With 46 million people in the US having no health insurance, I am sure that many would like to have my problem of insurance, see, I believe I am over insured!!!!
When I called for an appointment to Downing and McPeak Vision Center, it seemed that the most important question to them , after asking my name, was ,, what insurance do you have? Ah, I have good insurance, and there was part of my problem.
I have learned to question more, see, if you have really good insurance, it is more likely that you will be subjected to greedy doctors who want to run tests, perform procedures etc that run up that bill!!!!!!
If I had had no insurance , you can bet that I would not have been rushed into an operation, I would not have been told that I " had to have it " I believe that I would have saved my sight, now on the other hand , my husband went through tumor/cancer and good insurance was definitely a blessing, but like I said, for me, it caused my downfall, so beware of the danger of greedy doctors who put you at risk to line their pockets.
With good insurance comes the responsibility of realising that there are greedy doctors who will put you at risk for the almighty dollar, don't fall into the same trap as I did and trust that all doctors have your best interest at heart, double check, get a second opinion, research your issues and be careful. It may very well have been the factor that caused me to lose my vision.
Below is one extreme case, or is it so extreme? there could be much more of this going on than people realize.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Surgery Mills??
60% of operations per year not justified?
One extreme case involving a doctor knowingly reaping the financial benefits of unnecessary surgeries occurred in California, where an ophthalmologist managed to bill Medicare $46 million over four years for unwarranted operations he performed on his patients. "According to the government, he created a 'surgery mill,' in which he falsified patient records to justify numerous unnecessary cataract and eyelid operations. In addition to this wholesale theft, he put his patients through unneeded pain and worry," writes Gross. It is also important to note in all of this that unnecessary surgery is not considered medical malpractice, according to Rondberg in Under the Influence of Modern Medicine, which makes it even more important for patients to protect themselves by looking into all possible avenues before going under the knife.
http://www.naturalnews.com/012291_medicine_unnecessary_surgery_surgeries.html
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Retinitis Pigmentosa Trials
There is a new trial open for RP patients, has to do with stress and RP and whether stress causes variations in acuity .
Looks like most if not all, will be done over phone and computer,, they are recruiting,,, also there is a trial ongoing , not recruiting , that we can all try to keep up with on a cell implantation, results not out yet.
About the study that is recruiting,,,,
http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/search
Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) patients experience a slowly progressive, unpredictable loss of vision which eventually leads to bare or no light perception, posing a continuous threat to patients' independence. Negative psychological states such as distress, sleepiness, anxiety and depression are common in RP patients due to the nature of this chronic, disabling disease. Psychophysical vision measures are more variable in legally blind RP subjects than in normally sighted individuals, and RP patients indicate that variations in vision are often related to stress. The primary goal of this research is to examine the vision fluctuations within and between days among RP patients using vision tests self-administered by patients through their home computers, and determine associations with factors such as perceived stress, mood states, sleepiness, weather or light exposure. The administration of questionnaires will allow us to gain some insight into which underlying psychological factors impact certain vision measures, allowing the design of future interventional research to attempt to reduce such factors. The aims of many future treatment clinical trials for RP will be to improve vision and/or reduce the rate of vision loss; thus the sources that lead to increased variability of vision need to be identified and alleviated to enable precise evaluation of interventions and improve patients' quality of life.
Looks like most if not all, will be done over phone and computer,, they are recruiting,,, also there is a trial ongoing , not recruiting , that we can all try to keep up with on a cell implantation, results not out yet.
About the study that is recruiting,,,,
http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/search
Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) patients experience a slowly progressive, unpredictable loss of vision which eventually leads to bare or no light perception, posing a continuous threat to patients' independence. Negative psychological states such as distress, sleepiness, anxiety and depression are common in RP patients due to the nature of this chronic, disabling disease. Psychophysical vision measures are more variable in legally blind RP subjects than in normally sighted individuals, and RP patients indicate that variations in vision are often related to stress. The primary goal of this research is to examine the vision fluctuations within and between days among RP patients using vision tests self-administered by patients through their home computers, and determine associations with factors such as perceived stress, mood states, sleepiness, weather or light exposure. The administration of questionnaires will allow us to gain some insight into which underlying psychological factors impact certain vision measures, allowing the design of future interventional research to attempt to reduce such factors. The aims of many future treatment clinical trials for RP will be to improve vision and/or reduce the rate of vision loss; thus the sources that lead to increased variability of vision need to be identified and alleviated to enable precise evaluation of interventions and improve patients' quality of life.
Zen, Buddhism, Karma, Do your doctors beliefs endanger you?
In discussing Dr. Downings seemingly endless court dates coming up , I questioned whether with this many court proceedings, could Dr Downing have the start of dementia? A person involved with one of the cases told me that he didn't think so, that the man seemed to know exactly what to avoid telling the truth on etc,,,, well, possibly, course with the start of dementia , a person can be in his right mind most of the time and just have a few moments of " out there " after all, a few moments here and there would certainly be enough to mess up some peoples eyesight!! But there is another possibility that could explain some of his actions.
Could a persons beliefs end up in harming a patient? Dr Downing belongs to a universal unitarian church, where it seems that they believe in nothing or something, doesn't matter, where the Jesus was just a historical figure, the bible , an old book, but they don't care if a few members believe in it, or not, everything goes,, Downing happens to believe in Buddha, he runs a little Zen circle there, basic belief seems to be that you meditate to achieve enlightenment so that you can stop being reincarnated over and over and reach nirvana. Evidently you do this through meditation, you meditate yourself right into believing that everything is karma, nothing is your fault etc. The same basic thing used to happen to people in the 60's who used LSD, in fact that is where a lot of the Buddhist got started in this country, they used meditation to reach hallucinatory state of mind instead of LSD, which brings us to what does hours of meditation do to a person?
Meditation
If you deprive the mind of outside stimulus and concentrate on nothingness long enough, you basically, trip, you hallucinate, and through Buddhism, you make yourself believe that it is " enlightenment " or in the words of psychologists " Meditation and/or sensory deprivation. When the brain lacks external stimulation to form perceptions, it may form hallucinatory perceptions. "
If you want to see what the famous Timothy Leary from the 60's had to say on the subject, be my guest, all this just seems like an ego trip for these people who don't want to believe that their 1960's drug experiments were wasted.
Using LSD to Imprint the Tibetan-Buddhist Experience by Dr. Timothy Leary, Ph.D.
http://deoxy.org/l_impgui.htm
A Buddhists Quote
"Every human being is the author of his own health or disease "
Now, I get it, if a doctor harms you, if he believes in buddhism, its not his fault, it is your bad karma!!!!
If you start reading into this quackery, they will tell you such little tidbits such as if you do not " intend : to harm someone, you are innocent, and that you are to feel no guilt etc,,,,, course there are many parts of buddhism that tell you basically , treat others how you want to be treated, but like all " religions " ( I use that loosely, since they seem to believe in nothing except themselves and buddha } the followers take the parts they want and twist the parts they don't .
But,, if the mental health experts are right and meditation basically makes you have hallucinations ( and we aren't talking about 5 minute relaxation techniques ) then couldn't a doctor in this state of mind be detrimental to his patients?
hmmmm,, I'll have to chant a while and think on that ( smile )
Could a persons beliefs end up in harming a patient? Dr Downing belongs to a universal unitarian church, where it seems that they believe in nothing or something, doesn't matter, where the Jesus was just a historical figure, the bible , an old book, but they don't care if a few members believe in it, or not, everything goes,, Downing happens to believe in Buddha, he runs a little Zen circle there, basic belief seems to be that you meditate to achieve enlightenment so that you can stop being reincarnated over and over and reach nirvana. Evidently you do this through meditation, you meditate yourself right into believing that everything is karma, nothing is your fault etc. The same basic thing used to happen to people in the 60's who used LSD, in fact that is where a lot of the Buddhist got started in this country, they used meditation to reach hallucinatory state of mind instead of LSD, which brings us to what does hours of meditation do to a person?
