Do I need a lawyer?

[extraonme 4]

I sent a letter, worked on it last night and used all of the advice given, thanks a ton!!

Edited October 19, 2010 by extraonme
issue resolved, thank you to all you all helped me a ton!

[lovemysgt 4]

I was told i would leave the same day i ended up staying for more then 24 hours my husband flipped out on the nurses until many hours later the doctor came in they said he was in surgery the whole time. I have been there from 8am the 13 of sept to 5pm 14 of sept. Then had no reason to keep me i was perfectly fine i could eat and drink and pee and everything. There excuse was to the doc wasin surgery for over how many hours it was stupid. About the other things that happened to u i am not sure if i can help you on that

[Cleo's Mom 257]

As for needing a lawyer. No, I don't think there is anything here that is medically negligent. However, I would not pay any bills for an extended stay when you were told you would be there just the one day and through no fault of your own you were kept an extra day. I would definitely appeal those charges.

The hosptial might be big but they don't have enough staff to monitor all the beds so all the beds are not available. That was probably the case and housekeeping was slow to get you a room. Still, not your problem.

Also, and this is very important - YOU need to get copies of all your test results. Including the operative report and initial liver biopsy as well as your hospital report/chart during your stay. That will show you were doing okay and could have gone home the same day.

You should not be paying out of pocket for all these tests until you determine that they were necessary, done correctly and the results were correct. That's why you need to get copies and review them.

Good luck.

[MrsFitand42 0]

Every boby is sue happy in this country.

I don't think I read anywhere that said she was suing. I think she is making sure she is not taken to the cleaners and being responsible for these extra hospital costs. We all know that once a hospital gets their hooks in you and admit you overnight that you will be paying through the nose.

In my case, I was self-pay so I would have been financially ruined if I had to stay overnight. Hopefully you have insurance that covered this and you can turn this mess over to them to dispute. I'm sure they don't want to be paying these charges either.

Good luck!

[BetsyB 9]

Have you discussed the rationale for the overnight stay with your doctor? The first thing I'd want to know is whether there was a reason for the stay that was not shared with you (or was shared, when you were in recovery and not quite "with it").

If there is no real rationale, I would dispute the charges. Chances are there will be no need to involve an attorney--especially if your insurance covered the procedure. (They will cover the stay, as well--and will certainly dispute the charges, and likely win.)

As for the liver biopsy, I'd want lots more information about that from the surgeon himself. Yes, labs do make errors. But liver damage can and does occur due to certain meds, and it can occur precipitously. (In other words, things can be fine, and then, quite suddenly, not fine.)

As much of a pain as it is, I would want every test recommended done to rule out any possible issue. If you think the labs were mixed up, certainly discuss the biopsy with the surgeon---he's the one who saw the organ, chose to biopsy (and apparently had a reason for that), and can best address your concerns.

If you really do not believe that the biopsy results were yours, ask to see the report. While the wrong person's report sometimes winds up in the wrong medical record, it's much less likely that the wrong specimen is mis-labeled. So, if the report has your name on it, along with the results you've discussed, it's fairly likely that the specimen discussed in the report came from your body.

A liver biopsy isn't something you want to repeat, so the noninvasive tests recommended really probably are a good idea unless you can really definitively determine that the biopsy results were not yours.

[extraonme 4]

Thank you all for the info. I went to the surgeon 1. for my first fill and 2. to discuss the liver biopsy results.

The fill went perfect. Totally uneventful as she numbed me and I couldn't feel a thing.

Also, I did discuss the biopsy results with the surgeon who did see my liver etc as BestyB suggested which was great! He assured me there was no mix up with the labs, however he has no explanation why the Path Labs came back with Low grade chronic hepatitis. ALL test results he reviewed with me all came back negative, viral, autoimmune and LFT's were normal, no fatty liver no cirrhosis etc....so he said he would call the Gastroenterologist and speak with him as well as a team they meet with monthly to discuss "special" cases.

