Making up for a missed phone call

Recently, I had a follow-up appointment with my infectious disease (ID). I was nervous. How would the doctor react to seeing me again? The last time I saw him was in October for an appointment. He never called after my sputum cultures revealed I was harboring a very deadly bacterium. Instead, I was told I was not sick. Two weeks passed. I progressively became more and more ill. I finally went to the emergency department. I had pneumonia and meningitis. Infectious disease was contacted, and they flew into action. They were scrambling to get the infection under control. They had messed up. I should have been treated for this infection two weeks prior.

Before I see my ID doctor, I first see a resident doctor. She tells me she reviewed my medical records from my last hospital stay. (This doctor has no clue what transpired last October/November. The events which happened are not recorded in my medical records. The only thing which is documented is my interaction with a hospital doctor who said I was not sick; she claimed I had Munchausen Syndrome. Henceforth, the only data available to this resident doctor is erroneous information.) The resident doctor tells me the last time I was in the hospital I was not sick. She says a few other things which seem to be a combination of my previous ID appointment and previous hospital stays. I am not able to follow the doctor's comments.

I have been feeling quite ill since being discharged in November from the hospital. Today, I am coughing a lot and am bringing up a lot of sputum. The resident doctor writes down my complaints and notes my symptoms. She seems unconcerned. I have a feeling nothing will be done to treat the bacteria in my lungs. The resident doctor leaves.

A short while late, my ID doctor enters the room. He tells me he wants to get a sputum culture and chest x-ray. He tells me during my last hospitalization, the sputum culture, which was not resulted until after I was discharged, showed I was growing a bacterium which can only be treated with IV antibiotics. He says I should probably get a port if the sputum culture still shows I need IV antibiotics. He discusses briefly with me why getting a port is a good idea. He gives me the orders for the chest x-ray and sputum culture. He tells me he will call with the results.

When I leave the appointment, I am dumb-founded. I can't believe the appointment went so smoothly. I did not have to beg for antibiotics. I did not have to plead my case to get a port instead of the usual PICC line. It felt as though the doctor was moving quickly and being aggressive because the last appointment he did not take me seriously...and I became very, very sick. This is the first time I have talked to the doctor since my appointment last October. Although he never mentions my last hospitalization or appointment, it is palpable the doctor is trying to make up for some of his missteps. I do not have any bad feelings toward the doctor. I just want to get better, and I am glad he is trying to help get me on the path to better health. Praise God!