Meditation
If you deprive the mind of outside stimulus and concentrate on nothingness long enough, you basically, trip, you hallucinate, and through Buddhism, you make yourself believe that it is " enlightenment " or in the words of psychologists " Meditation and/or sensory deprivation. When the brain lacks external stimulation to form perceptions, it may form hallucinatory perceptions. "
If you want to see what the famous Timothy Leary from the 60's had to say on the subject, be my guest, all this just seems like an ego trip for these people who don't want to believe that their 1960's drug experiments were wasted.
Using LSD to Imprint the Tibetan-Buddhist Experience by Dr. Timothy Leary, Ph.D.
http://deoxy.org/l_impgui.htm
A Buddhists Quote
"Every human being is the author of his own health or disease "
Now, I get it, if a doctor harms you, if he believes in buddhism, its not his fault, it is your bad karma!!!!
If you start reading into this quackery, they will tell you such little tidbits such as if you do not " intend : to harm someone, you are innocent, and that you are to feel no guilt etc,,,,, course there are many parts of buddhism that tell you basically , treat others how you want to be treated, but like all " religions " ( I use that loosely, since they seem to believe in nothing except themselves and buddha } the followers take the parts they want and twist the parts they don't .
But,, if the mental health experts are right and meditation basically makes you have hallucinations ( and we aren't talking about 5 minute relaxation techniques ) then couldn't a doctor in this state of mind be detrimental to his patients?
hmmmm,, I'll have to chant a while and think on that ( smile )
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Retinitis Pigmentosa and Cataract Surgery
RP is a collection of many different genetic diseases that lead to progressive photoreceptor loss and associated vision loss; therefore, the etiology is remarkably variable
http://www.a-scan.net/iol-main/iol_main.htm
formulas for determining the power of the IOL,, ( for those with RP, caution, machine should be set differently, which is part of the problem I am left with, I have the wrong lens power implanted )
On RP and cataract surgery
Several medical conditions can predispose patients to the development of significant anterior capsular contraction syndrome. The best known and probably most commonly encountered of these conditions is pseudoexfoliation. Other pathologies include a history of uveitis, retinitis pigmentosa, high myopia, myotonic dystrophy, advanced age, and trauma (including ocular surgery). Subtle zonular damage, which most likely occurs from previous surgery such as trabeculectomy or vitrectomy, allows for progressive changes after cataract extraction in some cases. Diabetes mellitus is sometimes implicated in this condition as well, although this relationship appears to be less direct. It is certain, however, that zonular disease or trauma is closely associated with the problem of pathologic capsular contraction. Also, instability of the blood aqueous barrier appears to be an inciting factor in pathologic capsular contraction. A history of any of these situations should alert the surgeon to approach the procedure with caution and consider surgical techniques.8-11
------------------------------------------------
While complicated surgery accounts for most cases of CME, this condition also occasionally occurs after straightforward surgery.
The more complicated the surgery, the greater the degree of CME and vision reduction
Good site on studies of RP and related problems,
http://www.lifestages.com/health/retinitis.pigmentosa_2006.html
This site explains how high risk patients ( rp is high risk ) should be given a special regiment both before and after undergoing cataract surgery( Of course Dr Porter didn't do that for me which is why I developed cme from the surgery )
http://www.osnsupersite.com/view.aspx?rid=27703
and more on dosing preop and post op
For at-risk patients, Dr. Raizman said he begins the NSAID 1 week preoperatively and continues the regimen for at least 4 weeks to 6 weeks postoperatively. Patients presenting with diabetic retinopathy should receive non-steroidal treatment for at least 8 weeks preoperatively. OCT can serve as a guide for determining the duration of the therapy.
References
O’Brien TP. Emerging guidelines for use of NSAID therapy to optimized cataract surgery patient care. Curr Med Res & Opin. 2005;21;1131-1137.
McColgin AZ, Raizman MB. Efficacy of topical diclofenac in reducing the incidence of postoperative cystoid macular edema. Invest Ophthmol Vis Sci. 1999;40:289.
this article will describe erg tests, if you are getting erg tests from your eye doc, you should be light/dark adapted first ( yet another thing that Downing and McPeak center doesn't understand is that with RP you should be given time to adapt to the light situation before most testing )
http://webvision.med.utah.edu/ClinicalERG.html
Evaluating whether it is RP or the cataract interfering with your vision and determing the outcome http://www.medscape.com/medline/abstract/9333398
more on dislocation risks up to 20 yrs later with rp
doi:10.1016/j.ophtha.2006.09.017
Cataract surgery is contraindicated when it will not
improve visual function due to the presence of coexisting ocular disease.
However, cataract surgery may be necessary to improve visualization of
the posterior segment for treatment of coexisting disease
http://www.aoa.org/documents/CPG-8.pdf
3. Supplemental Testing
Additional testing may be necessary to assess and document the extent of
the functional disability and to determine whether other diseases (e.g.,
corneal disease, optic nerve disease, or retinal disease) may limit
preoperative vision or may prove to limit postoperative vision.49,50
Contrast sensitivity, glare testing, potential acuity testing, threshold
visual fields or Amsler grid testing, fluorescein angiography, corneal
pachymetry/endothelial cell count, specialized color vision testing, Bscan
ultrasonography, tonography, and electrophysiology testing are not
required as a part of the preoperative workup; however, individual
circumstances, as documented in the patient record, may justify their use
--
Supplemental Testing to Document the Presence of
Coexisting Eye Disease, the Extent of Functional Disability,
and Potential for Improvement
Visual Fields
• Suspicion or evidence of retinal detachment, eye tumor, glaucoma, retinitis
pigmentosa, coloboma, optic nerve disease, or tumor
Amsler Grid
• Suspicion of macular disease
Corneal Pachymetry/Endothelial Cell Count
• History of previous corneal transplant or corneal surgery
• Suspicion of corneal thickening or endothelial dystrophy
• Planned phacoemulsification
B-Scan Ultrasonography
• Poor or limited view of the fundus
• History or suspicion of intraocular mass or tumor
Tonography
• Suspicion of glaucoma or diagnosed open angle glaucoma
Specialized Color Vision Testing
• Suspicion of optic nerve or macular disease
Electrophysiology
• Suspicion of optic nerve disease
• Family history of retinal disease
• Assessment of visual function in a patient with a mature cataract
Contrast Sensitivity and/or Glare Testing
• Patients' symptoms of functional disability far worse than suggested by
visual acuity measurements
Potential Acuity Testing
• Prediction of postoperative acuity
( I wish that Dr Porter had been savvy enough to have performed these tests, before you decide to do surgery with RP, have these done, and make sure that the surgeon has gone over the results with you )
http://rarediseases.info.nih.gov/GARD/Disease.aspx?PageID=4&diseaseID=5694
Government site on Retinitis Pigmentosa as a rare disease
http://www.a-scan.net/iol-main/iol_main.htm
formulas for determining the power of the IOL,, ( for those with RP, caution, machine should be set differently, which is part of the problem I am left with, I have the wrong lens power implanted )
On RP and cataract surgery
Several medical conditions can predispose patients to the development of significant anterior capsular contraction syndrome. The best known and probably most commonly encountered of these conditions is pseudoexfoliation. Other pathologies include a history of uveitis, retinitis pigmentosa, high myopia, myotonic dystrophy, advanced age, and trauma (including ocular surgery). Subtle zonular damage, which most likely occurs from previous surgery such as trabeculectomy or vitrectomy, allows for progressive changes after cataract extraction in some cases. Diabetes mellitus is sometimes implicated in this condition as well, although this relationship appears to be less direct. It is certain, however, that zonular disease or trauma is closely associated with the problem of pathologic capsular contraction. Also, instability of the blood aqueous barrier appears to be an inciting factor in pathologic capsular contraction. A history of any of these situations should alert the surgeon to approach the procedure with caution and consider surgical techniques.8-11
------------------------------------------------
While complicated surgery accounts for most cases of CME, this condition also occasionally occurs after straightforward surgery.
