Bad Surgery Outcome, What Should I Do About The Fee?

NoBucks on 17/10/2018 - 18:26
Last edited 17/10/2018 - 19:08 by 1 other user

Hi all,

I had a cataract surgery performed by a surgeon about 2 months ago.

The Doctor had promised me a significant improvement in vision after surgery but I am no better than before the surgery in fact there are side effects like seeing a halo in the night or in artificial lights and seeing a constant shadow in the corner of the eye. Plus I have recently developed inflammation in the eye. The Doctor just keeps giving me new medications and asks me to come back in a few weeks with no convincing answers.

The receptionist keeps asking for the Doctor's surgery fee, and I did mention to her that my treatment is still in progress. I have low confidence that my vision will see any improvement and probably will have to live with side effects with the rest of my life ..as the Doctor says it takes a few months in "some" cases to go away..clearly he just is setting a time frame so I can pay him and then I just live with it. I know eye is more important and I am planning to see another Doctor which may mean another surgery….that would be a double whammy.

PS: My insurance doesn't cover cataracts.

Health & Beauty

Comments

  • souleaterX on 19/10/2018 - 12:53
    +2

    I still remember being at a emergency vet with my cat who was not well but stable.

    They said they needed to run some tests before they could do anything so I went home to get some sleep. Got a call at 3am saying he wasn't getting better and they recommended surgery. I was like "Will we definitely find out whats wrong right and he will definitely be ok?" to which they said there was a high chance because it was early they could help.

    They made me wire $3000 to them on the spot for the surgery and mentioned non-payers as the reason for this.

    When we got our cat back he was still sluggish and not well even after the symptoms of surgery. I asked if they found anything to which they said they had not so now not only was I out of pocket but we didn't even know what was wrong with our cat.

    Lucky we had pet insurance for him so we got most of it back.

    End of the day they still provided a service, whether or not I was happy with the outcome.

  • LUTSlit on 19/10/2018 - 14:00

    You know what the answer is. Stop looking for justification from others to enable your decision to dogg the specialist.

  • Dack Smith on 19/10/2018 - 14:30
    -1

    Who is the specialist ?

    What is his name ?

    Can you withhold payment until he delivers on his promise ?

  • doncarajo on 19/10/2018 - 14:33
    +2

    You need to pay for the surgery that was done. No surgery is risk free and you knew about those risks when you signed the consent. If the surgeon told you that 100% this would work (and it hasn't) then get a lawyer and sue them. Otherwise, you might start getting debt collectors knocking at your door.

  • rompastompa on 19/10/2018 - 14:44
    +1

    is OP Dave Harper?

  • drfuzzy on 19/10/2018 - 17:51
    +1

    Would you pay the cancer specialist if you had cancer and it wasn't cured?

  • happydude on 20/10/2018 - 05:30

    A doctor is still subject to Australian Consumer Law.
    Was the procedure performed without due care and skill?
    Did the doctor make claims that would be misleading or deceptive conduct?

    If yes for either you have a case.

    If it just didn't work and you were warned it might not and that another doctor concurs then you don't.

  • gstfree on 20/10/2018 - 14:11
    +1

    I have been in commercial environment and I have clients not paying bills (not talking about thousands, but in hundard thousands). If the outstanding amounts are in dispute, the vendor has limited ability to recover the debt.

    I normally negotiate a confidential deed of settlement, recover 60% is the best.

    OP has his/her rights to complain the medical negligence.

    • NoBucks on 20/10/2018 - 20:54

      In your experience have you seen patients negotiating due to bad outcomes and if they were successful?

  • paulojr on 20/10/2018 - 17:56
    -1

    I'd get some advise on this from professionals not a forum dedicated to getting the cheapest without warranty deals. Try consumer affairs and ACCC they are a bit more aligned to this kind of concern. Any free legal advise lines you could try? Do some real research.

    That said, it should be common sense that if the work isn't to what was explained (written or otherwise) then the doctor should be making every effort to ensure your not further out of pocket. Business is business, beyond the scammers, everyone else needs to ensure they are offering something fit for purpose. Doctors deal with much more unknowns so they are far less likely to be caught by their mistakes as proof becomes difficult, but there is a line still.

    i know someone that went through something similar thing, the end result was doctors fees were only charged once but some third party costs were passed on. This was in alignment with what we were told. Anyone wanting to keep billing you and not meeting expectations wants to be sued.
    This kind of work you are talking about isn't rocket science, so sounds like your doctor is probably incompetent, so a second opinion may be well worth it. did you do the hand shaking test before you hired him? e.g. is he too old to be doing eye surgery? A lot of them don't retire when they need to.

    • NoBucks on 20/10/2018 - 20:52

      Thanks for the advice…yes I did the hand shaking test :) good way to describe it though…I am fairly new to this country so didn't know where else to turn but it's been worth it with some good suggestions including reaching out to health commission

    • HighAndDry on 24/10/2018 - 11:11

      This kind of work you are talking about isn't rocket science, so sounds like your doctor is probably incompetent

      All things considered, it's just as likely that OP's eyes are incompetent.

  • MessyG on 20/10/2018 - 19:58
    +1

    I think you need to be upfront with the receptionist and tell her you're not comfortable paying a fee for a surgery that hasn't worked unless there is something further they can offer other than a 'watch and wait' approach. If the opthalmologists are going to charge what they do then they need to manage your expectations - which means that when things don't work they need to be very clear with you what the likely outcome will be, and give you any options for revision. It's completely okay to be upset with the outcome but both reception and the opthal needs to know that you're not happy and why so they can make a plan with you - whether that's to waive the fee or try something else.

    • NoBucks on 20/10/2018 - 20:48

      Thanks I think I need to more explicit with the doc and the receptionist.

  • Cheaplikethebird on 21/10/2018 - 11:34

    I feel for you, I get annoyed as it is with the odd floater. I could not imagine having constant vision imperfections. I have a family history of glaucoma too but I get regular checks and self medicate ;)

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