Insurance and Office Managers

I am so completely frustrated!!! I, through much prayer and searching, have found a great doctor for Abigail. Why am I frustrated, you ask? I have been on the phone for an hour and a half trying to get Abigail's PCP switched over to this new doctor, and have still been unsuccessful. I finally called the office manager in the pediatric clinic where this doctor practices to see if she would mind adding Abigail to their medicaid system; this was no problem of coarse, until she told me that we would be responsible for our primary insurance co-payment. Abigail has been on TEFRA Medicaid since December, and not one time have we had to pay the co-pay. That is why we have TEFRA! If we had to pay $30 every time we went to the doctor, we would be out hundreds of dollars just in co-payments. We are already paying over $500 per month for Blue Cross Blue Shield, our primary insurance provider, and an additional $30 per month for TEFRA, but they don't see that. All they see is the word medicaid; it should not matter what race you are or what social class you are in, every living breathing person should be given equal, quality medical care. There is legitimacy behind my remark; I called an Insurance Analyst for Medicaid and she informed me that I was given inaccurate information and medicaid would in fact pick up anything, including co-payments that the primary provider did not cover. When I called the office manager back, she was not very pleased and said that insurance didn't even cover the full amount of the doctor's visit, and they would have to write-off the remaining balance. Isn't it nice to know that the "medical world" is more worried about the money than the person them self? I am sorry to go on a tangent like this, but it is frustrating enough having to take care of a sick child; the last thing I should have to worry about is insurance and office managers.

Abigail on Angel One

This is a picture of Abigail from Angel One on the way to Arkansas Children's Hospital on 3-24-08.

The Joy's of a Semi-Private Room

Semi-private really means that we are going to stick you in a room with a complete stranger whose poor child is still screaming at 1:12am preventing anyone from getting any sleep. Or it is because the mother let her seven month old fall out of her crib three feet off the ground and land on a concrete floor! They put you in these rooms with these situations and separate you with a piece of material hanging from the ceiling...real private! I was telling my momma that I didn't want a roommate tonight because Abigail had her bronchoscopy today and I wanted her to be able to rest. After I told her this she prayed over the phone with me that we would have a quite room to ourselves. I kid you not, the second she said, "Amen" the nurse came in to inform us that they were bringing up a two year old. God's plans are far better than our plans could ever be. Lying in the bed next to Abigail's bed is the most beautiful little boy named Elijah who has Downs Syndrome. That isn't even the best part! They are a nice christian family, and even though he is still screaming at 2am I don't mind because God has reminded me that He is in control and He has a purpose for everything. He has brought Elijah's family and Abigail's family together in this place for a reason. Let me also tell you that He allowed Abigail to rest even throughout the screaming. What an AWESOME God we serve!!!

Eosinophilic Support

If anyone is interested, I have started an eosinophilic disorders support blog. It has information about eosinophilic diorders, helpful links, and Abigail's story. I am doing this in an effort to inform more people about this incurable disease and also to let others suffering from it know that they are not alone. The link is under the "Friend" category on the right-side of this page; listed as Living With Esoinophilic Disorders.

It's Not Always Smiles and Giggles....

BUT TODAY IT IS!!!! Abigail has been having a GREAT week! Her daddy commented, "You sure are full of smiles today," and for our 15 month old, that is a rare treat. She has been quite full of herself lately, squealing at the top of her lungs! It is so nice to "see" her feeling better. I say "see" because she finally feels like playing with Mary Grace and Hannah, and they all enjoy each others company. As I am typing, Abigail is playing in the kitchen, stacking all of the plastic cups together in the Lazy Susan. If fact, all three girls are in the kitchen playing. Hannah is coloring at the table, and M.G. is doing something? at the bar. I am going to go join in on the fun!!

One Proud Momma

I have been teaching Abigail some sign language because she doesn't talk much, and today she signed her first word...MORE!!! I am so excited, it's like she is saying her first word. She brought me her empty sippy cup and I asked her if she wanted more. After I said the word "more", she signed it!! She can have as much formula as she wants. :)

If it isn't one child, it's another!

This has been one very long and tiresome day. Hannah woke me up at 4:00 this morning complaining of a stomachache. So, I rolled myself out of bed and took her to potty. She then got a drink of water, got back in bed, and I scratched her back for a minute. Everything seemed fine until about 6am when she crawled into be with me. She tossed and turned still complaining of a belly ache. She drank an entire bottle of water and a couple of bites of banana; keeping this all down and running a low grade fever I started getting a little concerned. By 10am she is crying uncontrollably so I piled everyone into the car and to the Pediatric Clinic we went. We saw Dr. Davis (whom I liked a lot) and after ruling everything else out, he determined that it was either her appendix or a virus. Her pain wasn't strong enough to warrant a CT scan at this point so he sent us home with a few pointers. At 3:45 she wasn't getting any better and her symptoms were beginning to change, so I called him back. At this point he ordered the CT. After sticking Hannah 3 times they were finally successful at getting the IV in. Poor girl!!! She is so tough though!! Luckily everything looked okay, so for now she gets to keep her appendix. It is 9:20pm and Ross is on his way to take my little sister home (she stayed here and watched the other two girls) and probably won't be home until 10. 4am to 10pm without a break...in the professional world isn't that illegal??? Oh, wait...that's why it's called MOTHERHOOD! :) and I wouldn't change a minute of it.