I Am Going to Scream

Zane seriously needs to have his sedated DMSA scan for his kidneys. Yet unseen forces seem to be working against him (Darth Vader? Residual leprechauns from St. Patty’s Day? The dental scheduler?) to foil our plans for Children’s Hospital.

This time it is the Dental Clinic. Though they are the least important in the string of appointments Zane needs, they seem to be running the show. Apparently, they are the ones who set up anesthesia and coordinate all of the other appointments. But before the appointments can be scheduled, I need to fill out surgery paperwork and fax it back to the scheduler. I am more than happy to do this. But, I ask, how can I if she will not send the paperwork to me? We have been waiting for over a week for her to get her act together and send a simple fax to us. In the meantime, we are slipping further and further into June for our appointment time.

I called the dental scheduler again to ask where the paperwork was, and she spewed off a laundry list of excuses as to why we have not received it. Including, “It has only been a week.” If I waited 7-10 days to fax something for Destination ImagiNation, I would be considered lax in my job. I tried to impress upon her the importance of getting this to us, as Zane needs to see anesthesiology, have an ABR and DMSA scan, go for a surgery consultation, and have a follow-up appointment with the urologist. She doesn’t care. “The dentists are with patients. They are busy.”

At this point, I am ready to forget dental altogether. I know Zane needs a deep, sedated cleaning. But, frankly, this is far more stress than I care to handle. The other clinics are able to schedule things in a nice, streamlined fashion. If dental is such an aggravation, it may be time to find alternative procedures to give Zane clean and healthy teeth and gums.