THANK YOU MrsFitand42 you are correct I was not looking at all to SUE anyone as redone tried to say in that post. I was merely looking to mitigate a 48 thousand dollar hospital stay as well as additional costs for MORE liver testing.

I am satisfied totally and thrilled with my fill and Dr. I never had issues with them it was the hospital.

BetsyB, they said a room was not clean so by the time I got to the room it was too late to evaluate me before I could leave. I will call the hospital to discuss, but fear I am stuck paying.

THANKS ALL!

[ElfiePoo 109]

BetsyB, they said a room was not clean so by the time I got to the room it was too late to evaluate me before I could leave. I will call the hospital to discuss, but fear I am stuck paying.

THANKS ALL!

Only if you want to be. Their housekeeping problems are not your problem. I would simply write them a letter and send it certified stating that you were told this was a one day procedure and you did not spend a night due to medical complications, but a lack of organization on the hospital's part. Their problem, not yours.

I would also send a copy to my insurance company. I think you'll find the insurance company will take a dim view of them trying to charge for their ineptness.

The squeaky wheel and all that.

.

[extraonme 4]

That is a really good point ElfiePoo!

I hate confrontation, but through a letter I can carefully speak my peace and present exactly what you said, it isn't my fault and I was totally fine. I will do this for sure!

Thanks!:smile:

[Humming Bird 275]

I don't understand why they would have to clean a room for you in the first place. I went to some sort of pre-op room with just drapes between patients, then to surgery, then back to the area with the drapes to recover, then home. (surgery 1:00pm, outta there at 4:30)

I also don't understand why the Dr. would do a liver biopsy on everyone. Isn't that what you said? Strange. Very strange. I guess they all do things different.

[TracyNYC 4]

What an ordeal. I have no words of wisdom. Just wishing you luck.

[BetsyB 9]

BetsyB, they said a room was not clean so by the time I got to the room it was too late to evaluate me before I could leave. I will call the hospital to discuss, but fear I am stuck paying.

If they did not have a day surgery room for you to return to so that you could be evaluated for a period of time before discharge, and their policy is not to discharge from recovery, it may not be an issue that you need to be concerned about.

If your stay was less than 23 hours, there's a good chance it will be billed as a day surgery, anyway.

My doctor always keeps patients overnight--and my surgery was still billed as a day surgery; a 23-hour admission is considered observation, whether you're in a recovery room, day surgery bed, or on an inpatient unit.

So, there's hope. Give the hospital a call---at this point, I'd be optimistic that there will be no issue at all.

[arittel 0]

I know for a fact that our pathologist has to keep one slice of every sample that he examines in storage for 10 years. Some law here. Maybe you could get ahold of the lab/pathologist that reviewed your biopsy and see if they have the smear/sample still and ask them to double check it. It'd be worth a shot.

[blair2828 0]

I would definitley write a letter to the hospital, and your insurance if you have it. I was self pay, so the hospitals negligence in my circumstance would have really put me in a financial nightmare. I definitley do not think that you should be responsible for any extra charges personally for the extra day. As for the blood work mix up, this has actually happened to me before 2 years ago. It probably was not the Drs offices fault, it was prob a mix up at the lab. I got a call from my pcp 2 years ago and was told to meet him personally at our local ER. That I had a blood disorder called ITP where my blood cells do not clot and apparently my platelet count was so low, if I was to get cut, I would bleed to death before I could get to a hosipital. Turns out after 6 months of testing, IM FINE! Praise God. Test mix ups happen and I think you would have a hard time pin pointing whos mistake it actually was.

I would definitley try to work out the hospital charges. My guess is you can probably get it worked out without an attorney. Try writing them the letter first, if that doesnt work out, seek a local attorney and ask them to write the letter on their letterhead and send it certified mail. I have had to do this once before when I was ripped off. My attorney only charged me $100 to write the letter.

GOOD LUCK!