I called my doctor's office on Monday, asking if I needed a follow-up appointment for my cough: three weeks ago, Carmen had prescribed an albuterol inhaler to use for two weeks, in the hope that it would interrupt the (hypothesized) cycle of coughing --> irritated lungs --> more coughing... It had helped quite a bit, but I was still coughing a little, and then it felt like it was getting a bit worse.
They gave me a telemedicine appointment for the following day, at which Carmen told me to get a chest X-ray and basic bloodwork; she said it could wait until the next day rather than exposing me to a very hot day with smoky air.
So, yesterday I went to Arlington, where they took two X-rays of my chest, and then I went next door, waited three quarters of an hour, and had blood drawn. The phlebotomist had a bit of trouble finding a vein, but succeeded the second time she tried my right elbow (usually the best place, for me). From there I went to![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
adrian_turtle's; I'd been at Adrian's for a couple of hours when my doctor's office called.
This time I talked to a different nurse practitioner, Michelle. She said that the X-ray showed one cloudy area in my right lunch, which wasn't typical of pneumonia but suggested an infection, and prescribed axithromycin, in the five-day "Z pack" where the first day's dose is two pills. I asked if I could wait until today to start taking the pills, and she said yes, so I had her send it to Capsule for delivery by one of their couriers. (If she'd wanted me to start it right away, I'd have had her send it to one of the pharmacies near Adrian's apartment.)
I am now back in Belmon, and the axithromycin arrived right after lunch. I opened the package, and saw that it contained three Z-packs instead of one. They charged me for one, and the pharmacy label on the outside of the box said I was getting one five-day supply, but someone seems to have grabbed the drug manufacturer's box without noticing that it contained three of the neatly organized packages of axythromycin. I
I am going to drink my tea and then ask the pharmacy whether they want to send someone to pick up the excess medicine.
ETA: I got the results of the bloodwork this afternoon. The levels of a few things are elevated in a way that also suggests infection. I have sent Carmen a message, asking if, based on that, I need to do, or not do, anything other than what Michelle told me yesterday.
They gave me a telemedicine appointment for the following day, at which Carmen told me to get a chest X-ray and basic bloodwork; she said it could wait until the next day rather than exposing me to a very hot day with smoky air.
So, yesterday I went to Arlington, where they took two X-rays of my chest, and then I went next door, waited three quarters of an hour, and had blood drawn. The phlebotomist had a bit of trouble finding a vein, but succeeded the second time she tried my right elbow (usually the best place, for me). From there I went to
adrian_turtle's; I'd been at Adrian's for a couple of hours when my doctor's office called.This time I talked to a different nurse practitioner, Michelle. She said that the X-ray showed one cloudy area in my right lunch, which wasn't typical of pneumonia but suggested an infection, and prescribed axithromycin, in the five-day "Z pack" where the first day's dose is two pills. I asked if I could wait until today to start taking the pills, and she said yes, so I had her send it to Capsule for delivery by one of their couriers. (If she'd wanted me to start it right away, I'd have had her send it to one of the pharmacies near Adrian's apartment.)
I am now back in Belmon, and the axithromycin arrived right after lunch. I opened the package, and saw that it contained three Z-packs instead of one. They charged me for one, and the pharmacy label on the outside of the box said I was getting one five-day supply, but someone seems to have grabbed the drug manufacturer's box without noticing that it contained three of the neatly organized packages of axythromycin. I
I am going to drink my tea and then ask the pharmacy whether they want to send someone to pick up the excess medicine.
ETA: I got the results of the bloodwork this afternoon. The levels of a few things are elevated in a way that also suggests infection. I have sent Carmen a message, asking if, based on that, I need to do, or not do, anything other than what Michelle told me yesterday.
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Even if they can't restock this, me telling them I got extra means they won't be trying to figure out what happened to the other two when they take inventory.