What doctor is saying this? Family or surgeon?
Has she had imaging tests done? This can be paid for to cut the wait time. Surgery cannot as far as I know, in edmonton anyway.
It normally goes like this: family doc sees problem, refers to surgeon, wait for appointment. surgeon orders MRI/CT/ultrasound, any/all of the above. Wait for testing. Testing gets done. Radiologist interprets and sends report to surgeon. Surgeon decides what is required, puts patient on list. Wait for surgery. Surgery gets done. Physio (do exactly what you're told, and the outcomes are very good. Think you know better and it will all go to hell)
There are a couple things that can be done to improve the situation. One is to insure that when your family doc refers you to a surgeon, you call the surgeons office and make sure the referral has been received and get on the cancellation list for the appointment, if they have one. Next is to pay privately for whatever tests are needed, the surgeons office can help you out with this. Once they let you know what needs to be done, again get on the cancellation list for surgery. Also, when talking to the surgeon, ask if there is any pre surgical physio or other change that can be done to improve the outcome. (Here's a start: No smoking, no alcohol)
Remember that this is a non-emergent matter. I understand it can be frustrating but doctors can only work so many hours in a day, and knee replacements only get so much OR time. that's the way it is, no one can change it. Your time is the variable you can control, and being willing to show up on short notice can help (but it's not guaranteed to change anything). Also, yeah, be pleasant. The system is severely under-equipped to deal with the aging population. Thank Ralph, and be nice to everyone you deal with.
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“Nothing is more persistent than a liberal with a dumb idea” - Ebrand
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