POPULAR HEALTH CARE

My sister lives in Charleston, South Carolina - home to gracious southern living, warm and friendly people, incredibly beautiful places to see, history, elegance, culture, great food, charm, a host of wonderful things. She is surrounded by friends who love her and is a major part of the life of Charleston.

She has one problem. She suffers from chronic pain from severe spinal damage.

Pain - a medical condition that robs one of all physical and psychological and emotional energy and ruins quality of life.
Pain - a medical condition that CAN BE HELPED IF the members of the so-called medical community would care more about their patients and less about their country club memberships!

Case in point. South Carolina has almost NO pain treatment centers. The one large center at MUSC will only take patients referred by MUSC doctors. Now, how does a patient gain entry into this secret society? My sister jumped through all of their hoops, obtained medical records from anyone who had even shaken hands with her, went through testing, went through six weeks of false hope, only to be told by an MUSC neurologist that surgery was not indicated and he could not help her - to go to the Pain Center. Uh..... that had been the whole purpose. Do you think this guy with a medical degree would refer her to the Pain Center, knowing that he was virtually the only one who could do so? A BIG FAT NO!!!! When I called on my sister's behalf (I've worked in medicine for a helluva long time, and I'm becoming ashamed of it), the person I contacted basically told me through my sister that I was not to call. Excuse me?

So, Sis, please don't get offended by this post, but this is a heads-up to people in SC or those contemplating a move: Check your medical condition first. If you have no pain, but have politically correct diseases that require no pain medications, then you will probably do okay. Otherwise, I'm sorry to say, if you are in pain, the medical community Charleston will turn its back on you.