Well Women's Clinic visit at our local government hospital

Submitted by louiseds on June 13, 2009 - 10:07am
Body: 

Hi All

Just wanted to let you know what happened. I had the usual form to fill in that asks questions that only have answers that make nurses frown. I figure that I go along there to tell it like it is, but once I had filled the form in and read my answers it made me sound like the couch potato from hell. Anyway ...

I did have an appointment with the female GP and her able assistant, the female, 5th year medical student doing her prac. They were both really nice. I didn't get any lectures. The student did my PAP smear, and answered all my unusual questions about the position and state of my cervix. I didn't ask about Michael Jackson because he has been absent lately, too high up. But my cervix was difficult to find because it is now almost flush with the vaginal wall. She did have some difficulty finding it. BTW, I was flat on my back with knees bent and spread wide. My uterus was not retroverted, but not forward either, which was unexpected in that position, after a lifetime of retroversion. I must be doing something right. (I also told them that it had gone back to normal position since I had been doing Wholewoman work.) The student also did my breast exam exam and we all discussed menopause and breasts. I also told them about Wholewoman and thrust a brochure into each of their hands.

At my question about foggy perimenopause brain the GP talked about oestrogen-progesterone balance and what the naturopath had told her were the best ways of dealing with it, including oestrogen supporting foods and lifestyle choices. She didn't suggest pharmaceutical HRT. She didn't mention POP, in spite of my mentioning it previous to the PAP smear. I think the thrust of these clinics is that they respond to what the woman wants, rather than lecturing her on what she should be doing.

I would love it if all women got to experience the monitoring of their health in such a positive environment. I will certainly be going to that GP again if I ever need to go to the doctor. How lucky we are to have her.

I even came away with my very own free, sterile, wrapped, plastic speculum so I can say hello to my cervix any time I like. It was a bit like getting a boiled lolly as a kid, for being good at the doctor's! Overall, a good experience.

Cheers

Louise

alemama

June 13, 2009 - 2:39pm

I have a theory that is supported by your findings.
It goes something like this: You go to the doctor confident about what EXACTLY you want and you get it.
I live in a town that has a ton of pediatricians and a major teaching hospital. I hired the first ped. I interviewed (on a recommendation) and have NEVER had a bad experience. Friends have had a terrible time with this ped. And this was a big surprise to me. Why do they have trouble?
Why is it smooth sailing for me? I think it is because I don't want what they are selling. I go only for testing. Not Advice, Not medicine. Just the tests- then I decide what I want and request it based on the test results.
Same thing for well woman care. I don't need the to dx my prolapse. I know it is there and I know what to do with it.
A friend of mine recently went for some vaginal itching- got the test to confirm what it was- and did not take the advice of the doctor (take these antibiotics to clear it) made up a batch of her own "meds" (herbs etc..) and in a few days was healed.
We need doctors for their access to testing and life saving medicines. We don't need them to tell us about breastfeeding or weight gain in infants (we know if they are healthy and happy), we don't need them to tell us we should have surgery for prolapse or "if my perineum looked like that I would have it fixed". Just let us know that weird bulge is called a prolapse and that it isn't life threatening and check out wholewoman (wouldn't that be great) for more information.
anyway I gotta do kiddos
but you know what I mean?

louiseds

June 14, 2009 - 8:27am

Hi Alemama

Yes, I do know what you mean, and I think my attitude is quite like yours. But I only got to where I am by dealing with a bunch of doctors over 30 years or so who (how can I say this nicely?) lacked certain characteristics that I would expect to find in a health partner and displayed other characteristics which I would not want in a health partner. That was what gave me the desire to find out for myself in lots of health and sickness areas for all the members of our family, because I finally realised that doctors know a lot less than we tend to give them credit for, and a lot less than they think they know, and get paid for knowing. I also came to realise that we may expect too much from them.

Also, I just realised that my cynicism about the infallibility of doctors was developed in the context of having a friend who is a naturopath and Bowen practitioner, who taught me a heap of stuff early on and encouraged me to have an extended view of the body, rather than just taking on the medical view of health.

Having said all that, I have also consulted some very fine medical practitioners who have held my hand through some great diagnosis and treatment, but I was the one doing the choosing, accepting the treatments and paying the bills.

The faith I have in my own body and in myself, to know the way to health for my own body, and to take primary responsibility for my own health and healing has been forged in the fire of misdiagnosis, harmful treatment, ignorance and arrogance on the part of medical practitioners. I have also experienced the same faults in some non-medical, alternative practitioners as well, so my rose coloured glasses about the alternatives as well, have well and truly faded to crystal clear.

Sometimes I feel that I have read and studied as much as a medical practitioner, so it is no surprise that I have picked up a thing or two along the way.

So what hope do poverty-stricken, illiterate women have, when they do not have the ability to educated themselves, and cannot afford the resourses to enable that learning? Education and literacy are everything.

Cheers

Louise

happyheart

June 14, 2009 - 9:41am

I would like to weigh in in agreement. I grew up in a world where if you were sick you went to the doctor or sometimes he came to the house ( yes, that was back in the dark ages) and he made you all better. Now that the truth is out about viruses and antibiotics we probably just got well on our own.

Wow, has the practice of medicine changed and sometimes it does seem to undermine the "do no harm" oath.I had my physical this year motivated by guilt: paying for insurance that you never use is a waste and I was tired of worrying about this pesky prolapse. I saw the PA(physician's assistant) who is easier to talk to since she never pretends to have all the answers. I had done my homework before I went so I wasn't in the dark about prolapses. She referred me to a urogyne which I chose to interpret as "you should probably do something about that thing". So I did. I found all the help I think I need at WW. She did what was right as a medical professional. I did what was smart as an individual with a brain.

I have discovered that drs. are people trained in the practice of medicine and are only as good as their knowledge, training and compassion allows them to be. I now tell my daughters that they are responsible for their and their children's health decisions and should find a dr. that they are like minded with and trust because there will be times when the dr's. diagnoses isn't what they want to hear. They must decide to go with it or move on to a better alternative.Education and literacy IS everything. True. But sometimes educated people aren't aware that the system has changed. Some need to be given "the heads up" about medical care. As you are doing so, thanks.