by SurgeryDelay » 03 Mar 2016, 07:23
Surgery - Initial consultation
When the wait to see the specialist was finally over, I felt a sense of relief that I had made it this far. By now, my hole felt angry and swollen. It had no business feeling like that. I had enough. I wanted it sorted.
Armed with the array of stories I had read online, the medical research I had conducted and the sense of confidence that I new better, I was certain of a number of things:
- I would let it be known to that specialist that I did not want a seton stitch because it would require follow up surgery
- That I was a gay man and it was important for me to get back on that sexual saddle
- That I knew everything.
So after my two hour wait in the public hospital, the specialist ushered me in to examine what was wrong. He stuck two latex gloved fingers up my hole during the inspection, confident that he could likely find the sources of the fistula as the indurated skin identified the tract for him.
He then went on to say that his approach would be staged: partial fistulotomy with insertion of a drainage seton, and then a fix up job 8 to 12 weeks later. When I protested, he said "Well I'm the doctor, not you. You can see another specialist if you like, wait back in line for another four or so months, or you can work with me. My first priority is to make sure you retain your rectal integrity. This is the best way I can do this."
With that, there was nothing left to say. So as he started scribbling down notes to refer me to a public system surgery, I informed him that I had private healthcare insurance and would elect to use that. All of a sudden, I noticed a change in his tone. It became a lot more lighter. I understood it for a number of reasons:
1. In Australia, the wait time for a surgery like this could be up to another 16 months in the public healthcare system. With private treatment, I could be seen when he was next available.
2. The way that surgery in a public setting works is the operation is performed by a general surgeon. This specialist's opinion was that while general surgeons were up to the job, specialists had specific knowledge that would allow them to make more informed decisions about the operation as it happened if anything unexpected popped up (in my case, it did)
3. The post-op care for these types of surgeries vary depending on how rationalised a public hospital setting is. As you won't have one practitioner seeing you all the way through, you might be seen at 8 weeks, or 10 depending upon appointment availability. Your immediate post op instructions will focus on the recovery post surgery, not the recovery from the ailment itself. As such, there won't be a specialist on hand to speak to about your case and you'll have to wait for how ever long it takes until your next appointment. With a private insurance funded specialist, the practitioner would see you all the way through.
Look, I know that everyone has the money for private insurance. And i know that there will be some people who don't have private insurance, but can pay the thousands for a procedure like this out of pocket.
I'll say this. Australia has a great healthcare system. No matter what you elect, there will be a good outcome. But for me, I had the opportunity to go private, so I did. To me, it was worth it because even though I had the option to be treated privately, I wanted this ailment treated as effectively as possible from the onset, I wanted one doctor throughout the process and I didn't want to wait any longer.
This initial consultation was on the 8 Feb. It would be operated on by the 25 Feb.