Δαφνη Ευτυχια Αρθουρος

"Happiness is to take up the struggle in the midst of the raging storm and not to pluck the lute in the moonlight or recite poetry among the blossoms." -- Ding Ling, Chinese Author

[Aye, an' this be yer reminder that this fine morn be Intarrrrnational Tarrlk Like A Pirate Day. So remember to speak like Robert Newton today when ye greet yer mateys.]

"Happiness is to take up the struggle in the midst of the raging storm and not to pluck the lute in the moonlight or recite poetry among the blossoms." -- Ding Ling, Chinese Author

[Aye, an' this be yer reminder that this fine morn be Intarrrrnational Tarrlk Like A Pirate Day. So remember to speak like Robert Newton today when ye greet yer mateys.]

There's got to be a better way. On Monday, after seeing the doctor for my physical exam and referrals, I got sent to a nurse for vaccinations and a TB test. He circled the injection site with a pen and said to come back in two days. I mentioned joking about just sending in a digital photo (though my joke was really a subtle probe to see whether that was possible). So, today, supposed to get there by 16:30 to have that circled spot on my arm (which currently contains a faint 3mm X 5mm bruise, not visibly swollen but identifiable as a bump by touch, so it's gotta be raised somewhat less than as quarter of a millimeter) looked at...

And I can barely walk. I've taken codeine, and it hasn't helped enough to make me able to walk a mile and a half or so[*], just made getting down the stairs to feed Perrine possible. I might be able to coax my lower back into cooperating with enough time with a hot pack and more meds, but it became obvious a while ago that if I got out of the house it would not be before the clinic closed for the day.

I phoned in to ask what to do. The answer (as, alas, expected): gotta start over, make a new appointment for another test, go back two days after that. The problem, of course, is that walking there for the test greatly reduces the odds of my being able to walk that far two days later. (And I might be overlooking one somewhere, but the nearest bus stop to the clinic seems to involve about the same walking distance as just walking straight from my house.) If I had a car, this would be trivial -- there are days when I'm too badly off to go anywhere, but the chances of my feeling well enough to drive a short distance twice in three days are much better than the probability of my feeling well enough to walk that far twice in that time. (And if, on the later day, I did feel well enough to walk, I could skip burning the gas that day.)

Their procedure makes perfect sense for most patients: most people either have the ability to walk that far most days, or have access to a car. The system isn't Completely Broken; it doesn't work for me because of how I'm broken. But it still sucks that there's no better workaround than "keep trying until I have two good walking days two days apart starting on a day they could schedule an appointment for me".

Maybe I'll get lucky and catch a ride there on Monday, if my housemate comes home for lunch at the right time or if I catch a neighbour on my way out. That'll improve my chances for next Wednesday. Or maybe, despite very much Not being a Trained Clinician, I should just take the size of the induration[**] (word I just learned today by searching the web for info on how the TB skin test works) as a sign that I shouldn't really worry about it, and not bother making sure the official result is in my chart?

At least I think I understand why a photo won't work though, now that I've looked it up and learned a new word. It sounds like the nurse will have to feel the spot, not look at it.

[*] Estimated round trip distance according to one measurment with an unreliable toy pedometer.

[**] According to emedtv, "[...] people in the following high-risk groups should be considered for treatment of latent tuberculosis if their TB skin test reading is greater than 10 mm of induration [...]", but I don't know whether they mean linear measurment at its widest, or area. Anyhow, the "bump" covers a smaller area than the visible bruise,and is less than 10mm².

There's got to be a better way. On Monday, after seeing the doctor for my physical exam and referrals, I got sent to a nurse for vaccinations and a TB test. He circled the injection site with a pen and said to come back in two days. I mentioned joking about just sending in a digital photo (though my joke was really a subtle probe to see whether that was possible). So, today, supposed to get there by 16:30 to have that circled spot on my arm (which currently contains a faint 3mm X 5mm bruise, not visibly swollen but identifiable as a bump by touch, so it's gotta be raised somewhat less than as quarter of a millimeter) looked at...

And I can barely walk. I've taken codeine, and it hasn't helped enough to make me able to walk a mile and a half or so[*], just made getting down the stairs to feed Perrine possible. I might be able to coax my lower back into cooperating with enough time with a hot pack and more meds, but it became obvious a while ago that if I got out of the house it would not be before the clinic closed for the day.

I phoned in to ask what to do. The answer (as, alas, expected): gotta start over, make a new appointment for another test, go back two days after that. The problem, of course, is that walking there for the test greatly reduces the odds of my being able to walk that far two days later. (And I might be overlooking one somewhere, but the nearest bus stop to the clinic seems to involve about the same walking distance as just walking straight from my house.) If I had a car, this would be trivial -- there are days when I'm too badly off to go anywhere, but the chances of my feeling well enough to drive a short distance twice in three days are much better than the probability of my feeling well enough to walk that far twice in that time. (And if, on the later day, I did feel well enough to walk, I could skip burning the gas that day.)

Their procedure makes perfect sense for most patients: most people either have the ability to walk that far most days, or have access to a car. The system isn't Completely Broken; it doesn't work for me because of how I'm broken. But it still sucks that there's no better workaround than "keep trying until I have two good walking days two days apart starting on a day they could schedule an appointment for me".

Maybe I'll get lucky and catch a ride there on Monday, if my housemate comes home for lunch at the right time or if I catch a neighbour on my way out. That'll improve my chances for next Wednesday. Or maybe, despite very much Not being a Trained Clinician, I should just take the size of the induration[**] (word I just learned today by searching the web for info on how the TB skin test works) as a sign that I shouldn't really worry about it, and not bother making sure the official result is in my chart?

At least I think I understand why a photo won't work though, now that I've looked it up and learned a new word. It sounds like the nurse will have to feel the spot, not look at it.

[*] Estimated round trip distance according to one measurment with an unreliable toy pedometer.

[**] According to emedtv, "[...] people in the following high-risk groups should be considered for treatment of latent tuberculosis if their TB skin test reading is greater than 10 mm of induration [...]", but I don't know whether they mean linear measurment at its widest, or area. Anyhow, the "bump" covers a smaller area than the visible bruise,and is less than 10mm².