I fell and injured my foot/ ankle 4months ago today. Because I don't have health insurance, I was hesitant to go to the doctor and tried to home-remedy it for a few weeks post injury. After 7wks, I realized it wasn't getting better so I asked for recommendations on Orthopedic Surgeons in the Austin, TX area. Dr. Earl Kilbride Jr came up as a reco for a few people so I trusted that he would be a good fit. That was the worst health decision I have ever made.
After waiting over an hour after my appointment time, Dr. Earl Kilbride Jr walks in, points to my boot/ crunches and says "Well, that boots' not gonna work for you", asks me what happened and says he is going to go look at the x-rays and leaves the room. I was timing his visit with me because I felt that I had been forgotten about while I was waiting for him and he spent 27seconds in the room with me. Less than 3 minutes later, Dr. Earl Kilbride Jr comes back, physically assesses my foot for 3 exercises, shows me what bones are broken with the diagram on the wall and tells me I need to rest. He then signs my paper, places it on the table by the door and leaves the room without saying another word... 34 seconds was the time he spent with me the second time; equally less than 2min total!
I was flushed from crying out of frustration; when leaving the room, my dad (who was waiting for me in the lobby) asked me what was wrong and I told him that I had no real answers and that I never want to come back. I told him I felt neglected in kind of medical care by Dr. Earl Kilbride Jr gave me. My dad demanded we see the doctor again. Dr. Earl Kilbride Jr came back and said "I assumed she was fine because she wasn't wearing her boot." At that time is when he recommended I get a different model boot, rest for the next 6months and a follow-up appointment was not necessary.
Upon leaving, we spoke to the office manager and told her what happened and she apologized and said "Dr. Earl Kilbride Jr is a trauma doctor. He probably saw you and didn't see you in a traumatic state and assumed you were fine."
After that horrible experience, I got a second opinion. The new provider said I needed surgery, and no amount of rest would have cured the injury properly. I ended up needing 6 screws and 2 plates put in. I'm out for another 6-9wks and I do feel that if Dr. Earl Kilbride Jr would have assessed me in the proper and most professional way, this wouldn't be the case. I also made a complaint with the Texas Medical Board on Dr. Earl Kilbride Jr and they denied my complaint for further assessment and found that he did nothing wrong.
That word ASSUME is one of the most unprofessional words that a medical professional should ever use. If it weren't for my dad, Dr. Earl J. Kilbride would have allowed me to leave his facility without a proper boot and proper expectation of a plan of action. Who wants to pay a ridiculous medical bill or use their insurance funds on doctors who assume instead of using their medical professional degree??? read more