The more complicated the surgery, the greater the degree of CME and vision reduction
Good site on studies of RP and related problems,
http://www.lifestages.com/health/retinitis.pigmentosa_2006.html
This site explains how high risk patients ( rp is high risk ) should be given a special regiment both before and after undergoing cataract surgery( Of course Dr Porter didn't do that for me which is why I developed cme from the surgery )
http://www.osnsupersite.com/view.aspx?rid=27703
and more on dosing preop and post op
For at-risk patients, Dr. Raizman said he begins the NSAID 1 week preoperatively and continues the regimen for at least 4 weeks to 6 weeks postoperatively. Patients presenting with diabetic retinopathy should receive non-steroidal treatment for at least 8 weeks preoperatively. OCT can serve as a guide for determining the duration of the therapy.
References
O’Brien TP. Emerging guidelines for use of NSAID therapy to optimized cataract surgery patient care. Curr Med Res & Opin. 2005;21;1131-1137.
McColgin AZ, Raizman MB. Efficacy of topical diclofenac in reducing the incidence of postoperative cystoid macular edema. Invest Ophthmol Vis Sci. 1999;40:289.
this article will describe erg tests, if you are getting erg tests from your eye doc, you should be light/dark adapted first ( yet another thing that Downing and McPeak center doesn't understand is that with RP you should be given time to adapt to the light situation before most testing )
http://webvision.med.utah.edu/ClinicalERG.html
Evaluating whether it is RP or the cataract interfering with your vision and determing the outcome http://www.medscape.com/medline/abstract/9333398
more on dislocation risks up to 20 yrs later with rp
doi:10.1016/j.ophtha.2006.09.017
Cataract surgery is contraindicated when it will not
improve visual function due to the presence of coexisting ocular disease.
However, cataract surgery may be necessary to improve visualization of
the posterior segment for treatment of coexisting disease
http://www.aoa.org/documents/CPG-8.pdf
3. Supplemental Testing
Additional testing may be necessary to assess and document the extent of
the functional disability and to determine whether other diseases (e.g.,
corneal disease, optic nerve disease, or retinal disease) may limit
preoperative vision or may prove to limit postoperative vision.49,50
Contrast sensitivity, glare testing, potential acuity testing, threshold
visual fields or Amsler grid testing, fluorescein angiography, corneal
pachymetry/endothelial cell count, specialized color vision testing, Bscan
ultrasonography, tonography, and electrophysiology testing are not
required as a part of the preoperative workup; however, individual
circumstances, as documented in the patient record, may justify their use
--
Supplemental Testing to Document the Presence of
Coexisting Eye Disease, the Extent of Functional Disability,
and Potential for Improvement
Visual Fields
• Suspicion or evidence of retinal detachment, eye tumor, glaucoma, retinitis
pigmentosa, coloboma, optic nerve disease, or tumor
Amsler Grid
• Suspicion of macular disease
Corneal Pachymetry/Endothelial Cell Count
• History of previous corneal transplant or corneal surgery
• Suspicion of corneal thickening or endothelial dystrophy
• Planned phacoemulsification
B-Scan Ultrasonography
• Poor or limited view of the fundus
• History or suspicion of intraocular mass or tumor
Tonography
• Suspicion of glaucoma or diagnosed open angle glaucoma
Specialized Color Vision Testing
• Suspicion of optic nerve or macular disease
Electrophysiology
• Suspicion of optic nerve disease
• Family history of retinal disease
• Assessment of visual function in a patient with a mature cataract
Contrast Sensitivity and/or Glare Testing
• Patients' symptoms of functional disability far worse than suggested by
visual acuity measurements
Potential Acuity Testing
• Prediction of postoperative acuity
( I wish that Dr Porter had been savvy enough to have performed these tests, before you decide to do surgery with RP, have these done, and make sure that the surgeon has gone over the results with you )
http://rarediseases.info.nih.gov/GARD/Disease.aspx?PageID=4&diseaseID=5694
Government site on Retinitis Pigmentosa as a rare disease
Monday, June 15, 2009
Fraud and Abuse in Medical Care
Lately with the discussion in politics about reforming health care, many have discussed what drives the cost of health care up. It's really simpler than you would think, its fraud, Abuse, and Greed.
Billions and Billions are lost each year with doctors, hospitals and such, using upcoding ( where they do one procedure and charge for a procedure that is more expensive ) Unbundling ( where a service should be included with the main service and it is " picked apart " so that more money can be charge. There is outright total Fraud , one doctor was caught charging for performing cataract surgery, and laser procedures and it was found out that all he had really done was shine a light in patients eyes, they found him guilty of stealing millions that way.
In one case Defendants submitted at least 2,135 false claims to the
Government for payment under Medicare for YAG Capsulotomy
procedures which not medically necessary and for which
Defendants falsely indicated to the patient that the procedure
was needed.
Sometimes the cases show that patients were harmed by these fraudulent doctors , other times, it is just the taxpayers paying for the medicare bills , sometimes it is the insurance companies that pay, driving up the cost of health care, so in EVERY instance, someone is hurt.
This is where individuals come in, they have to turn these people in, report the fraud, you can do it to medicare , or health and human services, or you can file a Qui Tam,, a " false claims act " charge . Under the False Claims Act, the person reporting the fraud , with the proof, can receive a percentage of what is recovered! One doctor who turned in another doctor, received over a million dollars!
You can report it directly to attorney general of your state if you prefer,, below is one case, Taxpayers Against Fraud has some good info and links
Taxpayers Against Fraud
http://www.taf.org/
U.S. ex rel. Woods v. Paracelsus Healthcare
Corp., No. 98-4564 (C.D. Cal.)
Marvin Balistocky, M.D.
In May 2001,Marvin H.Balistocky,M.D.agreed
to pay $531,026 to settle allegations that he sub-
mitted false claims to Medicare and Medicaid in
connection with ophthalmological care.
Among other things, the Government claimed
that Dr. Balistocky submitted false claims for
laser surgeries performed as part of post-
cataract removal surgery by indicating that the
surgeries were performed after the ninety day
post-operative period; submitted claims for ser-
vices that were either never rendered or upcod-
ed; and submitted claims for two patient evalu-
ation and management services per patient visit.
In addition, Dr. Balistocky has been charged
with two counts of criminal health care fraud.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Margaret Hutchinson
represented the Government.
Billions and Billions are lost each year with doctors, hospitals and such, using upcoding ( where they do one procedure and charge for a procedure that is more expensive ) Unbundling ( where a service should be included with the main service and it is " picked apart " so that more money can be charge. There is outright total Fraud , one doctor was caught charging for performing cataract surgery, and laser procedures and it was found out that all he had really done was shine a light in patients eyes, they found him guilty of stealing millions that way.
