[Dingie]

The only negative I have, i believe will already be taken care of, but just in case. Prior to my OR during my phone consult with Dr. Clavel, I asked about pain management postop. I am an old RN and did not really believe the stories of I only need tylenol 2 days postop. He said dont worry we will take care of whatever you need. I did not come with my own aresnal of pain meds. The way my prescriptions ran it took me just up to the day of OR. My US MD expected they would manage my pain postop.

After a bit of confusion and several days of trying he finally got it worked out to what I needed postop. I will say there are some people who seem okay with just tylenol, I was not one of them. He believed that all US pts would be able to bring whatever they needed. Not so, as you well know.

I strongly believe this will not be a problem in the future, he and his staff are ridiculously on top of any issues. I also paid extra to have a vascular surgeon on the room with me, i was a 3 level and there are issues with where the arteries bifurcate in relation to the discs I was having replaced. It is not necessary, but 30 years of working in ICU/ER you only see the worst!

I really have no other complaints, the med issue was taken care of for me so for me it is nothing short of a miracle.

I would like to see how to assist in lobbying so people who do not have the funds can get the care they need and deserve here in the US. Or altenatively funding for overseas care. I feel selfish that I got so much just because I had the funds to access care that should be available to all.

I wish you success in your search, everyone likes heir MD, but there are many qualified, just go with whom you feel most confident.

Laurie