Yet another bump in the road

As if, I have not enough problems with my health at this time, my infection has now prevented any further dental work. I guess I could see the silver lining, I don't have the money to pay for new teeth anyway. Now, I don't have force myself to sleep at night believing I simply can't pay for my dental work. I can now, sleep soundly knowing, instead, I'm too sick And too broke for new teeth. Perhaps it's just not meant to be?

My doctor and dental student at UM suggested I receive treatment for the infection via hospital & IV antibiotics. This route could have potentially forced Medicare to pay for the extractions. However, the doctor at Jefferson Memorial Hospital, not only refused to call the oral surgeon (whom I spoke to prior to going to the hospital and agreed to come see me while I was there), even went as far as to accuse us all of Medicare fraud! Excuse me?? Dr. Brittany Gusic, doesn't the word fraud imply lying?? If you are, in fact, treating me with IV antibiotics for an infection in my mouth and I have a referral from my doctor and dentist saying that it is their medical advice that I have infected teeth removed asap to cease the spread of said infection, how exactly is calling an oral surgeon considered Medicare fraud? If my dental infection is caused by my disease & the continued infection is further jeopardizing my overall health, is it not in Medicare's financial advantage to help cease the problem?

Whilst crying and trying my hardest to explain my dire situation, this so-called doctor, cut me off and said she didn't have time to argue with me. She repeated that she would not admit me, nor call the oral surgeon for consult to see if he wanted to admit me because she was too busy with her patients upstairs. The nurse walked in after she left and apologized for the doctors rudeness. She looked on the computer and said there was only one patient upstairs, a 93 year old woman with pneumonia, sleeping.

Luckily, the ER doctor took some mercy on me and allowed me to do a second round of antibiotics before discharging me. He, also, suggested that I go to a 'better' hospital. He said if I were at City hospital my plan would have worked. He admitted, I'm assuming in effort to make me feel better, that Jefferson is simply an observational hospital. The doctors, while completely capable, choose not to help any patients with real medical issues.

This evening spent in the ER, begging for help, being humiliated and rejected was the exact opposite of what I need right now. My optimism is running low. My will, my drive, my hope is running thin. I have a major problem with minimum resources to solve it.

Thanks, as always, for listening to me bitch.... please keep me your prayers. I know, somewhere deep down inside of me, that a light exists at the end of this tunnel. I'm going to hold on to and focus hard toward that light. I'll find it, right?