second opinion

I recently went to a different EP doctor to seek a second opinion for some complications with my ICD and I talked to my original doctor's office today and the nurse mad a comment to me about the other doctor appointment and how the other doctor and my doctor were on the same page thinking that I need to wait it out until the year mark............bla bla bla............well it shocked me to know that the other doctor went behind my back and contacted my doctor and discussed me going to his office for another opinion. I just wondered if this is a normal thing for doctors to do? Isn't there any patient/doctor confidentiality?? Just kinda frusteratd me now I feel funny to even go see my original doc!!!

9 Comments

Question?

by ted - 2008-12-19 01:12:17

I don't know the answer, but should the second opinion doctor just work blindly without the benefit of the patient's history and files and charts? I would prefer to have a second doctor who gathered every piece of evidence from all available sources before giving me an opinion which might affect my life. Of course, this assumes that both doctors are true scientists and not so insecure that they cannot have their work and opinions scrutinized.

i agree with ted

by jessie - 2008-12-19 02:12:20

it is very unusual for drs to be so unprofessional as you seem to have experienced sis. i would certainly point this out to them and then discuss it with my family dr. boy it really irritated me to hear this story. jessie

????????????

by pete - 2008-12-19 02:12:26

If you paid for the second opinion it is professional misconduct. I would report the second doctor to the medical authorities and I would not pay his bill. Cheers peter

Same thing happened to me

by joy1 - 2008-12-19 02:12:30

Only mine was in reverse. My old EP, the one who put my device in, contacted me wanting contact information for my new doctor. I told her it was none of her business. She was the one who had recommended I get a second opinion because she "did not feel competent to manage" my arrhythmia problems. And no, it wasn't to forward the records either because I had requested and picked up copies of all my records. It's what keyed her office to my getting a second opinion.
My new EP asked me if it was ok if she contacted my old EP only after she had made her own evaluation of my condition. I agreed and signed release forms for that to happen. My new medical team have been wonderful. They are the ones who removed the device and it's leads, almost exactly three years after it was put in.

joy

This happens to me alot

by candi51 - 2008-12-19 03:12:33

Hello-
I have this problem ALOT. All of the cardiologists here are in the same group so they all have access to all the records and so on. My original cardio DR was ousted from the group due to group polotics leaving me to find someone else. I went to 3 other Dr's and did not like any of them either due to bedside manner issues, one wanting to change things just because "that Dr. prescribed it" and one quack who wanted to remove my ICD and have stop all meds cold turkey. When I tried to make an appt with yet at different Dr I was told that "I was really getting around the group". How are people supposed to find Dr's if seeing them once makes you "their property"- UGH! The other real crappy thing was I went to my general Dr to get his opinion on the whole mess and turns out he is buddy buddy with the quack and they had talked about my case at some point- nice huh? So now I am looking for a new general Dr too- :-(
All I can say is that I DON"T like all of these records being electronic. It's too easy for a Dr to look at other Dr's opinions and regurgitate them or just refute them due to politics rather than form their own individual opinion.

opinions

by Tracey_E - 2008-12-19 06:12:36

You don't have anything to apologize for. There is nothing wrong with getting a second opinion! I'm not sure about the ethics, but it's not uncommon for doctors to discuss a case. The nurse was definitely unprofessional, I'd be discussing her with the doctor.

2nd opinion, too

by Smart Redd - 2008-12-19 09:12:31

I recently moved to a different medical system. Saw the cardio doc. for an intro last week. I signed nothing to allow this clinic to obtain health info from the old system. I will be interested to see whether I get a true second opinion or a rehash of my old cardio's decisions. He and I were at odds upon occasion and once said I couldn't "win a confrontation" with him. Huh?

I would see it as a violation of Heppa laws without my permission.

Smart Redd

thanks

by sis - 2008-12-19 11:12:46

Thanks a bunch. I didn't think it was right for that doctor to go and discuss my appointment like that. I knew they were coffee buddies during my appointment because he called my doctor by his first name!!! Another silly question........on my last ICD interrigation the nurse said I had a bit of a fast heart rate for 43 seconds that was up around 155 (mine is set to pace me out at 170 I was told so I asked about it) and that it was in my upper chamber and the beats were perfectly normal and it just looked like I was active at that time and it had nothing to do with the reason I got my device in the first place (my issues were svt in the lower chamber) well when that !@#!# nurse called me back yesterday she told me that my device did exactly what it was supposed to do and it was a svt episode in my lower chamber and that is why I got the device!!!!!!!! Then she threw in the part about both doctors being on the same page!!! Im soooo irritated with this whole office!! well thanks for listening to me whine!!! You guys are great!!! Have a very Merry Christmas!!! xox

Second Opinion

by ElectricFrank - 2008-12-20 11:12:01

Let the doctor know that the second opinion you got was negated by the predisclosure of the first docs diagnosis, so you need another second opinion.

I have learned to find a doc and schedule my own consults. That way I can control the flow of information. Of course that is hard to do if you are in an HMO.

The other issue is how much are you going to give the second doc. In the case of complicated or risky tests you don't want to go through them again.

frank

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