Everyone being so over the top / pushy doctor?

[Manchildd]

Hi everyone.
currently on holiday in Cyprus. I have 2 heart conditions, prolonged QT and SVT. Just to paint a picture a few years ago I discovered the two. I started having seizures and it wasn't a good time. I had to stop driving and spent a long time in hospital. Fast forward 3 years I'm driving again, living a normal life on medication etc.

i do get heart spikes, most days in fact. Due to these two conditions my heart sits at about 110 and eating is a trigger. All I need to do is chill out, take my medication and it'll pass.
last night at dinner with everyone around me my heart spiked to about 124 (this is nothing, it can go to 200s)

the protocol from my cardio team is that if I have a seizure / if my heart spikes to 160+ for 10 minutes or more then I go to hospital.

when I'd finished my food we left to go back to the room. I went up to a staff member and kindly asked if someone could collect us as I don't feel very well. There were a couple of nurses in earshot that then started ordering chairs, asking to give me space and asked what's the matter. I said to them my heart is a little quick but this happens ALL THE TIME and I just need to get back to the room. They wouldn't let me and quite literally blocked me from going. They were taking my pulse and it was 124. They then instructed staff for an ambulance. This was working me up by this point as nobody was listening. I didn't need an ambulance I just needed to go back and chill out. Ambulance was called.

my brother at this point told everyone to calm down and cancel the ambulance. They did.

instead they had asked the staff to call a doctor.
doctor game and immediately said I need to go to hospital (without doing a single check.) I know my body. Nobody was listening to me. When everyone realised that I'm not going, I had to sign a waiver saying I was refusing treatment. The doctor was very pushy for me to go, he demanded my passport details, address, GP details etc.

eventually my heart rate settled (as it always does) and the doctor saw that I was fine. But I felt so pressured he even got a cardiologist on the phone to me on his phone saying you have to come in and have bloods and be admitted. Saying that I could die. All of this hyperbole over something that happens to me most days. Nobody was listening.

the doctor then said I need to pay him €150 for the visit. I questioned this as I never called a doctor. A lot of people at dinner were drunk (I don't drink) and it was so dramatic. Realising I wasn't getting out of the €150 I paid it. Realising he has charged be twice x2 €150!!!! He then started being super nice saying everyone was being dramatic and that he will call me tomorrow (today) to refund the €150.

do I ask for the full €300 back? AIBU to think this is ridiculous? I felt so cornered and claustrophobic. These nurses were telling me to breathe into paper bags, to clear space, shouting 'SHES GOING TO HAVE A SEIZURE' - I haven't had a seizure in 3 years. I have my license back and cleared for driving. At no point was I worried. I have a device in my chest that alerts me if I'm in arrhythmia and it didn't go off. I tried to explain this. It happens nearly every time I eat an evening meal. I wasn't in SVT and medication corrects my prolonged QT.

just feel so shit about it all today. I just feel like there was lots of hyperbole and people wanting to be the hero / medical professional out of work times. Perhaps im being harsh but the 2 nurses weren't even listening to me. They kept telling me I need to do this I need to do that. I know what I need to do, I have protocol from my team and I wasn't panicking. I was just getting pissed off no one was listening to me and now I've ended up being charged $300 for the experience!

thanks for reading so sorry it's long.

Just head to the bar op and you’ll find them! Possibly you’re already there!

@Manchildd oh my God, this thread, and your situation - both proving that we live in a really weird era of hysteria!

My view is - neither you nor your brother ordered the doctor. So you should not have to pay for it. I appreciate that you may not feel up to getting a refund.

But the hotel manager should either be prepared to defend his decision and the hotel pay the bill, or he needs to accept that neither you nor any adult acting on your behalf authorised that doctor's visit, and for that reason it's not your responsibility.

It may be that the hotel has a policy that if somebody says something clearly like "feeling unwell with a heart condition", then they have to call the doctor. That's something you'd have to navigate with the hotel though. Their insurance should cover that.

So I think people are kind of missing the point a bit here. The nurses had had a drink, while that is absolutely fine, they are not in a fit state to provide care. They proved that by not checking for consent which is a huge aspect of patient care. Op was totalling in her right to ask for a buggy as this is something the hotel has put in place to make it more accessible to people who can’t walk around as much. She didn’t scream “it’s my heart!” She was asked what was wrong, explained and reassured staff that it was normal. I don’t understand why op is getting railroaded here for asking for a reasonable adjustment and being miffed she was made to see a doctor without her consent. It’s even more complicated by the fact that it was the nurses that demanded the hotel staff call a doctor, as I’m assuming chasing them down would be difficult. I would still speak to the hotel manager and explain that a doctor was called out against your wishes by the hotel and see if they can help you recoup some of the money. Obviously I wouldn’t want to get the hotel staff in trouble as they are doing what they were told, but they should have confirmed with you.

