Some things just shouldn’t be so hard. Dealing with a cancer diagnosis, that’s hard.  Finding the right doctors to fight it, that’s hard.  Managing all the related appointments, that’s hard.  Finding a new primary care physician, that should not be hard.

I’ve been trying to find a new primary care doctor in this area for months now without success.  Since I no longer spend my weeks in South Deerfield, it doesn’t make sense to have my primary care doctor 2 hours away.  Plus, I really need someone in the Brigham & Women’s network where all my breast cancer doctors/records are.

They built a big, beautiful health center over at Patriot Place (right down the street) a couple years ago.  But they don’t accept new patients.  Fine, I just go to the Urgent Care Center there when I am sick…but of course they want you to follow-up with a primary care physician.   AArrgh!

So I guess I do really need one locally who can babysit my crappy chemo-compromised immune system.  I’ll spare you all the details of my many phone calls on this subject, but it’s frustrating.  I finally did find a nice (and competent) woman who actually called up my records while on the phone.  There you go – see I do need a new doctor NOW!  She got me an appointment with a new, young doctor at Faulkner Hospital (40 mins away), who just moved to the area, perfect.  See that wasn’t hard.

Dealing with doctors, hospitals, appointments, medication, and all things medical is not foreign to me – I have tons of experience, too much experience.  I am not a doctor, but I could certainly play one on TV.

The appointment was on Monday 2/2, but got canceled because of snow.  The earliest they could get me in was today, 2/16, fine I’ll take it.  Of course, when I arrived this morning there was nobody there, the office was closed for the holiday.  Closed for the holiday, seriously?  I even got an automated call late last week confirming my appointment.  Incompetence at it’s best.

Enough of my venting, you get the point.  I hear and read so many stories of people who are sick, but didn’t go to the doctor in time or people who don’t go back for treatment and follow-up.  No wonder!  And we live in one of the top medical areas in the country.  (NOTE:  I know I was done venting, but FYI – in tiny South Deerfield I could call today and would have an appointment tomorrow at the latest.)

Anyways, my point in all this is a reminder to be your own health advocate.  Do not rely on someone else, do not take no for an answer, if they don’t call you back – call them, always follow-up, and push, push, push.  Something like getting an appointment should not be so hard, we should be able to save our energy for the real fights, like kicking cancer’s ass!

I don’t get mad often and since I’ve already kicked cancer’s ass, I am looking forward to when that office opens tomorrow…

Thanks for listening.