The other side of the white coat

I'm used to being the doctor. Now that my practice of medicine has come to a temporary halt, I have found myself thrown full force into the patient's side of things. Let me tell you what you probably already know:

• Dealing with insurance is confusing and painful. 
• It can be hard to get an appointment with an obstetrician if you wait until your third trimester (even if you had a good reason). 
• Picking a surgeon and preparing your dad for heart surgery is, well, a bit frightening. Even if you know what you are getting in to.

After spending way too much money trying to keep our prior insurance  [expensive because I'm pregnant], we finally figured out that if you aren't making any money Medicaid might be a good option. But, it can only be used in the state where you are a resident. Therefore, I am now a temporarily unemployed, pregnant, general surgeon on Medicaid in Washington state.  Didn't see that coming. 

Shortly after we got back from Africa, I tried to get in for my first official obstetric appointment. I was still covered by our insurance, but since I was considered "high risk" being 26 weeks pregnant without the routine pre-natal care, the OB office wouldn't schedule me. It took several phone calls from my doctor friend M who knew a tenacious doctor who was married to an OB to get me in. Whew.  It makes some sense...with malpractice and everything. After getting the appointment, everything else was fabulous.  I felt relieved after getting labs and being seen by the super-nice, smart obstetrician who was willing to see me despite my past. :)  The baby looked great on ultrasound and it was nice to confirm that we are indeed having a little girl!

A couple of weeks ago my dad called me while we were in Minnesota and told me that his heart doctor said he needs his aortic valve replaced and his doctor was going to schedule the operation in a couple of weeks. This came as a bit of a shock to me since I hadn't even known my dad had heart problems. He couldn't completely describe to me what he had, but I knew it was serious if he was having symptoms and needed his valve replaced.

"Blausen 0040 AorticStenosis" by BruceBlaus - Own work. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons - http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Blausen_0040_AorticStenosis.png#/media/File:Blausen_0040_AorticStenosis.png

Then, he asked me if I knew anything about the surgeon he was supposed to meet with. I didn't. Now, open heart surgery is a BIG deal. I wanted to be sure he needed it before he got the operation...and that he had the right surgeon and hospital. Turns out, its really hard to figure out who is a good surgeon without inside information. (As an aside, almost every surgeon I have worked with is excellent...but I didn't want to chance it). So, I made him an appointment with a surgeon that I know and trust...even if it was a little farther from home.

Luke and I made it to Washington in time for the appointment. It was very strange being on the other side of the "you need a major operation" conversation. But, the visit was great and my dad is scheduled for a valve replacement next week...as long as we can keep him alive until then!

Severe, symptomatic aortic stenosis...can't stop me.

Our January Travels

If any of you are still out there...we are here too! Its been a bit of a whirlwind...we've been like snails with our "house" on our back moving from place to place. Foxes have holes, birds have nests, we have our car (and generous friends and family that have provided homes for us).

A few of the highlights from January:

Visiting our friend Caiti in Boston- before they got all the snow! :)

Ice Skating 

Touring the TAZA Chocolate Factory

Ether Dome

The Ether Dome was on the top of my list of things to see in Boston. One of my attendings in residency would mention this place frequently- its where the first public demonstration of general anesthesia occurred.  Operating is so much better with good anesthesia!

Galmi reunion...complete with a game of Settlers.

We also enjoyed visiting with good friends from college and medical school...and meeting some new members of the their families!

Have we really known each other for almost 15 years?!

 

So fun catching up in person!

And Luke fulfilled on of his New Years Resolutions from January...."Buy a dozen Krispy Kreme donuts and see how many I can eat."   

We helped him...but they didn't last more than a day or two.

We've come very close to completing our "fun" list of things to do while back in America. Now, if only we could figure out some more things on the "important" list. Like, where are we going to live?

How was Africa?

What do we say when we're asked, "How was Africa?" After over two years overseas, we have about 6,000 pictures and about that many stories.  I have no idea how to answer. Its like we have been to another world. How does one explain what the least developed country in the world is like to people who live in one of the most developed? Its still hard for me to comprehend that Niger and America exist on the same planet.  So, we show a few pictures and tell a few stories all the while still struggling to process the experience ourselves.

Inevitably, we then come to the next question- "What are you going to do now?" We are still working on the answer to that, too. Mostly we are praying a lot, seeking guidance, and trying to relax a bit and enjoy our time back despite all of the uncertainty.  One thing we do know...we are looking forward to meeting our baby girl in less than three months!

 

check, check, check

I think I'm going to have to figure out how to make cinnamon-crunch bagels before we move away from access to Panera. They are amazing! Anybody know how they do it?

We are doing quite well on our list... :)

arctic freeze

We are now mobile!! After a somewhat painful searching and bargaining process, we have found and purchased a used car. We took advantage of that and drove to the snowy mountains of North Carolina.  We didn't anticipate the "arctic freeze" with -19F weather with wind chill. Brrr....

Snow...so beautiful

Its is freezing cold here!  Fires are wonderful.

Bundled up to the max

We are also successfully crossing other fun stuff off our list (as you may have noticed, most of them having to do with food). :)

Chips!!

a nephew after my own heart...he loves potato chips! (yes, perhaps I am a bit of a bad influence on my niece's and nephew's food choices...but isn't that what aunties are for?)

Take-out Pizza! Check. This will likely happen many more times. :)

Zaxby's!!!  (helped keep us sane during car shopping)

Everything is Awesome

Jet lag has been pretty brutal...but so far, most things about America are as awesome as we remembered. At the very least, we are enjoying a "honeymoon phase" of re-entry. We have checked  eleven things off the list of "Things We Are Looking Forward to in America."  About 30 more to go, then we can get down to the business of figuring out what to do with the rest of our lives. :)

Page One of "The FUN List"

Bacon Hamburger in the D.C. airport

Gingerbread houses!

A good use of the leftover Halloween candy

Pickles! HAM!  Cream Cheese!!! AMAZING

Its so big :)

so much meat!

Blue Cheese! Pears! Lettuce!

Christmas puzzles

VIDEO Skype...the power didn't go out even once

Hats, gloves, and a blue sky

$0.58 cents for a donut. WHAT?!