Real Life Angel 0.5 - You Must Be Joking Right?

When I began writing the segment "Real Life Angel" I wanted to start with an anecdote about how I have seen Joshua make a difference in the lives of others through the purity of his heart, and how simply being witness to this has made a difference in my life.  But I feel the need to document this now as it has just happened...


I will be chronicling the events that took place during my husband's recent hospitalization, and what happened afterwards, however to sum it up for the purpose of this story I'll say this: We were promised a physician for him, in writing, that believed he could help.  Finally a doctor who had an idea of what all of Joshua's symptoms could add up to.  We were relieved and elated, finally we were going to get some answers, and hopefully, for Joshua proper treatment or a cure.  After his decades of suffering, finally some peace.

Two days ago we received two letters in the mail regarding a recent appointment with this doctor.  This "savior" doctor had made and cancelled a total of 14 appointments for my husband without notifying us of any of them.  The first letter we received stated that the most recent appointment that they had made without our knowledge was marked as a missed appointment, but that's alright they would work with us because they understand that "Life Happens."  The second letter stated that my husband could not be seen as a patient at that office due to repeated missed appointments.  All of which had been made and cancelled on our behalf by the doctor himself!  Without telling us!  Obviously, we were outraged, furious, but most of all disappointed beyond words that this flicker of hope was snuffed out.  If they had been honest in the beginning that they would do nothing, we would have been less disappointed than to be led on for two months after discharge from the hospital and could have spent this time searching for other help.

So we left a couple of voicemail messages expressing our outrage, and also to inform the doctor and his staff that we would be suing them and they could look forward to hearing from our lawyer, and a few choice expletives were added as well.

So Today, as I'm grocery shopping, I receive a call from my husband telling me that the E County Animal Control kept calling the house, and he asked if I knew why. I have no idea. Our animals are all well fed (if anything spoiled rotten with treats), well kept, no reason for anyone to call them on us, so we both thought it was nothing.  So he checks the messages.  This doctor's office had called in a favor to a police officer and had this friend of theirs call us to try to bully us into dropping the lawsuit by way of threat of criminal charges.  Because we had used a total of three swear words between the two of us, they are pursuing charges against us for "Malicious Use of a Telecommunication Device"

Since we are taking them to court to sue for Malpractice and are pursuing criminal charges on them as well, not only are we not threatened by this bullying tactic, but it simply adds to our case since we are well within our rights to counter with our own Malicious Use of a Telecommunication Device charge since they left a message on our phone, which was obvious that they didn't hang up when they had meant to, saying "Even though we are aware that without medical treatment your husband will die, we can no longer accept his as a patient at our facility. Good luck fuckers"  Obviously the F-bomb was not meant for us to hear.  Amongst several other messages along the same lines.

We view this whole incident as a joke, and a failed attempt on their behalf to intimidate us out of suing them civilly for the negligence they have exhibited in my husband's treatment. It makes me sick when people abuse the law, it's bad enough when cops do it, but when doctors, who have to break doctor-patient confidentiality in order to file a police report on a patient, are simply trying to ensure my husband dies before our civil suit goes to court.  They will not win.

But why is this being allowed to continue? Don't we have enough problems without this going on as well? When will people stop doing wrong, and when will someone protect patients from abusive doctors?  I'm so beyond frustrating and for the past few days we have been back at square one as far as finding some answers.  I thought that I had seen how low doctors would stoop to cover their asses, but I have seen a whole new low of moral and ethical destitution.


We need some help.  Where's our life saver?  When will we have answers?  My husband gets sicker each and every passing day, and I hope and pray that someone out there has love on their heart instead of revenge or spite or pride, or arrogant ignorance, and stop placing their patients' lives at risk just because they can't admit they are wrong or don't know something.  Send us our life preserver please!




You say it Grey's Anatomy!  I know exactly how you feel.

~Anna Bella Vaughan~