Hello tubes, Goodbye adnoids!

Well, the ear saga continues over here. I mentioned before that Wyatt's ear tubes fell out. Since then, his ears have basically been full of fluid, he's not done well on the hearing tests, his teacher has complained he's not listening in class and he's had another ear infection, with stuff actually dripping from his ears.

I've taken him back to the ENT a couple of times since then, mostly just to plead my case. The doctor agrees he needs another set of tubes and also recommends an adenoidectomy this time, but there's the issue of the wait. The dreaded wait list. The downfall of the socialized medical system. He was sympathetic to our plight and agreed to do his best to squeeze us in. I believe he is a good doctor and I trust him so I told him we'd be patient. But that doesn't mean I wouldn't start formulating a plan B...

Since we have private insurance in the states, we can have medical procedures done there if we choose. After spending the better part of an hour on the phone with various pediatric ENT doctors in the Gainesville area, I was no further along. I was hoping to squeeze in the surgery while we're in Florida for spring break (not really the way any of us want to spend our spring break, but hey, we're desperate). The doctors would not schedule surgery without doing a consult first and couldn't guarantee that they could get him in the same week or even the following week, because the OR is booked in advance and there would be some issues with getting all the insurance paperwork sorted out. I asked about paying cash (thinking I would just submit for reimbursement later) and she said that would make it a lot simpler and they could get me in faster, maybe even the same week. In Canada, we wait because there aren't enough doctors. In the states, the insurance companies hold things up with all their paperwork and procedure codes. How is this possible?

Anyway, none of it mattered in the end. Imagine my surprise when the Children's Hospital called last night to say they had a cancellation for this Thursday morning. I had to scramble over to the doctor to get him to do a quick exam on Wyatt (especially since he's just getting over a stomach bug) and sign off on the pre-surgery paperwork. We're all set to go. Wyatt and I have to be at the hospital at 6:15am. I hope we are making the right choice for him. Keep him in your prayers on Thursday!