A Nightmare to share with All.

I would report the doctor and the clinic to the appropriate state licensing board and/or their industry regulatory agency (here in Canada it is usually called the College of Physicians and Surgeons). I wouldn't expect any action on your complaint specifically, but if they have a history of this kind of thing it will be noted. If enough complaints are lodged then hopefully at some point they'll get sanctioned.

Not aimed at the OP, but the only way for drivers to not be treated as doormats is to not act like one. If you are in the right then stand your ground and demand appropriate treatment in all things.

 

did you have to pay cash for ent and specialist??---sometimes i think there has to be kickbacks for sending people to different medical services---twice in the last month my little cub had to go to emergency because the school nurse said it was a must---maybe she is just covering her butt and looking out for my kid--but each time its 100 bucks--and each time daddys prognosis was right--the last time--once we got the splint off that the nurse had applies--the swelling and bruising went out of his finger as he was able to bend and move it

 

Why didn't you just go to another doctor ?

Do you have to go to their doctor for them to pay for it ?

I would have just left his office and went down the street.... been there done that .

 

Going to the doctor should be treated like going to court or meeting with the IRS. Your mission is to get out of there with as little damage as possible. Take your medical questions to a personal doctor you pay, not the doctor that decides if you keep your license.

Don't have conversations with the staff. Don't use this as your once in a lifetime chance to ask about some medical condition you may or may not have. Answer the questions strictly as they are asked.

One thing I've preached to other drivers, and seen it have no impact, is hearing protection. YOU WILL GO DEAF DRIVING A TRUCK, if you drive one long enough. YES, EVEN A VOLVO. YES, EVEN IF A 1974 FREIGHTLINER IS LOUDER THAN YOUR CURRENT TRUCK.

If you don't protect your hearing you are losing your hearing, even if you don't notice. You work alone. The other drivers you know are also losing their hearing. You can turn up the radio a little bit louder and think you aren't losing your hearing. You are losing your hearing.

Walk into a truck stop TV room and tell me you people aren't already almost deaf.

It's easy to convince most people that spending a few hours at a loud rock concert hurts your hearing, you can hear the ringing for a day after the event. You also go deaf by being exposed to not-as-loud noises for many, many, many hours for many, many, many days over months and years. Hearing loss is like draining a bucket of water. You can turn the bucket over and empty at once like at a rock concert or an explosion. Or, you can put a pin hole in the bottom and having the water/hearing draining out.

Modern CMVs are much quieter than older CMVs. They are also just at the lower limit of OSHA limits for hearing loss, yet you are exposed to that sound for most hours of most days for many years.

If you aren't wearing ear plugs or the less likely active noise-cancelling headphones you are giving up your hearing, slowly but surely.

You may not want to tell other drivers you are wearing ear plugs, you sure don't want to tell your boss or DOT. But if you want to keep your hearing, wear ear plugs. AOSafety makes the most comfortable foam earplugs around. Try the AOSafety Sleep/Rest ear plugs. I won't post a link to them but they are far more comfortable than the common industrial type foam ear plugs I've ever tried. Since they are made for sleep/rest they anticipate long duration wear and they are smooth and soft. You shouldn't pay more than about 50 cents per pair and one pair can last a week of full-time use.

Another alternative is the blob of silicone type of ear plug. These are very comfortable because they don't rely on being squeezed into your ear canal. However, they get so dirty so fast, and they are more expensive you will likely give up on they quickly. Also when you aren't wearing them they are less convenient to store. It's like trying to store used chewing gum that you will put back in your ear.

You can hear more of the sounds you need to hear while wearing these ear plugs because you aren't "swamped with the engine and wind noise. You know how hard it is to hear the radio when driving in heavy rain, ear plugs block out almost all of that rain noise. You MIGHT have to turn up the radio or not.

Try this experiment. Get in the truck with the engine off and turn on the radio to a low but comfortable volume setting. Start the engine and how much do you have to turn up the volume? Now get on the road and get up to speed. How much more do you have to turn up the radio volume?

 

I lost most of my hearing in the right ear do to being a gunner in the Artillery. They ring all the time. I still pass the test. Yet I hate loud noise.

 

I always wear ear plugs when driving now. I didn't when I first started driving almost 30 years ago. That, combined with running oilfield twin cementers has left me with some permanent hearing loss, particularly in the right ear (the old Dowell twins had the deck engine (a screaming Jimmy) just behind and to the right of the operator's position). Heck, I even wear them when sleeping in the truck. I buy them in bulk, put them in a plastic container within reach when driving and just use them as needed.