In one case Defendants submitted at least 2,135 false claims to the
Government for payment under Medicare for YAG Capsulotomy
procedures which not medically necessary and for which
Defendants falsely indicated to the patient that the procedure
was needed.
Sometimes the cases show that patients were harmed by these fraudulent doctors , other times, it is just the taxpayers paying for the medicare bills , sometimes it is the insurance companies that pay, driving up the cost of health care, so in EVERY instance, someone is hurt.
This is where individuals come in, they have to turn these people in, report the fraud, you can do it to medicare , or health and human services, or you can file a Qui Tam,, a " false claims act " charge . Under the False Claims Act, the person reporting the fraud , with the proof, can receive a percentage of what is recovered! One doctor who turned in another doctor, received over a million dollars!
You can report it directly to attorney general of your state if you prefer,, below is one case, Taxpayers Against Fraud has some good info and links
Taxpayers Against Fraud
http://www.taf.org/
U.S. ex rel. Woods v. Paracelsus Healthcare
Corp., No. 98-4564 (C.D. Cal.)
Marvin Balistocky, M.D.
In May 2001,Marvin H.Balistocky,M.D.agreed
to pay $531,026 to settle allegations that he sub-
mitted false claims to Medicare and Medicaid in
connection with ophthalmological care.
Among other things, the Government claimed
that Dr. Balistocky submitted false claims for
laser surgeries performed as part of post-
cataract removal surgery by indicating that the
surgeries were performed after the ninety day
post-operative period; submitted claims for ser-
vices that were either never rendered or upcod-
ed; and submitted claims for two patient evalu-
ation and management services per patient visit.
In addition, Dr. Balistocky has been charged
with two counts of criminal health care fraud.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Margaret Hutchinson
represented the Government.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
McClown and Sneering Aarons Little Shop Of Horrors
As some of you know, I have a condition called RP that brings on some problems, for me my biggest problem was peripheral vision and night blindness, I actually had fairly good distant vision and near vision,, I say had , because then I went to the Downing and McPeak Vision center for a routine pressure check, Dr Porter then told me I had to have surgery, but it was alright, he had done plenty, never a problem, and I would see great afterwards, I told him my near vision was dear to me as I loved to read and couldn't drive anymore because of peripheral, I asked if he had handled people with my condition , oh yeah,, was the answer, never a problem, I walked in with very good near vision and around 20/40 distant, I walked out with no near vision and worse than 20/100 , then Dr Downing was gonna fix it right? Well no, what he actually did was a procedure with a laser that put me at even more risk to lose even more vision, so now I may get even worse vision due to the surgery and the procedure. or let me tell you a story...........
A little old lady one day was driving along in her fiat car when she decided to have the air checked in her tires, she pulled up to the neighborhood mechanic shop, parked under their sign that read Mc Clown and Sneering Arrons Little Shop of Horrors, come on in. So she went in and asked to have her air checked, Sneering Aaron told her that she really needed her lug bolts tightened, ( thats how they made all their big money, tightening everyones lug bolts at any excuse ) she asked ,, " are you sure? I just wanted my air checked " Sneering Aaron, dreaming of all the things he was going to buy this year , said " oh yes, you have to it might be dangerous if you don't " so she reminded him that she had a Fiat and her fiat was 1 in 10,000 cars that had to have lug bolts turned the opposite way than other cars, Sneering Aaron assured her that he was a professional, he knew that of course, not a problem,,, here sign this , lets go, so she got in line at the assembly plant with all the regular cars, zippppppppppp,,, zzziiiiiipppppppppp,,, move up one place,, zzziiiipppp,, zzzipppp move up one space, as they ran hundreds of fords through the line, she again reminded them she had a special car when she got to the front of the line,, oh yeah,, no problem,, zzziiipppp,,,, zzziiiippppp,,, as she left, her wheels fell off, making her wreck her car and leaving her unable to walk from the wreck,,, she tried to go back and get help, the owner Mr. McClown told her, oh no, its not a wheel problem, its a gas problem,, I'll help,, where as he continued to put sugar in the gas tank,,, leaving the little old lady still crippled and the car no good. When she again complained, they told her to move along, she was holding up the assembly line, it wasn't their fault, it was hers for driving a fiat when everyone else had a ford.
Distraught, crippled and with no car, when she tried to tell her story to others, they tried to shut her up, that was when she noticed there were a few other fiats left by the side of the road, but the assembly line moved so quickly , they were never noticed and when the owners tried to complain , they were shut up quickly with threatening letters from lawyers, never an apology, never taking responsibility, McClown and Sneering Aaron, just went right along moving the assembly line along with unsuspecting cars, and dreaming of all the goodies they could buy with their ill gotten gains. zzziiippppp,,, ziiiippppp
A little old lady one day was driving along in her fiat car when she decided to have the air checked in her tires, she pulled up to the neighborhood mechanic shop, parked under their sign that read Mc Clown and Sneering Arrons Little Shop of Horrors, come on in. So she went in and asked to have her air checked, Sneering Aaron told her that she really needed her lug bolts tightened, ( thats how they made all their big money, tightening everyones lug bolts at any excuse ) she asked ,, " are you sure? I just wanted my air checked " Sneering Aaron, dreaming of all the things he was going to buy this year , said " oh yes, you have to it might be dangerous if you don't " so she reminded him that she had a Fiat and her fiat was 1 in 10,000 cars that had to have lug bolts turned the opposite way than other cars, Sneering Aaron assured her that he was a professional, he knew that of course, not a problem,,, here sign this , lets go, so she got in line at the assembly plant with all the regular cars, zippppppppppp,,, zzziiiiiipppppppppp,,, move up one place,, zzziiiipppp,, zzzipppp move up one space, as they ran hundreds of fords through the line, she again reminded them she had a special car when she got to the front of the line,, oh yeah,, no problem,, zzziiipppp,,,, zzziiiippppp,,, as she left, her wheels fell off, making her wreck her car and leaving her unable to walk from the wreck,,, she tried to go back and get help, the owner Mr. McClown told her, oh no, its not a wheel problem, its a gas problem,, I'll help,, where as he continued to put sugar in the gas tank,,, leaving the little old lady still crippled and the car no good. When she again complained, they told her to move along, she was holding up the assembly line, it wasn't their fault, it was hers for driving a fiat when everyone else had a ford.
Distraught, crippled and with no car, when she tried to tell her story to others, they tried to shut her up, that was when she noticed there were a few other fiats left by the side of the road, but the assembly line moved so quickly , they were never noticed and when the owners tried to complain , they were shut up quickly with threatening letters from lawyers, never an apology, never taking responsibility, McClown and Sneering Aaron, just went right along moving the assembly line along with unsuspecting cars, and dreaming of all the goodies they could buy with their ill gotten gains. zzziiippppp,,, ziiiippppp
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Retinitis Pigmentosa, Cuba, Ozone and " Treatments"
Most people who have, or know someone with RP have heard of the cuban treatment, Cuba of course claims that it has a huge success with their treatment, it has been hard to document this since our Doctors can't go over there and study it. Of course take into consideration that Cuba needs money badly, so they have a reason to " hype " their treatment ( even more than our own greedy unethical doctors here ) but I have seen some questions lately on the subject so for what it is worth, here are some links,
generally the full cost of treatment, if you can get permission to go over, is around 11,000.
http://www.juventudrebelde.co.cu/cuba/2009-06-10/cuban-success-story-in-treating-retinitis-pigmentosa/
this site is from a local man who was trying to go there and get treatment, but if you notice, doesn't seem to have been anything posted for a few years
http://www.geocities.com/HotSprings/6499/index.html
http://www.home.earthlink.net/~blindworld2/MEDICAL/6-06-13-01.htm
( supposed report smuggled out from a doctor? )
and wikipedia is always a good place for some quick info
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Healthcare_in_Cuba
and pubmed had article where doctors studied the people who came back from cuba///////////
Berman-Gund Laboratory, Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Boston, USA.
