Went in today with my boyfriend for his appointment with Dr. Stanley Katz. I am beyond furious at the response we got. First off, my boyfriend asked the tech if this would be a more comprehensive exam and he told him yes, it would be a deeper evaluation. Whatever that means. My boyfriend thought he would be getting an xray, cat scan, something that would help him get rid of the pain in his shoulder. Then doctor comes in and asks my boyfriend if he still has the same job, what does it entail, etc. He then has him stand up to evaluate his shoulder by lifting his arm in different directions. He sits back down and says the same thing he said a year ago - he has inflammation. Mind you, the very first time he got an MRI, they told him he had a tear in his shoulder and may or may not need surgery. They never decided on it and told him to wait. Fast forward these two times and still the pain is there. I asked the doctor "If it's just inflammation, why does it still hurt so badly even after all this time?" He says "Well he needs to not lift anything heavy and his job requires that."
"No, he works in an office and when he is out on the field, he doesn't lift anything heavy." He continues saying "If it's causing pain, I suggest you start taking over the counter medications at least. Take them every day." Again, I find this vague and ask "For how long until the inflammation goes away?"
"Well, it may never go away."
"So then how long would he need to take the pills?"
"Forever."
"Forever? You're telling me that he should be taking Tylenol, Advil, Aleve, every day for the rest of his life?? That will kill him!"
"Not necessarily. I've been telling my patients for so many years to do this and no one has died yet. You may know of a case like that, but I don't."
Uh yeah. Key word being yet. I continue to say "Taking a pill every day for the rest of his life will ruin his liver!"
"Again, I know people whose livers have not been affected."
Then my boyfriend says he is confused because a while back they told him he had a tear in the shoulder and now it's just inflammation to which doctor responds "Well I don't know who said that, but I only see inflammation." Obviously we're getting two different stories so I ask "Are you sure there's no other test he can get besides the MRI?" You could tell he was annoyed and responded very sarcastically "Yes, I'm sure." Then he goes on to say that the MRI isn't very accurate and that every doctor is entitled to a different opinion and that another doctor might want a cat scan, xray, surgery, etc. Wait a minute, but didn't you JUST tell me there was no other test possible? Didn't you JUST say that the MRI was clear in showing just inflammation? So now it's not accurate? So which one is it? What's not accurate to me is how this person is a doctor. What kind of doctor tells his patients to take painkillers every day for the rest of their lives? This is not my boyfriend's regular doctor. His lawyer assigned him there for insurance purposes. Perhaps this doctor is used to dealing with low income people or he thought he was talking to some ignorant people who don't think or have a brain, but he was very mistaken with me. The fact that he made the liver seem like nothing can affect it when it is common sense that every adult should know it CAN and WILL be affected, is beyond comprehensible. If this is your regular doctor, I suggest you run for the hills. He is useless. How is he even allowed a medical license? And no, I was not exaggerating. No, I was not hearing wrong. My boyfriend is my witness. I can't believe I even had to make those questions to a "doctor." There are a lot of idiotic doctors out there, but this one takes the cake. I can't believe there are people with worse problems whose lives are in his hands. RUN! read more