[petiteone]

My 2 cents....I'm a snowbird and retired MD from upstate NY. In my day, when an MD had too many complaints, issues, or medical board censures had to run to Florida to continue to practice and were received with open arms. Is that still true and do substandard MDs from other states find a haven here as well? I have never been able to find an MD here I trusted and it's very difficult to find a practice that accepts my NY BCBS PPO Medicare. (They accept substandard NY physicians but not we, the NY insured patients?) The Villages Hospital (now UF and Shand affiliated) did accept my insurance when I was admitted last year. I think the Villages Health Care system needs overhauling. Needless to say, I have a lot of doctor's appointments each summer when I get back to NY.

[Burgy]

Originally Posted by Hifred

I just read the Villages Magazine about health care and was wondering who to write regarding an issue I have had with the health care system. What my husband and I as well as several neighbors have experienced is that indeed The Villages is uping their game on hiring new doctors. We were delighted with our first visits and were looking forward to receiving good care. What we found to be substandard is following the initial visit no matter what the severity of the problem we experienced we were only allowed to see a physician assistant (PA) as our doctor was fully booked. The PAs have made mistakes with diagnosing and ordering tests. They are not physicians and even the doctor after seeing the tests ordered that we paid for acknowledged the PA made an error. What I would like to propose is that TV start a concierge medical program where you are guaranteed to see a real live doctor when you need one. I have a history of cardiac issues (two heart procedures and one heart and lung procedure). When I needed to see a cardiologist I couldn't get an appointment in TV so I ended up calling my doctor at Northwestern in Chicago who immediately fed ex'd me a monitor and his nurse went over a video of how to put it on. I had my problem fixed within a week. Where as I would have had to wait weeks to even see a doctor here. I would definitely be willing to pay for concierge medicine. The other thing is that specialists and primary care doctors I saw in Chicago had Master's in nursing with additional training in their specialty area who would review email questions and discuss with the doctor what course of action was needed. Here in TV and at Shands if I call with a question for a specialist the person handling the question is a CNA who doesn't begin to be able to make the determination of the seriousness of the problem. As a next step to world class medical care I would like to ask:

1) Can they examine protocols and put in place basic procedures to insure proper care? i.e. at TV the nurse who took my husband's blood did not even put a label on the tube of blood. She said she was going to do it as soon as she was done with us. She didn't even write his name on the tube. The protocols here are loosie goosey and are poor medical practice. When the results came back they didn't even resemble my husband's past blood work results with elevations he had never had before. We ended up at Shands and new blood work was done. The two results were not even similar. So we ended up paying for two sets of blood work rather than relying on the one taken at TV.

2) Can they guarantee patients can see a doctor by assigning less patients per doctor and reserving some spots daily for doctors to see emergency patients rather than relying on PA's? Or at least allow patients to see a doctor rather than a PA. At Northwestern Memorial if your primary doctor can't see you, you always see an MD not a PA. I understand this level of care costs more but I am willing to pay for it. I have private insurance and would gladly pay to see an experienced doctor over a PA.

3) If they can't do step 2 would they be willing to have an MD review the PA's recommendation instead of having them order tests? In our case we paid a lot of money and were sent for the wrong tests because the PA didn't know he was ordering a useless test for the symptoms my husband had. This significantly delayed treatment and he required additional work ups. The cost for the useless test was more than $500 after our insurance.

No one wants better health care in TV than I. Can't they develop a higher level of care than what exists at present? Who can I write to for an answer?

Hard to tell what you are dealing with. If you had such a history of major problems it would have been wise to get a cardiology referral before coming to TV at a center like Mayo's or at least Orlando. The insurance you have sounds like marginal coverage with all the lab bills. Granted you need to have a good relationship with your PCP asap and nurse so your problems are well understood and acted upon. As a retired practicioner there is a shortage of 40,000 primary care docs in the country hence the increased use of PA"s and nurse practicioners.

[yankygrl]

Originally Posted by Yucatan2

So, who is a good doctor outside the bubble? My husband’s previous doctor dropped him this year because we are healthy and generally only go once a year for a routine wellness check and bloodwork. Didn’t go in the past year at all due to covid. I am also looking because I plan to get a supplemental medicare plan when I reach age 65.

I have never used TV healthcare system. I am a retired RN and lucked out 11 tears ago when I found Dr. Alain Smolarski who is part of SIMED. At that time his office was near Citrus Cardiology in LSL area. He has since moved to an office near Rolling Acres and 441, taken in a partner and possibly a PA or RNP. I always see my PCP and his assistant calls back in a timely manner if I call with questions.

[jimorus]

our experience indicates that the best place to go to get great medical care is the Orlando Airport and fly to a city with real hospitals

[manaboutown]

Originally Posted by jimorus

our experience indicates that the best place to go to get great medical care is the Orlando Airport and fly to a city with real hospitals

I'll drink to that!

The situation in Central Florida seems to not have improved since my aunt and uncle moved to Winter Haven in 1966. They returned to Maryland for their healthcare and lived into their late 80's.

I recently flew back to Orange County, CA to have cataract surgery.

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by petiteone

My 2 cents....I'm a snowbird and retired MD from upstate NY. In my day, when an MD had too many complaints, issues, or medical board censures had to run to Florida to continue to practice and were received with open arms. Is that still true and do substandard MDs from other states find a haven here as well? I have never been able to find an MD here I trusted and it's very difficult to find a practice that accepts my NY BCBS PPO Medicare. (They accept substandard NY physicians but not we, the NY insured patients?) The Villages Hospital (now UF and Shand affiliated) did accept my insurance when I was admitted last year. I think the Villages Health Care system needs overhauling. Needless to say, I have a lot of doctor's appointments each summer when I get back to NY.

Your opinion holds weight to me. I am not medically educated but have had a lot of dealings with fine health community in Cincinnati, Ohio in the past as our daughter was born with Williams Syndrome.

I was wondering what flaws you are finding with The Villages Health system.

[golfing eagles]

Originally Posted by petiteone

My 2 cents....I'm a snowbird and retired MD from upstate NY. In my day, when an MD had too many complaints, issues, or medical board censures had to run to Florida to continue to practice and were received with open arms. Is that still true and do substandard MDs from other states find a haven here as well? I have never been able to find an MD here I trusted and it's very difficult to find a practice that accepts my NY BCBS PPO Medicare. (They accept substandard NY physicians but not we, the NY insured patients?) The Villages Hospital (now UF and Shand affiliated) did accept my insurance when I was admitted last year. I think the Villages Health Care system needs overhauling. Needless to say, I have a lot of doctor's appointments each summer when I get back to NY.

I can understand that.

I've been lucky inasmuch as my PCP is a physician I was in practice with for 30 years and he joined TVH. Another doctor I know here was trained in Rochester, NY. And lastly my orthopedist of 30 years had moved here but recently retired.

My only other contacts were when my late wife was ill----the best description was from "A Chorus Line"---"Send in the Clowns".
There was a hematologist that knew less about the causes of simple anemia than most of the medical students and residents I taught. Then there was a rheumatologist who thought all you needed was a high ANA to diagnose lupus. If I need any specialty care I think I'll be travelling as well