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of intervention with electric stimulation, autotransfused ozonated blood, and ocular surgery, performed in Cuba, on the cou
rse of the common forms of retinitis pigmentosa. DESIGN: Ocular evaluations over 6 to 8 months before and after intervention in Cuba. SETTING: Evaluations performed at a US clinical research facility. PATIENTS: Ten adult patients aged 25 to 67 years with retinitis pigmentosa. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Visual acuity, visual field area, and electroretinogram (ERG) amplitude. RESULTS: No significant change in visual acuity or visual field area was observed on average between preintervention and postintervention values over a 6- to 8-month interval. Mean 30-Hz cone ERG amplitude declined by 15.5% between preintervention and postintervention values (P = .006). When data on change in visual field area from 1 statistically significant outlier were excluded from the analysis, a significant decline of 12.9% in mean visual field area was observed (P = .025). CONCLUSIONS: These data support the conclusion that the intervention offered in Cuba provides no benefit to patients with retinitis pigmentosa as measured by visual acuity, visual field area, and ERG. The magnitudes of the mean declines observed in ERG amplitude and visual field area over a 6- to 8-month interval, relative to those reported in previous studies, raise the possibility that this intervention may worsen the course of the disease.
PMID: 8619765 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
ordinalpos=1&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DiscoveryPanel.Pubmed_Discovery_RA&linkpos=1&log$=relatedarticles&logdbfrom=pubmed
Ozone therapy is another " option " talked about for RP, as with everything else remember, according to those in the know, there is no true cure of RP
When I first heard about the ozone treatment for RP there was a doctor performing it down in Atlanta, now it seems there are generators you can buy and do it at home, there is a " spa " in texas. I would say proceed cautiously as ozone can have some bad effects on you also if not done right, and evidently some good effects for everything from your eyes, to skin, to detoxing your system etc.
There is also the stem cell research, a Dr Radtke out of Louisville was doing some trials on that, I don't know if he still is, he has a website, also a very good retinal specialist.
Gene Therapy is the new and maybe promising research for RP, I will try to look up a little more on this later, see if there are any trials going on etc, for now there is this
LCA2 (retinitis pigmentosa) is a disease in which the photoreceptor cells of human body fails to respond to light. This is due to a gene called RPE65 which fails to produce a protein that have an importance in healthy vision.
In the study, researchers used an adeno-associated virus, a harmless virus which already exists in most of the people, to deliver RPE65 to a small area of the retina which ultimately helped in the formation of the protein that helps in healthy vision.
This study is a milestone, as this new treatment will be effective in treating human vision disease which are inherited in families and results from mutations in single genes, says Barry J. Byrne, M.D., Ph.D., a professor of molecular genetics and microbiology and director of UF's Powell Gene Therapy Center,
http://eye.taragana.net/archive/gene-therapy-now-effective-in-retinitis-pigmentosa/
Vitamin therapy,,, Through the years everything from lutein to mega dose vit C has been said to " slow " the progress,, I don't think there is any real proof of this, watch out for the " mega " dose suggestions, my mother had a bad reaction to , I think , C,,, so you can take too much.
generally the full cost of treatment, if you can get permission to go over, is around 11,000.
http://www.juventudrebelde.co.cu/cuba/2009-06-10/cuban-success-story-in-treating-retinitis-pigmentosa/
this site is from a local man who was trying to go there and get treatment, but if you notice, doesn't seem to have been anything posted for a few years
http://www.geocities.com/HotSprings/6499/index.html
http://www.home.earthlink.net/~blindworld2/MEDICAL/6-06-13-01.htm
( supposed report smuggled out from a doctor? )
and wikipedia is always a good place for some quick info
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Healthcare_in_Cuba
and pubmed had article where doctors studied the people who came back from cuba///////////
Berman-Gund Laboratory, Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Boston, USA.
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of intervention with electric stimulation, autotransfused ozonated blood, and ocular surgery, performed in Cuba, on the cou
rse of the common forms of retinitis pigmentosa. DESIGN: Ocular evaluations over 6 to 8 months before and after intervention in Cuba. SETTING: Evaluations performed at a US clinical research facility. PATIENTS: Ten adult patients aged 25 to 67 years with retinitis pigmentosa. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Visual acuity, visual field area, and electroretinogram (ERG) amplitude. RESULTS: No significant change in visual acuity or visual field area was observed on average between preintervention and postintervention values over a 6- to 8-month interval. Mean 30-Hz cone ERG amplitude declined by 15.5% between preintervention and postintervention values (P = .006). When data on change in visual field area from 1 statistically significant outlier were excluded from the analysis, a significant decline of 12.9% in mean visual field area was observed (P = .025). CONCLUSIONS: These data support the conclusion that the intervention offered in Cuba provides no benefit to patients with retinitis pigmentosa as measured by visual acuity, visual field area, and ERG. The magnitudes of the mean declines observed in ERG amplitude and visual field area over a 6- to 8-month interval, relative to those reported in previous studies, raise the possibility that this intervention may worsen the course of the disease.
PMID: 8619765 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
ordinalpos=1&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DiscoveryPanel.Pubmed_Discovery_RA&linkpos=1&log$=relatedarticles&logdbfrom=pubmed
Ozone therapy is another " option " talked about for RP, as with everything else remember, according to those in the know, there is no true cure of RP
When I first heard about the ozone treatment for RP there was a doctor performing it down in Atlanta, now it seems there are generators you can buy and do it at home, there is a " spa " in texas. I would say proceed cautiously as ozone can have some bad effects on you also if not done right, and evidently some good effects for everything from your eyes, to skin, to detoxing your system etc.
There is also the stem cell research, a Dr Radtke out of Louisville was doing some trials on that, I don't know if he still is, he has a website, also a very good retinal specialist.
Gene Therapy is the new and maybe promising research for RP, I will try to look up a little more on this later, see if there are any trials going on etc, for now there is this
LCA2 (retinitis pigmentosa) is a disease in which the photoreceptor cells of human body fails to respond to light. This is due to a gene called RPE65 which fails to produce a protein that have an importance in healthy vision.
In the study, researchers used an adeno-associated virus, a harmless virus which already exists in most of the people, to deliver RPE65 to a small area of the retina which ultimately helped in the formation of the protein that helps in healthy vision.
This study is a milestone, as this new treatment will be effective in treating human vision disease which are inherited in families and results from mutations in single genes, says Barry J. Byrne, M.D., Ph.D., a professor of molecular genetics and microbiology and director of UF's Powell Gene Therapy Center,
http://eye.taragana.net/archive/gene-therapy-now-effective-in-retinitis-pigmentosa/
Vitamin therapy,,, Through the years everything from lutein to mega dose vit C has been said to " slow " the progress,, I don't think there is any real proof of this, watch out for the " mega " dose suggestions, my mother had a bad reaction to , I think , C,,, so you can take too much.
Your Rights, Doctors, and Advocacy
I used to be a union officer, I was used to telling people , protect yourselves, take notes, know your rights and all the other goodies of advocacy.
