Arthritis Specialty Center

Revdex.com:I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted] , and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.First of all I have no medical history of mental illness, second I told Helena rI was suicdal at that very moment, third I never had an ultra soundI guess they can hide behind thier so called doctor and say whatever they wantI want my money backThey did nothing for me but Steal my hard earned moneyI'm a single parent and I don't get child support so every dollar goes along way hereThank youRegards, [redacted] ***

My main duty and responsibility is to check our patient's benefits and inform them of their estimated portion of office visits, labs, and ultrasounds. I spoke with patient on 8-12-2015 after his exam with our provider. The patient seemed very anxious and unsettled. I went over his Medical benefits,...

I provided how much had been met toward his deductible and out of pocket. I then showed him in detail the estimated cost of today's office visit, labs, ultrasound, and two additional office visits. He stated that his concern is that our office does not treat fibromyalgia. He also stated he would rather not continue with care. I told him I would step out and speak with our provider personally and make sure we would be able to assist him. I went into our provider's office and let her know of the patient's concern. She stated, she had discussed during his exam that yes, we treat fibromyalgia and we have multiple patient's being treated for fibromyalgia. She explained to him that fibromyalgia is a part of the bigger issue and we will run tests (lab work and ultrasounds) to give us more information to begin treating his symptoms. I went back to the lab room and relayed our provider's answer to the patient. I asked patient," do you feel better and would you like to continue with your care?" He answered and said," Yes." we reviewed estimated cost paperwork again (see below) that included estimates of his first office visit, lab work, and depo-Medrolshot. Second, ultrasounds on hand and wrist. Third, office visit when the provider will sit down with the patient and review lab and ultrasound results and make a treatment plan. Patient agreed and signed his estimated cost paperwork reflecting how much is still owed to his deductible and coinsurance which is 20%. (We are a contracted provider which takes contractual adjustment.) We also set up a payment plan. Patient advised that he had gone to other doctor offices in Utah and already spent a lot of money trying to find answers. I told him we would do everything we could to help and get him feeling better. I assured him that we have the payment plan set in place, but if for any reason if there was a month he could not pay the full amount- to communicate with us and let me know. I told him as long as he was showing an effort to pay every month there would not be a problem. Patient was given an estimated quote for first office visit $636.75 Second office visit $476.11 Third office visit $130.82.Patient paid $500 for first office visit. Patient did not return for second or third visits so, they will NOT be calculated in the remaining amount owed. At this time, patient has only paid $500. After contractual adjustments have been made he still has a balance of $98.37 at our office. Patient's responsibility was applied to his deductible.
[redacted] came in to our clinic as a new patient on 8/12/2015. He stated that he wanted to be treated for fibromyalgia. He said he had been to several doctors before, and had not had much improvement, and he wanted something done for it. As I do with all of our new patients, I explained that it would take about 4 weeks before we would have the needed information for Dr. W[redacted], and that he would then come for an appointment with him about his diagnosis and potential treatment. The medical records from a family physician and a pain management physician in Salt Lake City indicated he had a complicated multi-year history of pain and mental health issues. MRI had not provided explanation for his back pain. His previous physicians had not felt certain this was fibromyalgia. As reported in his medical records, he told me that he had experienced a lot of anxiety, depression, and had felt suicidal. I asked if he felt suicidal at that time and he responded he just wanted treatment for fibromyalgia. I told him we do not treat depression and anxiety. I told him to get an appointment with a family physician or psychiatrist and recommended that he go to the ER if he got worse. He declined an offer for referral. I explained to him that soft tissue pain can have many causes; this includes, among others, depression and autoimmune diseases. He would benefit from getting the correct treatment. He reported morning stiffness, and I told him that I thought he needed a rheumatology workup. His physical exam showed he likely has an inflammatory arthritis affecting his back and other joints. He had loss of range of motion of the neck. I did not find evidence of fibromyalgia on exam. He was anxious and seemed unhappy that I did not give him a prescription for it. I spent about an hour getting a thorough history, attempting to calm him, and performing a thorough physical exam. After he discussed costs with our billing employee, he agreed to get his labs drawn and to get an injection of anti-inflammatory, non-narcotic medication for his pain. Prior to leaving, he received follow-up appointments and X-ray requisitions. He called back the same day and asked to speak to a manager. He said he was upset about receiving no fibromyalgia treatment, and said he was feeling anxious. Toni T[redacted], our office manager, made him an appointment with a family physician. I prescribed a short-term prescription of anti-anxiety medication. Later he cancelled his scheduled follow-up.

Revdex.com:I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.First of all I have no medical history of mental illness, second I told Helena r. I was suicdal at that very moment, third I never had an ultra sound. I guess they can hide behind thier so called doctor and say whatever they want. I want my money back. They did nothing for me but Steal my hard earned money. I'm a single parent and I don't get child support so every dollar goes along way here. Thank youRegards,[redacted]