Requirements complete now what

[Hopefulin2021 244]

Hi I just finished my last nutritional class and have completed all the requirements. Do I wait to hear from the hospital or should I call? I’m not sure what to do at this point. Any advice would be great, I have BCBS NJ by the way.

[mcfluffington 179]

Give them a call. I am surprised they haven't already given you a surgery date.

[Hopefulin2021 244]

Thank you. My last class was yesterday, should I give it a day or two or just go for it?

[mcfluffington 179]

Go for it!

[Hopefulin2021 244]

2 minutes ago, mcfluffington said:

Go for it!

I will, thank you!

[Cherie04 47]

I would check with the office and see if they have submitted to your insurance. I know it took about 3 weeks for my insurance to respond.

[Hopefulin2021 244]

I actually called and they said I had to meet with my surgeon first so they scheduled that for next Tuesday. I am assuming I need to sign consent forms and go over the procedure again.

[ChubRub 1,709]

3 minutes ago, Hopefulin2021 said:

I actually called and they said I had to meet with my surgeon first so they scheduled that for next Tuesday. I am assuming I need to sign consent forms and go over the procedure again.

When I had my meeting w/ the surgeon, they gave me my surgery date at that time. Hope the same is true for you. Good luck!!

[Hopefulin2021 244]

12 minutes ago, ChubRub said:

When I had my meeting w/ the surgeon, they gave me my surgery date at that time. Hope the same is true for you. Good luck!!

Oh I hope so keeping my fingers crossed!

[GradyCat 3,696]

Call your surgeon's office and get the scheduler and get it on the books. Congrats!

[AZhiker 2,253]

Don't be afraid to call and ask questions about anything. That is what they are there for, but you must stand up for yourself and be proactive. They are also looking after hundreds of other patients and you must take the initiative for your own care. Offices have been known to lose documents, reports, and sometimes just don't keep on top of the progress for every patient like they should. Keep copies of all your reports, and CALL them if you have questions or don't understand something. This is a great opportunity to learn how to be a bit more assertive and less passive. The decision for WLS is one of the biggest of your life, and you will be the one to call the shots afterward - who to tell, how to work your plan, how and when to exercise, etc. You will need to call the nutritionist when you have questions, and call your team if you are worried about any problems. Jump in with both feet! Go for it! Be a pain-in-the-"you know what" if you need to be, but stand up for yourself and your new life!!!

PS: After my surgery, I got an enormous bill. They said I was out of network and that my hiatal hernia repair was done by someone other than my surgeon, and that person was also out of network. I became a royal PITA (Pain In The A.....). I refused to pay the bill and they then reduced my surgeon's bypass portion to account for in-network. Great. I paid for that. No problem. But I had a copy of the full surgical report and it clearly stated that both surgeries were done by my designated surgeon. It went around and around for months, but finally the hiatal hernia portion was eliminated. I was under threat of being turned over to collections, and I went around and around with the hospital billing department and insurance company, as well as the doctor's office. But it finally got resolved in the way it should have been in the first place. To make a long story short - keep copies of everything and don't be afraid to stand up for yourself!

Edited December 16, 2020 by AZhiker

[Hopefulin2021 244]

38 minutes ago, GradyCat said:

Call your surgeon's office and get the scheduler and get it on the books. Congrats!

Yes definitely, thank you!

[Hopefulin2021 244]

3 minutes ago, AZhiker said:

Don't be afraid to call and ask questions about anything. That is what they are there for, but you must stand up for yourself and be proactive. They are also looking after hundreds of other patients and you must take the initiative for your own care. Offices have been known to lose documents, reports, and sometimes just don't keep on top of the progress for every patient like they should. Keep copies of all your reports, and CALL them if you have questions or don't understand something. This is a great opportunity to learn how to be a bit more assertive and less passive. The decision for WLS is one of the biggest of your life, and you will be the one to call the shots afterward - who to tell, how to work your plan, how and when to exercise, etc. You will need to call the nutritionist when you have questions, and call your team if you are worried about any problems. Jump in with both feet! Go for it! Be a pain-in-the-"you know what" if you need to be, but stand up for yourself and your new life!!!

That is great advice and I will definitely stay on top of things. I am very lucky because my hospital is very good about keeping my updated and they took care of everything form the beginning to now, I have no issues. Doesn’t mean I’ll get lazy and expect them to do everything, I am very assertive already so they definitely don’t want me to become a pain in the a$!. Lol