OP why don’t you ask for the hotel to do a report of what happened your annoyance
ask them to acknowledge your complaint in email or in writing.
ask the nurses for details
Ensure the doctor acknowledges you did not call him and did not consent
if you paid by credit card you may be able to claim if you have all the details and have attempted to rectify at the hotel.
it’s surprising how helpful the credit card companies can be.

Do you really think the doctor had a card reader in his back pocket, or that he ‘rummaged’ around to get the OPs passport whilst the OP and her brother stood by watching him? Really?

OMG @Manchildd I’d have been mortified to be the centre of attention like you ended up. I can see how you were trying to keep calm so as not to raise HR etc and it was turning into a humiliating farce. I was going to say you’d have to write off the 150 euros but having read on I see thankfully you got a bit more back. How bloody annoying it all must have been (not to mention some of the responses). I also wouldn’t fancy the return to the dining room but on the other hand - everyone will soon lose interest. Hope you’re ok today!

The doctor we had to call out to a villa while on holiday in Greece absolutely had a card reader.

What? Yes he did. Do you know how healthcare works in Europe for holiday makers?

he asked me for my passport. I asked why he needed it. I said I didn't think I had it with me, as I thought it was in the room.
the passport was in my bag. He went into my bag and wrote down my passport number and took a photo, he then handed me the waiver to say I was refusing medical advice (that I didnt ask for) and said I needed to pay the fee. He had my passport in his hand and was not going to give it back until the fee was paid.

is your world genuinely so incredibly small that you struggle to believe things that happen to other people? Are you a cynic that assumes everyone is lying?

I don’t take everything I read at face value every time. Do you?
Yes, I do know how healthcare works in Europe for holidaymakers from a personal experience.

@Manchildd Sorry this happened to you. I can understand the embarrassment you might be feeling but please don’t let that stop you from going out. I think you know where you went wrong. Yes there are trigger words that will get people going. If you ever find yourself in a similar position don’t mention your heart.

Instead say that you think the oyster from dinner isn’t sitting well you think it tasted off. Or pick something from your dinner. I can guarantee that they won’t press for information instead will get you out of the restaurant as quickly as possible! 😁🤢

Also, please don’t ever hesitate to forcefully tell anyone that you don’t need treated. Your body/your choice and all that. I mean at that point you were already the center of a spectacle so asserting yourself isn’t really going to cause more of a scene. If you run into your new nurse friends again. I wouldn’t hesitate to tell them they were practicing outside of their scope and against your wishes.

I’m just very confused by some of the responses in this thread. I’ll say it very slowly for those in back… The OP was not in the wrong here. She was not being ungrateful to receive treatment she didn’t want. At no time should her wishes been disregarded for any reason.

I’ll close with… yes you should pay the 150€ but should get a refund for the duplicate transaction.

I’m a doc, OP, and to me it sounds like the nurses were totally out of order. There’s no justification for calling an ambulance or a doctor for a conscious, competent patient who is clearly saying they don’t want one. I’m not surprised you’re feeling a bit miffed.

No, actually it tells us more about you and your inability to underestand what OP is saying.

Wow.how to sidestep a direct question 101 !!

Based on personal experience absolutely the doctor had a card reader. Why would you come onto a thread just to pick holes in what the OP has said? If you can’t take things at face value then why post ?

FFS !!

...while mysteriously NOT being cynical about a doctor in a holiday resort rummaging in a tourist's handbag for their passport, and insisting on payment for a medical service they didn't ask for or need!

I'd probably step off this thread , like I did : there's no welcoming of differing or informed opinions. The op seems to be looking for a 'you go girl' echo chamber and she's successfully got it.

How are you feeling now OP? I saw you have terminal cancer and I’m so sorry.

Did you end up having a nice holiday I spite of this?

Why are you so unpleasant ?

My parents learns early on do not mention heart or breathing issues even if normal for you or you get a panic overreaction
Mum just now says oh need to go and take my medication if she needs to leave somewhere quickly

@Rosscameasdoody if you could explain how my original post makes me an unpleasant person I'm all ears.

My subsequent posts reflected the tone of the Ops sarcastic and hostile responses.

Someone saying my experience didn't happen isn't a different opinion though is it.
of course I'm not going to welcome people who accuse me of lying on this thread.
ive replied many times to different opinions thanking them, and saying I'll take things on board.

do you know what? I have an incurable, terminal cancer (as I explained on this thread.) if I want a 'you go girl' then so be it, I'll fucking take it.

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