Dr Abandonement

[Ricky M]

My wife had cataract surgery on March 26. The doctors office called her on March 29 to say they were closing down the office because of this virus thing, and they were cancelling ALL appointments ... including surgical follow ups. They have also been unable to contact the doctor to obtain a prescription refill for eye drops she is supposed to use for another week but is now out of.

I consider this abandonment. Should I call a lawyer?

 

[Ada Lovelace]

Have you contacted your pharmacy to explain the situation? In some cases they have the ability to refill a prescription without waiting for the doctor's approval, especially when it's a time-sensitive necessity.

 

[Reborn1977]

My wife had cataract surgery on March 26. The doctors office called her on March 29 to say they were closing down the office because of this virus thing, and they were cancelling ALL appointments ... including surgical follow ups. They have also been unable to contact the doctor to obtain a prescription refill for eye drops she is supposed to use for another week but is now out of.

I consider this abandonment. Should I call a lawyer?

Wow, that certainly seems like it is neglect for sure.

Legally can anything be done? Most likely not if your wife does not actually suffer any real harm from the situation.

 

[Ricky M]

Have you contacted your pharmacy to explain the situation? In some cases they have the ability to refill a prescription without waiting for the doctor's approval, especially when it's a time-sensitive necessity.

She received the initial supply from the doctor who was supposed to call in an RX for the remainder that she would need. Since that never happened, there is no RX to re-fill.

 

[Ricky M]

Wow, that certainly seems like it is neglect for sure.

Legally can anything be done? Most likely not if your wife does not actually suffer any real harm from the situation.

Real harm won't be diagnosed until this is all over and she can finally get in to be seen. By that time, any damage would most likely be permanent. She does say her vision has deteriorated a bit from what she had immediately after the surgery. At a minimum, I'm not paying their bill.

 

[Ricky M]

I can see not taking new patients and cancelling procedures that have not been initiated. But to say you're not going to follow up on a procedure that was just done? At minimum that's abandonment, if not malpractice.

 

[Reborn1977]

Real harm won't be diagnosed until this is all over and she can finally get in to be seen. By that time, any damage would most likely be permanent. She does say her vision has deteriorated a bit from what she had immediately after the surgery. At a minimum, I'm not paying their bill.

Just saying, legally speaking you would have to wait until there is actual harm. However, it sounds like the best thing right now might be to forget the lawyer for now and see about finding another doctor who might be willing to see her under the circumstances.

 

[Ada Lovelace]

She received the initial supply from the doctor who was supposed to call in an RX for the remainder that she would need. Since that never happened, there is no RX to re-fill.

This is what I thought could be the case. Nevertheless it is worth contacting the pharmacy you typically use and asking if there is any way they could assist you. Take a picture of the eye drops making sure the info on the label is clear and email it to them so they can see precisely what she is using. Email any other relevant information you have such as the date of the surgery and the instructions given. Your predicament is not a unique one so they have undoubtedly fielded other requests. It may take a while for them to reply due to their being overwhelmed, but they likely will reply to you. It's worth the two minutes of your time to contact them even if they end up being unable to help because of the hope they could.

You can also try to see if you can find credible forums where ophthalmologists participate and ask them for their feedback on how to proceed. It's unlikely there will be people here with this specific expertise. Many ophthalmologists are at home right now, and seeking useful ways to spend their time, so you could receive more responses than typical.

 

[Ricky M]

This is what I thought could be the case. Nevertheless it is worth contacting the pharmacy you typically use and asking if there is any way they could assist you. Take a picture of the eye drops making sure the info on the label is clear and email it to them so they can see precisely what she is using. Email any other relevant information you have such as the date of the surgery and the instructions given. Your predicament is not a unique one so they have undoubtedly fielded other requests. It may take a while for them to reply due to their being overwhelmed, but they likely will reply to you. It's worth the two minutes of your time to contact them even if they end up being unable to help because of the hope they could.

You can also try to see if you can find credible forums where ophthalmologists participate and ask them for their feedback on how to proceed. It's unlikely there will be people here with this specific expertise. Many ophthalmologists are at home right now, and seeking useful ways to spend their time, so you could receive more responses than typical.

Thank you so much

After calling the doctors office AGAIN, and reading them the riot act, they have contacted the doctor who called in a prescription.

 

[Ada Lovelace]

Thank you so much

After calling the doctors office AGAIN, and reading them the riot act, they have contacted the doctor who called in a prescription.

Hallelujah!