So why didn't I do the same for myself? Because your personal doctor is supposed to have your best interest at heart , unlike a big corporation, right? That was my mistake , I didn't realize that some doctors, like in Downing and McPeak, ARE big corporations, they advertise themselves as being the hometown doctors right? Hmmm,,, not quite the way we all think of the little old friendly hometown doctors, nope, these guys have vice presidents ( Dr Downing } and shareholders ( Dr Porter and the other docs ) they have listed their corporation as LLC limited liability corporation protecting themselves somewhat against having to take responsibility for their actions.
So, what to do about protecting yourselves? They have the connections , the big time lawyers, and sometimes it is overwhelming to go up against people like this even when you are definitely in the right! So I am back to square one, just like being a union officer, I am going to tell you, take notes, take a recorder and record the office visit, the " seminar " that way, you can go back and listen to what they tell you, what they haven't told you and make your decision on what is best for you, whether you should take the risks involved in a procedure, whether your doctor is forthcoming with you , does he answer your questions? Have you double checked to see if what he tells you is the whole truth?
I have went up against big corporations, I know that to get anywhere , you have to research first so that you know what questions to ask, and know what the answers should be. When they tell you " it isn't policy " ask to speak to the person that makes the policy. When they tell you that they can't change the policy, demand to talk to the person who has the authority to make decisions.
It takes time sometimes against big corporations, I have had to go up through many supervisors, officers, and in a few cases to the board of directors of companies to get what should have been right to start with , no company wants to cut you a deal, or do what is right, if it is going to cost them money, you have to be patient, it takes time, you have to not give up, if you have to file complaints, reports, go to the news, go to the public, keep going, get your rights, never take no.
I have had contracts with cell phone companies cut in half, free offers, etc,, but only after I didn't take no for an answer, went up to higher people who could make those decisions. I had a boat repainted after it was out of warranty, not because they knew it was the right thing to do, but because I kept up the pressure, one person at a time until I reached the top.
Don't do any less with your own doctors, demand answers, get what you pay for, demand the truth, and if they still fail you, stand up for your rights, make it as right as you can, make them accountable, you will not only be helping yourself, you may help others from not getting hurt.
So why didn't I do the same for myself? Because your personal doctor is supposed to have your best interest at heart , unlike a big corporation, right? That was my mistake , I didn't realize that some doctors, like in Downing and McPeak, ARE big corporations, they advertise themselves as being the hometown doctors right? Hmmm,,, not quite the way we all think of the little old friendly hometown doctors, nope, these guys have vice presidents ( Dr Downing } and shareholders ( Dr Porter and the other docs ) they have listed their corporation as LLC limited liability corporation protecting themselves somewhat against having to take responsibility for their actions.
So, what to do about protecting yourselves? They have the connections , the big time lawyers, and sometimes it is overwhelming to go up against people like this even when you are definitely in the right! So I am back to square one, just like being a union officer, I am going to tell you, take notes, take a recorder and record the office visit, the " seminar " that way, you can go back and listen to what they tell you, what they haven't told you and make your decision on what is best for you, whether you should take the risks involved in a procedure, whether your doctor is forthcoming with you , does he answer your questions? Have you double checked to see if what he tells you is the whole truth?
I have went up against big corporations, I know that to get anywhere , you have to research first so that you know what questions to ask, and know what the answers should be. When they tell you " it isn't policy " ask to speak to the person that makes the policy. When they tell you that they can't change the policy, demand to talk to the person who has the authority to make decisions.
It takes time sometimes against big corporations, I have had to go up through many supervisors, officers, and in a few cases to the board of directors of companies to get what should have been right to start with , no company wants to cut you a deal, or do what is right, if it is going to cost them money, you have to be patient, it takes time, you have to not give up, if you have to file complaints, reports, go to the news, go to the public, keep going, get your rights, never take no.
I have had contracts with cell phone companies cut in half, free offers, etc,, but only after I didn't take no for an answer, went up to higher people who could make those decisions. I had a boat repainted after it was out of warranty, not because they knew it was the right thing to do, but because I kept up the pressure, one person at a time until I reached the top.
Don't do any less with your own doctors, demand answers, get what you pay for, demand the truth, and if they still fail you, stand up for your rights, make it as right as you can, make them accountable, you will not only be helping yourself, you may help others from not getting hurt.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Vision Professionals Promises
We all know that many organizations put out promises that they cannot possibly keep, we expect that from late night infomercials, what we do not expect are those promises coming from doctors. Oh they are going to deny that they " promised " anything, yet they do , from what they tell you to what they advertise, I am still seeing advertisements about Tiger Woods having lasik surgery, course they are not telling you that he has had to have more procedures from his vision " slipping " there was another not so famous golfer who also had the procedure, he wasn't so lucky, they haven't been able to fix his vision after his first surgery " slipped "
I noticed on the Downing and McPeak website, under the lasik , it claims " a lifetime of benefits " yeah, right,, uh, they are not telling you that for one, there hasn't been a " lifetime " of study about lasik yet, and from the length of time it has been studied, it is understood by professionals that even if you have wonderful results to start with, it is not uncommon for those results to diminish over time! False advertisement? Even the FDA had held meetings a few years back with many unsatisfied customers of lasik that wanted them to demand more " truth " from doctors over this, the FDA did come out with rules that were supposed to make theses vision centers stop advertising what they couldn't produce, and to have to put out the risks along with these so called benefits, but many ignore it, get by with it, are not reported, etc, so we still have these places touting " lifetime benefits " and having " testimonials from customers who think it is great, course, they may not think it is great in a few years !!
Like any infomercial on tv Downing and crew are telling the public, they have been awarded some kind of " gold " award ,, ok,, lets see,,, who awarded them this? TLC,,, now TLC is a lasik mill with a twist, basically, they rent doctors like Downing, these excimer machines, and any other assistance they want such as training on the machines, etc,, TLC is also a failing company so they are doing whatever they can to keep their heads above water, will they be cutting costs on such things as maintenance on machines etc?
And lets talk about these machines themselves, Downing advertises them as being " approved " and the " gold standard " in other words ,, the newest things going. The last newest machine going was advertised as " ladarvision " a few years after they were out, it was found that these machines malfunctioned leaving patients with many problems, so lets hope for the sake of the patients on this " new " machine that the kinks are worked out,, but are you willing to bet your vision on it?
I noticed on the Downing and McPeak website, under the lasik , it claims " a lifetime of benefits " yeah, right,, uh, they are not telling you that for one, there hasn't been a " lifetime " of study about lasik yet, and from the length of time it has been studied, it is understood by professionals that even if you have wonderful results to start with, it is not uncommon for those results to diminish over time! False advertisement? Even the FDA had held meetings a few years back with many unsatisfied customers of lasik that wanted them to demand more " truth " from doctors over this, the FDA did come out with rules that were supposed to make theses vision centers stop advertising what they couldn't produce, and to have to put out the risks along with these so called benefits, but many ignore it, get by with it, are not reported, etc, so we still have these places touting " lifetime benefits " and having " testimonials from customers who think it is great, course, they may not think it is great in a few years !!
Like any infomercial on tv Downing and crew are telling the public, they have been awarded some kind of " gold " award ,, ok,, lets see,,, who awarded them this? TLC,,, now TLC is a lasik mill with a twist, basically, they rent doctors like Downing, these excimer machines, and any other assistance they want such as training on the machines, etc,, TLC is also a failing company so they are doing whatever they can to keep their heads above water, will they be cutting costs on such things as maintenance on machines etc?
And lets talk about these machines themselves, Downing advertises them as being " approved " and the " gold standard " in other words ,, the newest things going. The last newest machine going was advertised as " ladarvision " a few years after they were out, it was found that these machines malfunctioned leaving patients with many problems, so lets hope for the sake of the patients on this " new " machine that the kinks are worked out,, but are you willing to bet your vision on it?
