I had two types of “general surgeons”. The first one needed to go back in for a second surgery because initially he didn’t take enough margins. Not the typical “well you never know if you’re taking enough”, but the hospital actually admitted to me he knew he didn’t take enough because “he just didn’t feel like it”, even though he told me and my mother at my first appointment “don’t worry I’ll be taking extra”, he didn’t take the extra.
My second “general surgeon” was a breast specialist and took care of my reoccurrences and mastectomy. Unfortunately for me he messed up too.
Ten years ago I walked into this tragedy blindly, scared and uneducated. I didn’t know to research the outcomes and reputation of my surgeon, I was researching the outcomes of my tumors, yes, I had two. Now I’m even more scared and just want them out of my body and quickly, no time to find a new surgeon at that point. Sadly, even if some people do research, that one surgeon may be their only option due to location and what their insurance will pay for (this was actually my case). But regardless, why did I have to pay for the mistakes of the professionals? Because I put my trust in the system, all of us put our trust in the system, sometimes that’s all we have.
If I was simply educated properly by my healthcare professionals I could have made better decisions and those other mistakes could have been prevented, and there’s never been a truer statement. We don’t have body autonomy if we’re not educated, or simply given a choice. Let’s be honest, no doctor wants us to Google or come to Reddit for advice. When a doctor says you need radiation, why are so many coming to Reddit asking strangers if they really do need radiation. Or a mastectomy vs lumpectomy. Or chemo or hormone therapy. There’s a pattern here and we are not the professionals. No, I’m sensing a problem…
Luckily for me, near the end of my journey I received much better care at a better facility. And why? Better insurance, who knew! The differences between doctors and hospitals was night and day, and the quality now, perfection. It’s actually sickening how I was tossed around in the beginning stages verses the end. Knowing the “care” some will get, the lack of treatment or the mistakes… and that’s supposed to be on us? We don’t always have a choice. Plastic surgeons, sure look till you find a good one, but they offer pictures, and even then you could still wake up botched.
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