You know you have a bad neurologist when...

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Instructive thread, so we all know when to get a new doc.



You know you have a bad neurologist when...

Tells you private medical info about other patients, even when you know who those patients are (they are walking down the hallway and he points to them)

Your doctor blames the patient when he can't figure it out.

Speaks disrespectfully to you during appointments, in writing, etc.
(a medical bully)

They don't ask you questions or get information. And when you try to tell them something they don't listen. They just assume whatever.

Call keeping a good seizure journal, with type of seizures, frequency, meds, and triggers obsessive. (it's in most of our pre-formatted seizure journals!)

They have bad chart notes that don't reflect reality, or what was said in the appointment (is he mixing you up with someone else?)
 
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when they open late ( if at all ) close an hour and a half for lunch , are closed at 3:10 when you call them ( and arent supposed to close till 4:eek:o ) they dont bother to call you back when you have concerns about being prescribed the wrong medcation ?? ( mostly because it's happened to you before ) and the pharmacist tells you that this med also has a serious interaction with another med that your on ..........grrrrrrrrrr
 
When they dont accept in coming phone calls, only voicemails that say they'll call you back but they never do.

When they dont give you their fax number so you cant fax them questions.

When they dont have an email address or emergency line to call

When you are in the ER in extreme pain and seizuring constantly and they are trying to get ahold of your neurologist because they suspect that its the medication causing the reaction so they want to take you off it, but he isnt answering his office phone, cell phone, pager, cottage phone and his voice mail box is full

When he tells you to move to another country for help.

When the majority of the answers he gives to your questions is "I dont know"

When he doesnt know the basics of how an EEG works

When he doesnt know the terms Tonic-Clonic or Complex Partial.

When he watches you seizure for 10 minutes and quit breathing, yet still thinks its depression.
 
When doctor takes you off a drug that has you in remission for 3 years!
 
They don't read your case notes properly, and you have to constantly remind them (or contradict them) about your case.

They speak quickly to you, even though they know you have cognitive issues (and they don't give sufficient time for you to respond).
 
When your neurologist 'fires' you as a patient (long story)...and then you go to your family doctor for refills of Klonopin (for anxiety), the family doctor refuses to prescribe Klonopin unless you 'remain active in counseling', and the neurologist who fired you won't get involved and help you find a doctor to prescribe this medication without a counseling stipulation, a medication you'd been on for 15 years.

So you end up cold-turkeying the Klonopin on your own and seizuring (unaware) for almost 6 years before all the doctors who told you your symptoms were 'all in your head' figure it out, but only after you run your car into a storm drain.

Whew!
 
Instructive thread, so we all know when to get a new doc.



You know you have a bad neurologist when...

Your doctor blames the patient when they can't figure it out.
(says it's all in their head)

Speaks disrespectfully to you during appointments, in writing, etc.
(a medical bully)


I used to see my neurologist's physicians asst every other other visit and she did just this. I told my neuro that I never wanted to see her again - and I haven't.

This would probably go under good and bad neurologist.
 
when the only concern is money
when he opens a book each time u ask a question
when u tell him thst ur last bus leaves after an hour and he behaves as if he has not heard anything
when u tell the problem and he says u have to solve it urself
when u keep havin g the seizures and he says epilepsy is like this only etc etc etc
 
I knew I had a BAD neurologist when he never apologized after keeping me on a medicine that poisoned me & hospitalized me for 10 days. You would not believe oh so how bad I felt after 'tossing my cookies'/barfing/vomiting in my mom's NEW car as she was taking me to the ER!!! :)-p
 
When he (this post is all about the same neurologist) diagnoses you with Non Epileptic Attack Disorder based on his prejudjes, doesn't tell you what that means and tells you to look it up online.
So you go home, look it up, and find that it is so wwrong, you don't have it. For one I've seen a psychologist who said the seizures were not psychological.
And two, Topamax is helping.

He says the next patient will be waiting, it's not fair on them as he is eager to get rid of you.
He stares at you strangely for several minutes.

He said he would get my notes from Salford Royal where the EEG tests were done, first one results were: Generalised slow wave activity, and second one, normal.
Well suddenly I receive a survey in the post stating that I am being invited to take part in it as I am under the care of this neurologist for my epilepsy!

I don't know what's going on here but I haven't been contacted if he has got the EEG results and found Salford Royal have made a mistake other than his survey.
 
when his nurse finally calls you back after 4 days of you calling and tells you in an extremely rude fashion that you need to call your doctor that prescribed the other medicine and ask them questions ! then you explain that the neuro put you on this med AFTER you were already taking the other one , and they say ... " if you think theres a chance of a drug interaction , then i guess you need to pick one to take ! " and when you say well i didnt know b/c sometimes there can be a drug intercation listed but you can still take both of the medicines and have no problem .... and his nurse says " well you have an appointment with him in a few weeks so you can discuss it with him then "
 
There aren't many neurologists' I had that I did like. I always feel that epilepsy is at the bottom of their list of concern. I understand they do have a heck of a job with all the different neurological disorders there are for them to treat, the stress they must be under and healthcare the way it is today. I get it, but it would be nice to just once have the attention of the neurologist your seeing.
 
When you tell them about serious side effects you are having you know is from the meds and they say 'well if you continue to have problems, you might want to see your general practitioner' but runs no blood levels or other tests

When they prescribe new medications to address side effects that are known for making seizures worse

When they say "I really don't know where to go from here" when they can't figure out how to stop your seizures, after only having tried 3 meds--and offer no future course at all and hang up the phone

When they leave you having seizures for months, knowing your blood levels are sub-therapeutic but doing nothing about it

When they chuckle when you ask "how long will these debilitating concussion symptoms last?" and say 'haha, everyone wants to know that . . '
 
When you express an interest in trying dietary and other holistic health measures to reduce your dependence on pharmaceuticals and they say, "I can't see why you would bother if the pills are working".

When they admit to not knowing anything about a ketogenic diet beyond having "heard about the Meryl Streep movie".

When you tell them about the one breakthrough seizure you have had in a year. One where the exception proves the rule because it happened under extreme circumstances (sleep deprivation for two days while traveling plus missing two med doses in a row). But they still rat you out to the DMV and you have to go take your drivers test over again and prove to some idiot that you know how to parallel park (as if that were relevant) before you can get your license back.

So at that point all pretense of working with your neuro goes out the window because you can't even be honest with them. You explain this to them and they really don't care.
 
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1. When it is 2 hours past your appointment time every time you go
2. When you feel rushed because of all this.
3. When the waiting room is full, thus thus 2 hours. They book too may appointments in one day.
 
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