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Could Your Doctor Need To Retire?
In the US it is mandatory ( at least in 2007 ) for an airline pilot to retire at age 60! But a Doctor? No such need. I know of some Doctors past 65 who are very competent, just like I know citizens who are way past 65 who are very competent, but there are some who have mentally slowed down, some who have gotten shaky at times, who get forgetful, and lets face it, some who are showing the start of dementia or Alzheimer's.
Our health, in fact our lives and the lives of loved ones are too important to not ask the question, when is it time for the surgeon, the eye doctor, etc to hang up his practice?
Who looks after these cases? Pretty much nobody. We have the state medical license board, made up of doctors, but from what I can tell, they collect their $100 or so dollars a year, and if a complaint is filed, shuffle paper work. Often by the time a complaint is filed, it is way too late, too many have been harmed.
Should the US look into a competency exam mandatory if a certain number of complaints are filed, or after a certain number of lawsuits are filed, maybe yearly after age 65?
--------------------------------------------------------
However, questions of incompetence, drug
abuse, or unethical behavior among licensed
practicing physicians were dealt with in camera
by peer-review committees within the
profession’s own organizations—if they were addressed at all.
http://content.healthaffairs.org/cgi/reprint/18/6/244.pdf
Look closely at the top of your doctor's head the next time you get a chance. Do those odd gray hairs worry you at all? Do they speak to you of wisdom and experience? Or do they remind you it may be time to leave the old fool for a source of more up-to-date care?
In Britain, the National Health Service imposes draconian limitations on physicians wishing to work after age 65, and essentially forbids work after 70. The policy is clearly intended to guard the population from doddering idiots.
-----------------------------------------------------
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/08/health/08essa.html?ex=1265605200&en=fe14946cb29b2555&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland
If you believe that your eye doctor is incompetent due to age dementia and have seen signs of this, report him to the medical board of your state, here in KY it is the Kentucky Medical Licensing Board
Our health, in fact our lives and the lives of loved ones are too important to not ask the question, when is it time for the surgeon, the eye doctor, etc to hang up his practice?
Who looks after these cases? Pretty much nobody. We have the state medical license board, made up of doctors, but from what I can tell, they collect their $100 or so dollars a year, and if a complaint is filed, shuffle paper work. Often by the time a complaint is filed, it is way too late, too many have been harmed.
Should the US look into a competency exam mandatory if a certain number of complaints are filed, or after a certain number of lawsuits are filed, maybe yearly after age 65?
--------------------------------------------------------
However, questions of incompetence, drug
abuse, or unethical behavior among licensed
practicing physicians were dealt with in camera
by peer-review committees within the
profession’s own organizations—if they were addressed at all.
http://content.healthaffairs.org/cgi/reprint/18/6/244.pdf
Look closely at the top of your doctor's head the next time you get a chance. Do those odd gray hairs worry you at all? Do they speak to you of wisdom and experience? Or do they remind you it may be time to leave the old fool for a source of more up-to-date care?
In Britain, the National Health Service imposes draconian limitations on physicians wishing to work after age 65, and essentially forbids work after 70. The policy is clearly intended to guard the population from doddering idiots.
-----------------------------------------------------
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/08/health/08essa.html?ex=1265605200&en=fe14946cb29b2555&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland
If you believe that your eye doctor is incompetent due to age dementia and have seen signs of this, report him to the medical board of your state, here in KY it is the Kentucky Medical Licensing Board
Friday, June 5, 2009
Dr Downing and court cases?
Update
Dr. Downing seems to be getting rather busy ,,, in court that is.
Sparks vs Downing is coming up in warren co this month, 6/22
Anyone have any news on that one, want to hear from you, I believe that is the one where the poor woman had to have her cornea replaced after going to Downing and McPeak? Or so the claim goes, after all, the case isn't settled yet.
Of course since the Downing and McPeak vision center has not only and office in Bowling green , but a surgical center in Glasgow, and I believe offices in Allen county, franklin, ky,,, Christian county? the court cases seem to be spread out, listed cases that Downing and McPeak, Dr Downing will be involved in after the Sparks case, are Martin in Allen co
McMurray in Barren
Ogburn in Christian
Khamsay,, in warren co
One case is no longer listed in warren co that a gentleman was suing, anyone know what happened at that case?
Email me with information on the above cases and I will update !
On another note, its interesting how these vision centers operate, Downing and McPeak, well, really, isn't any McPeak at least anymore, shareholders only list the doctors including Downing. So they are all really chummy as far as having an interest in protecting one another, and then there are a couple , Porter for one who evidently also have an interest in the anesthesiology at the surgical center, .
Of course everything is done under an LLC ( limited liability corp ) which further protects them in case they get caught doing some very bad things. Then Dr Downing also owns or has major interest in a couple of other things, Barren River Investments,, and something called, SARASWATI Leasing,,, Saraswati is a strange name, in Hindu ( I believe Dr Downing used to be a buddhist ) means Goddess of Intellect,, Might be something to all this Buddhist business, seems that karma may be catching up.
Dr. Downing seems to be getting rather busy ,,, in court that is.
Sparks vs Downing is coming up in warren co this month, 6/22
Anyone have any news on that one, want to hear from you, I believe that is the one where the poor woman had to have her cornea replaced after going to Downing and McPeak? Or so the claim goes, after all, the case isn't settled yet.
Of course since the Downing and McPeak vision center has not only and office in Bowling green , but a surgical center in Glasgow, and I believe offices in Allen county, franklin, ky,,, Christian county? the court cases seem to be spread out, listed cases that Downing and McPeak, Dr Downing will be involved in after the Sparks case, are Martin in Allen co
McMurray in Barren
Ogburn in Christian
Khamsay,, in warren co
One case is no longer listed in warren co that a gentleman was suing, anyone know what happened at that case?
Email me with information on the above cases and I will update !
On another note, its interesting how these vision centers operate, Downing and McPeak, well, really, isn't any McPeak at least anymore, shareholders only list the doctors including Downing. So they are all really chummy as far as having an interest in protecting one another, and then there are a couple , Porter for one who evidently also have an interest in the anesthesiology at the surgical center, .
Of course everything is done under an LLC ( limited liability corp ) which further protects them in case they get caught doing some very bad things. Then Dr Downing also owns or has major interest in a couple of other things, Barren River Investments,, and something called, SARASWATI Leasing,,, Saraswati is a strange name, in Hindu ( I believe Dr Downing used to be a buddhist ) means Goddess of Intellect,, Might be something to all this Buddhist business, seems that karma may be catching up.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Refractive Surgery and Infection
Have you done all your homework on lasik surgery yet?
Do you know how your surgery center rates on infection?
If you live in Kentucky , then you might not know, there is legislation pending about vision surgical centers having to report rates of infection, but it isn't quite in place yet.
There are things you can do to find if your choice of surgical center has had a problem with infections, you can ask, you might not get the truth from them though. You can look up your local doctors that you are going to use and see what kind of lawsuits they have had lately. Here in Bowling Green there isn't much information online, you can find where the local doctor might have a lawsuit , but not much on previous, and even on lawsuits going on at the time you will only find names, dates, not content, but surgery is a very big decision, so, go the extra length, put out the effort, it is your health.
How to do it?
For example,,,, write down the names of the doctors in the vision center where you are going ,, say,, Downing and McPeak, you would write down all the doctors names with practices there, Downing, Porter, Etc etc, go to the justice center and ask to see all cases in the past year or two, three, on the center itself, the doctors themselves, and now this is important, READ the content of the lawsuits, see where charges are made of infections, dirty instruments, etc,, it will be in the contents.
