no one knows what's causing the swelling, his doctors cannot rule out that it is related to the cancer.  Tired of waiting on the PCP merry-go-round, yesterday after his treatment they admitted him to the hospital. Now he's under their care, their treatment. They can order whatever tests they want and don't need a PCP to sign off. He will finally get the MRI he's waited two months for. He may have to wait three more days: it's the weekend and Monday is a holiday so ain't nothin' gonna happen 'til Tuesday.

If anybody says, "oh that's healthcare in Puerto Rico" I will smack them. This is all base on U.S. healthcare and insurance models.

In mid October Elaine's cousin Monica found out she had a brain tumor. A little over a week after her diagnosis she had brain surgery. Needless to say, it was a shock to everyone, especially Monica! Monica has been the senior health reporter for WKYC TV in Cleveland for more than 20 years. She started reporting on her diagnosis, treatment, surgery, and recovery from day one. She is recovering. Her spirit is truly incredible. She is in pain but has stopped taking any kind of opioid. As she said, as the reporter who broke the story of how bad the opioid crisis is in northeast Ohio, it would not do for her to get hooked. She still has problems with her vision (part of the tumor was attached to her optical nerve and could not be removed) but with help, she gets out and walks every day.

Two weeks ago tomorrow a very dear friend of ours was in a horrific motorcycle accident here. Chris is a champion rider and horse- and people-trainer. He is also an Army EOD (Explosive Ordinance Demolition) tech. That means for fun he takes apart bombs. As a result of the accident, doctors had to amputate his right arm (yes, he is right-handed). I saw him yesterday. He has a long long road ahead but he will be back riding and training. He is strong and tough.

So all of you - please please be careful. Stay well and healthy. I can't take much more of this.

There is good news though. Our son Jason and his wife are expecting a new baby this week. We can't wait for the news of our new grandson! And we found out last night our daughter Sara and her new bride are expecting. After all the stories they've heard, they didn't expect the IVF to take the first time but apparently it did. We are so incredibly happy for Jason, Hannah, Sara, and Katie! And us!