I mentioned in a previous blog entry that I was recently injured at work. Today's drama is not as long winded but is more of a rant. Today's tale is one of how obtaining the benefits I have paid for through taxes and payroll became more painful than getting gored by a boar. One of the details omitted from yesterday's blog was, obviously, that the injury is a workers compensation claim. I filled out all of the paperwork.
The instructions I received from the emergency room during yesterday's adventure told me to make sure that I have a follow up visit within 48 hours. I was supposed to see my "primary care" doctor. This was a bit of a problem. I started receiving benefits back in June, was a relatively healthy guy and, as of yet, had no need to see a doctor. This meant that I had no primary care doctor.
I did not even know where to start. I asked my supervisor and, as usual, he had suggestion. I started with phone call number 1 to occupational health. The "Family Fued Strike" buzzed inside my head when the receptionist informed me that I need to call primary care. This actually seemed to make sense. She was kind enough to give me the number and transfer me.
This is where making sense abruptly ceased to exist. I proceeded to explain to the girl on the phone my situation and she informed me that, since I was a new patient, I could not be seen until the end of January. I repeated the fact that I was told to see a doctor within 48 hours by the same medical facilities emergency room, it was a workers comp claim, I was an employee there, and that I was insured through them. She said none of that mattered. She repeated that, since I was a new patient, there was nothing to do. I told her that her answer was not acceptable and requested a supervisor. She told me that the supervisor was not in. My head now ached more than the 3/4 inch deep puncture in my leg.
Being totally dissatisfied with phone call number two I moved on to call number three. I decided a quick call to benefits would help me remedy things. This was true... sorta. The people at benefits we most helpful. They were, however, not exactly how to direct me. The issue was that the director who dealt with workers compensation claims was not going to be in the office. I was given more phone numbers and transfered several more times. I shall not bore (in the context of this story maybe boar would be the right word) with all of the details. The number of phone calls now reached 10, I was getting close to one hour on the phone and I only gained minimal satisfaction.
I did however feel there was light at the end of this tunnel. Several of the 10 calls were transfers because I did not even know where to start. That is not the fault of anyone. It is, nonetheless, still frustrating. I am of personality where, despite my talkative nature, would rather be working than on the phone. I felt rather restless to begin with since I had this immense sense of having wasted a whole day yesterday. Again nobodies fault but spending a whole day in the emergency room, waiting at the pharmacy, dealing with an administrative library error and commuting home can hardly be considered productive.
Consequently, each ticking second on the phone had an effect of aggravating me. I wanted to simply get things done. Not sit on the phone. Not investigate. Although progress was being made, I feel that this is the type of thing that should take one 4-minute phone call.
The people in benefits and workers compensation were honest and truthful. They knew all I needed was to get the claim entered into the system and get over to a doctor in internal medicine. They knew that I did not need a referral for this and they knew that I did not have to wait until January. They asked that I give them 20 minutes to figure out all of the details and they would call me back.
Twenty minutes latter, I was back on the phone with them. They transfer my to primary care and I ended up in conversation with the same woman I started this whole phone fiasco with. The tone of the conversation was much different this time. I was now "sir", the receptionist now confessed she did not know how to enter a comp claim into the system and her supervisor was there to show her how. This time the whole process of making an appointment only took 15 minutes and I was seeing a doctor in 48 hours. I wonder what benefits said that I didn't?
I hung up the phone satisfied and grateful to the people in benefits who assisted me. I could return to work. Short of having to follow the directions on my percoset prescriptions, which read "take every six hours as needed for severe pain", the day was pretty normal and uneventful. When I finally did get home, I was exhausted and passed into a sleep that would inevitably be disturbed by my alarm clock way too early.
My day can be summed up in a few short paragraphs.
I woke up, early, and the injury hurt. I hobbled over to the counter, took my meds and got ready for work. I hobbled to my PC, the reason I set my alarm early and did some needed file cleaning and re-arranging. I ate breakfast, donned work clothes, and was whisked to work by Scott who is decent enough to play chauffer.
I started work and realized a pain medication free day was not in my near future. I took more pain meds. An hour and a half on the clock was all it took to come to the realization that today was a day to rest my leg. Home I went.
The rest of the day was spent on the couch with my foot in the air.