Infection in the surgical site ( EYES ) can cause extreme problems.
Anything from discomfort, to blindness, to needing cornea transplants ( )
To read up on this further try these links
http://www.eyeworld.org/article.php?sid=3915
http://www.revoptom.com/index.asp?page=2_14176.htm
( Due to the disruptive nature of one poster, ( downing and mcPeak flunky?) I have temporarily taken down the comment sections you can still email me at dorothy25@insightbb.com )
Do you know how your surgery center rates on infection?
If you live in Kentucky , then you might not know, there is legislation pending about vision surgical centers having to report rates of infection, but it isn't quite in place yet.
There are things you can do to find if your choice of surgical center has had a problem with infections, you can ask, you might not get the truth from them though. You can look up your local doctors that you are going to use and see what kind of lawsuits they have had lately. Here in Bowling Green there isn't much information online, you can find where the local doctor might have a lawsuit , but not much on previous, and even on lawsuits going on at the time you will only find names, dates, not content, but surgery is a very big decision, so, go the extra length, put out the effort, it is your health.
How to do it?
For example,,,, write down the names of the doctors in the vision center where you are going ,, say,, Downing and McPeak, you would write down all the doctors names with practices there, Downing, Porter, Etc etc, go to the justice center and ask to see all cases in the past year or two, three, on the center itself, the doctors themselves, and now this is important, READ the content of the lawsuits, see where charges are made of infections, dirty instruments, etc,, it will be in the contents.
Infection in the surgical site ( EYES ) can cause extreme problems.
Anything from discomfort, to blindness, to needing cornea transplants ( )
To read up on this further try these links
http://www.eyeworld.org/article.php?sid=3915
http://www.revoptom.com/index.asp?page=2_14176.htm
( Due to the disruptive nature of one poster, ( downing and mcPeak flunky?) I have temporarily taken down the comment sections you can still email me at dorothy25@insightbb.com )
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Lasik Surgery, What you may not know
Why don't blind people go skydiving? It scares the dogs
Did you know that if you have lasik surgery, you may need " touch ups?"The overall 1-year incidence of retreatment was 10.5%.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12689897?dopt=Abstract
LASIK Surgery astigmatism. Each year more than one million patients undergo the LASIK procedure in the United States. According to the Food and Drug Administration, the complication rate of LASIK surgery is between 1 and 5 percent
Some of those complications are what they consider " mild " some are very serious including totally losing your vision the top complications are:::
Vision Loss
Debilitating Visual Symptoms
Under Treatment or Over Treatment
Severe Dry Eye Syndrome
Less Effective Results in Patients with Different Types of Large Refractive Errors
Results Diminishing with Age
One of the things that list as a " best candidate " is if you are under 40 years old, but then , the results diminish with age, so does that really make you a best candidate? You think you will get 20/20 vision? Think again.
Think you will get rid of the glasses? Think again, the surgery is only supposed to ( and that is best case scenario } REDUCE the need for glasses, you may still need glasses!!!
New information is coming out about these procedures all the time, experts are not all that willing anymore to tout how safe and great it is
Experts Advise New Warnings for LASIK
http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=89019
This type of surgery is a HUGE , HUGE money maker for doctors, make sure that they have your best interest in mind and not their own.
http://www.jpands.org/vol11no4/gervais.pdf
If you decide to have it ,, good luck.
Did you know that if you have lasik surgery, you may need " touch ups?"The overall 1-year incidence of retreatment was 10.5%.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12689897?dopt=Abstract
LASIK Surgery astigmatism. Each year more than one million patients undergo the LASIK procedure in the United States. According to the Food and Drug Administration, the complication rate of LASIK surgery is between 1 and 5 percent
Some of those complications are what they consider " mild " some are very serious including totally losing your vision the top complications are:::
Vision Loss
Debilitating Visual Symptoms
Under Treatment or Over Treatment
Severe Dry Eye Syndrome
Less Effective Results in Patients with Different Types of Large Refractive Errors
Results Diminishing with Age
One of the things that list as a " best candidate " is if you are under 40 years old, but then , the results diminish with age, so does that really make you a best candidate? You think you will get 20/20 vision? Think again.
Think you will get rid of the glasses? Think again, the surgery is only supposed to ( and that is best case scenario } REDUCE the need for glasses, you may still need glasses!!!
New information is coming out about these procedures all the time, experts are not all that willing anymore to tout how safe and great it is
Experts Advise New Warnings for LASIK
http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=89019
This type of surgery is a HUGE , HUGE money maker for doctors, make sure that they have your best interest in mind and not their own.
http://www.jpands.org/vol11no4/gervais.pdf
If you decide to have it ,, good luck.
Owning Up
" God heals and the doctor takes the fee "
Benjamin Franklin
Owning up, sounds simple right? Millions of honest, good people do it everyday when they make mistakes, they own up to it. If you read the articles on drug addiction or alcoholism, first step? Own up to it, admit it, and move on.
As a society, aren't we giving mixed signals? It often seems that those who don't own up , get by with it.
Politicians, don't own up to it, they make excuses, twist words, blame someone else, but rarely do they admit to something.
Criminals, they are given advice by their lawyers to keep mouths shut, don't say a word, don't admit anything, and I guess that is good legal advice, but not good for society, doesn't that just teach people to keep on lying, cheating and doing wrong?
After looking through the medical journals and Dept of Justice and such online, they tell you that they think a certain percentage of doctors do not admit mistakes, or cover up mistakes, they think that a certain percentage of doctors commit insurance and medicare billing fraud, but they know they only catch a small percentage of what actually goes on.
How many people are harmed by doctors mistakes that never even know that their injury was caused by a mistake, or carelessness, they are given an excuse for their injury, not told that oops, cut a muscle accidentally, or, oops should not have had that second martini at lunch.
We should be able to respect Doctors, to hold them in high esteem, but until they start " owning up " we can't. There are certain careers that only the totally honest should go into, Judges, Doctors, Politicians, Policemen, where human life is at stake, where lives are changed for good or bad by their actions.
I believe in karma, what goes around , comes around, but in the short run, you still want people to own up ,, NOW.
Benjamin Franklin
Owning up, sounds simple right? Millions of honest, good people do it everyday when they make mistakes, they own up to it. If you read the articles on drug addiction or alcoholism, first step? Own up to it, admit it, and move on.
As a society, aren't we giving mixed signals? It often seems that those who don't own up , get by with it.
Politicians, don't own up to it, they make excuses, twist words, blame someone else, but rarely do they admit to something.
Criminals, they are given advice by their lawyers to keep mouths shut, don't say a word, don't admit anything, and I guess that is good legal advice, but not good for society, doesn't that just teach people to keep on lying, cheating and doing wrong?
After looking through the medical journals and Dept of Justice and such online, they tell you that they think a certain percentage of doctors do not admit mistakes, or cover up mistakes, they think that a certain percentage of doctors commit insurance and medicare billing fraud, but they know they only catch a small percentage of what actually goes on.
How many people are harmed by doctors mistakes that never even know that their injury was caused by a mistake, or carelessness, they are given an excuse for their injury, not told that oops, cut a muscle accidentally, or, oops should not have had that second martini at lunch.
We should be able to respect Doctors, to hold them in high esteem, but until they start " owning up " we can't. There are certain careers that only the totally honest should go into, Judges, Doctors, Politicians, Policemen, where human life is at stake, where lives are changed for good or bad by their actions.
I believe in karma, what goes around , comes around, but in the short run, you still want people to own up ,, NOW.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)