Newly diagnosed cancer patients have a lot of trouble scheduling with oncologists

[eridani]

Butbutbut....there cannot be rationing in this bestest of all health care systems!

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/06/110601152057.htm

Newly diagnosed cancer patients frequently face hurdles in obtaining an appointment for care with an oncologist, according to new research from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennnsylvania that will be presented on June 4 at the 2011 annual meeting of American Society of Clinical Oncology. Even callers with private health insurance had difficulty scheduling an appointment, with just 22 percent of them obtaining a slot, compared to 29 percent of uninsured patients and 17 percent of patients on Medicaid, according to results of a study in which research assistants posed as patients seeking an initial evaluation

[Maine_Nurse]

1. My dad got the initial appointment and surgery, but...

his follow up appointment was 6 months away at the earliest. He was dead in 3, even after repeated attempts by us and the PCP to get a faster follow up with the renal oncologist. By the time the mild signs and symptoms got concerning enough to take a trip to the ED, he was too far progressed to do anything except enroll in hospice. The follow up MRI would have very likely found the little piece of tumor missed in the surgery.

[lapislzi]

2. Sadly, this isn't new

Although it may be getting worse. When my mom had cancer 25 years ago, the appointments were terribly tight. We waited for hours in a room full of misery to be told, "sorry, you're going to die." There's more cancer out there than there are oncologists to treat it.

[madrchsod]

3. try baby doctors...

in my area of 50,000 or so there are 10 baby doctors for two hospitals. my daughter tried to find one in our city but there were no openings. she found a doctor that had an opening(three week wait) 17 miles away. so when she goes into labor instead of a couple of blocks to our hospital it`s 17 miles to the other.

[customerserviceguy]

5. At least nurse-midwives are a practical solution to that problem

There's no cut-rate way to have an oncologist, though. Perhaps there are ways of incentivizing young physicians to take that up, rather than plastic surgery.

[madrchsod]

4. my brother in law went to the madison wisconsin va hospital...

called on a friday,had an appointment the next tuesday,with in the next two weeks tests and treatment started for liver cancer. the newest treatment for liver cancer..nuclear pellets inserted via an artery......

[slipslidingaway]

6. Des Moines Register: VA health system for everyone?

http://www.pnhp.org/news/2011/june/des-moines-register-va-health-system-for-everyone

Posted this last night, maybe we should look at their system.

:shrug: