What in your life is ridiculous or annoying right now?

[katfco]

Tomorrow, DD and I have to drive out of state for a doctor appointment. A few months ago, she was accepted in to the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia disautonomia clinic. It is the nearest pediatric disautonomia clinic. The next ones are Chicago and Minnesota. 


So in May, she and I drove 8 hours to Philly for a day-long appointment. Then we drove 8 hours back. 

So tomorrow, she has a follow-up appointment, which should only be a 30-minute video call with the NP. But we have to be in PA for it. So tomorrow, we're going to drive 2.5 hours into another state, sit in the parking lot of somewhere that has decent wi-fi for a 30-minute Zoom call. Then drive 2.5 hours back. 

I'm grateful for the clinic, but I'm also struck by how ridiculous it is that we have to do this. 


Anyone else have any ridiculous annoyances right now?

[starburst604]

@kafco it’s because of physician licensing. They should only technically practice where they are licensed. It’s such a PITA, I want to tell patients to just lie and say they’re in state!

Do they make you somehow prove you are in state?

[katfco]

Sept 16, 2024 20:16:20 GMT -5 starburst604 said:

@kafco it’s because of physician licensing. They should only technically practice where they are licensed. It’s such a PITA, I want to tell patients to just lie and say they’re in state!

Do they make you somehow prove you are in state?

I know why it is, but I find it really absurd. 

There's an online form we have to complete saying we're in state. 

[hazelden]

I always lie - the people asking don't actually care, it's just their job to ask. If someone calls and asks to speak with my husband, guess what? I'm him! DD is 18, which means I can't talk to her dentist to ask if she needs her wisdom teeth removed- I'm just going to call and say I'm DD. Saves everyone a lot of time.

I pretended to be DD a few weeks ago over telehealth to get her an Rx for birth control pills and Plan B before she went off to college.

I'd say my annoyance is accessing traditional healthcare in general. It's expensive and time-consuming, the costs are a mystery, and it feels like a whole lot of gatekeeping. I'm all in on telehealth, and I'm so glad my employer offers it as a free benefit.

[sonrisa]

Sept 16, 2024 20:13:43 GMT -5 katfco said:

a follow-up appointment, which should only be a 30-minute video call 

I'm sorry you have to deal with that.


I hear about this all the time. with people needing to be in state for even the smallest steps for care that is only available in some states. 

[arehopsveggies]

We have this with our weekly speech. If we are on vacation to our cabin, we could do it because the state is the same. But if we go visit my grandma, even though it’s closer, it’s across state lines so we can’t do it.
I’ve lied a couple of times. But DS is autistic and too honest,
So I don’t anymore because I’m sure he will rat me out

[mysteriouswife]

DD was hospitalized end of May. She needed a specialist follow up. The earliest we could get in for new patient was today. She needs some test ran. The earliest she can get the u/s… October. I told them in June she needed the u/s. I know they cannot schedule it based on what I say. It’s just frustrating

[ellipses84]

Mine are medical too. I’ve been having knee and feet issues, which are probably connected, but of course I have to go see a podiatrist and an ortho at the same building several weeks apart. At least I convinced them to do all the x-rays at the first appointment!

I was talking with some friends about an ethical dilemma similar to the lying to the Dr and saying they were in the state. They decided to lie since it seemed like NBD before. They get on the virtual call and have to sign like 10x more disclaimers for this Doctor than they’ve ever had to for any other Dr. and there’s a warning that if they suspect you are lying they may periodically ask for proof. It freaked my friend out so much she decided to never do it again. I think in her case the risk is not worth the potential negative consequences for getting caught lying, which would be extra bad and embarrassing since she’s also in the medical profession. 🤥 That wasn’t the exact scenario, but similar key points.

[sonrisa]

We've had to move our moving date 3 times. It was Sept. 9th. then the 13th. Then the 21st. now it needs to move again. Argh.

[wise_rita]

Sept 17, 2024 0:52:18 GMT -5 ellipses84 said:

there’s a warning that if they suspect you are lying they may periodically ask for proof.

By forcing the patient outside and Google Streetviewing the given address? I mean, how else?

I understand why they have to "require" such ridiculousness, but both sides should just agree to look the other way.

[SwimDeep]

Wouldn't lying about being in state impact the practitioner more than the patient? As in possibly put their license in jeopardy if they're found to be treating people in a state where they're not licensed?

Also, location info can be tracked via networking data. Anyone can use your IP address to look up general locale (state, zip code, etc), but it would take an official warrant to get the exact address. Using a VPN makes it harder to track this data even though it doesn't make you fully anonymous.

I agree healthcare is ridiculously annoying. Just thought I'd share some info that might help.

My ridiculous annoyance is a new hire at work. They're supposed to be taking work off my plate so that I'm not so overwhelmed. But the amount of handholding needed right now has actually increased my workload. And these are not difficult tasks. I know not everyone is like me (I don't wait to be told exactly how to do something), I know this person is new, and I'm trying to extend grace... but the simple grammar/punctuation errors and general lack of attention to detail are slowly killing me. This is not they're first job in this field, but they're acting like they're brand new 😮‍💨

[mainelyfoolish]

Mine is also medical. I was recently diagnosed with mild sleep apnea. I really don’t want a CPAP, so I did a little looking around and found an alternative that is essentially a set of nose plugs with vents. It’s FDA approved, my doctor gave me a prescription, I bought the starter kit, and it’s perfect for me. I tried to find a DME supplier to buy the annual refills through (you replace the device every 3 months) and I found out that insurance won’t cover it. My insurer would pay thousands to set me up with a CPAP device that I don’t want, but won’t cover a $300/year alternative. Seems logical. 

[felicity]

Dealing with healthcare and health insurance is the worst. I spent 2 hours on the phone yesterday just trying to confirm with my insurance that I am doing the referrals correctly for an MRI, that I am using an in-network provider, and then trying to schedule said MRI. This is a pretty common procedure and shouldn't be this hard to schedule.

And related, I had two separate orthopedist issues that I need addressed, but the practice has a one issue/body part per appointment policy. I asked if I could just make two back to back appointments, because I understand that they have a tight schedule and I'm not trying to take up undue time. No, I can't do that because insurance will deny more than one visit per day. So I have to waste time going back and forth to the same practice because insurance is ridiculous.

[karinothing]

I have covid and so much to do this week. I am supposed to see Clue at the kennedy center and now can't go. Tomorrow is back 2 school night and I am PTA president and likely can't go. Just so annoyed.

[ssmjlm]

I work with idiots. That's the biggest headache right now. One of them happens to be my boss on paper.


My kid says there is some dance convention the studio does, but the studio hasn't sent any paperwork. I was able to google and find it because she says we need to get a hotel room and the hotel link says it's fully booked. But ironically, the convention isn't even at the hotel, this is just the hotel they worked a deal with. I guess I will be calling to see what is up. The hotel has rooms, but they're way more than the group rate.

[honeydew1894]

Sept 17, 2024 6:07:24 GMT -5 karinothing said:

I have covid and so much to do this week. I am supposed to see Clue at the kennedy center and now can't go. Tomorrow is back 2 school night and I am PTA president and likely can't go. Just so annoyed.

This is me also. I tested positive last night. I have benchmark testing to do at school, open house, and a PT event on Friday. I am hoping it is a mild case. 

[mcppalmbeach]

Ugh! That is super annoying. Honestly, even though I try and be honest, this is one of those things I might be willing to roll the dice on. I see from the comment above they can make you prove your location (but really why would they do so) so I don’t think I’d try to do it from my own house but maybe a library or something neutral. Or I’d probably go to PA just once to see if they ask you anything and go from there.

[dcn]

This made me remember that when I met with a US rep a few weeks ago, he said they were working on legislation to allow telehealth over state lines. I don’t know the details, but as a military spouse this would be amazing especially for mental health practitioners! It’s so annoying to have to find a new provider every time we move.

[stemmie]

The medical stuff. All of it.

DS is in Vyvanse-hell trying to find the elusive medication in the 60mg strength he needs. Earlier this year, he had to finesse the "brand-necessary" hoop when that was available, but the generic wasn't. It's been a shit show. Currently this involves finding a pharmacy that has it (many won't divulge this information with a prescription in hand even if they've provided it before-- CVS I am looking at you), getting the script sent over while it's on hand and often paying to have it shipped depending on the distance. Fortunately, he's an adult, so my role in this is just to listen to him complain. If he had the executive function to easily do this, he wouldn't need the fucking medicine.

I got caught up in the interstate telehealth bullshit last week. I'm in PA. Mom's seeing a Penn urogynocolgist for a mini-sling procedure Friday at their Penn Medicine Princeton Health. She'd seen the doc 2 weeks ago having decided on the procedure but had to have a surgical consult scheduled in-office last week. This would have been telehealth if she lived in NJ. Irony is her insurance is the NJ State Teachers retirement plan insurance.

We've also done the orthopedist nonsense with braces because of mom's Aetna MAP which is generally excellent. My friend got braces from the same team, but her Blue Cross pan allowed 2 same-day visits.

[lavenderblue]

I have to be in the office 3 days a week. There are a few of us who park further out and while there is no assigned parking, everyone pretty much always parks in the same spot. There must be someone knew with my company because an additional car has starting parking in the same general area, except they are all willy nilly about, never parking in the same spot, just in the same area. Today they parked in the spot literally next to where I park, even though there were dozens of empty spots around. Like, come on. And yes, I know I'm being completely ridiculous.

[bbdoll]

I tested positive for Covid almost two weeks ago.  I cannot get rid of this dry cough or the fatigue.  It's taking everything I have to get through my work day.  When will this let up?

[tacokick]

Sept 17, 2024 5:12:54 GMT -5 SwimDeep said:

Wouldn't lying about being in state impact the practitioner more than the patient? As in possibly put their license in jeopardy if they're found to be treating people in a state where they're not licensed?

Also, location info can be tracked via networking data. Anyone can use your IP address to look up general locale (state, zip code, etc), but it would take an official warrant to get the exact address. Using a VPN makes it harder to track this data even though it doesn't make you fully anonymous.

I think the worry for a patient is that they will drop you as a patient if you are found to be lying. Then you probably wouldn’t be able to find another provider to treat you because if they were plentiful, you probably wouldn’t be traveling out of state for medical care.

[tacokick]

Sept 17, 2024 7:11:14 GMT -5 stemmie said:

The medical stuff. All of it.

DS is in Vyvanse-hell trying to find the elusive medication in the 60mg strength he needs.

They did announce allowing production of both branded and generic to go up 24% soon so hopefully that helps!

[jamie.1022]

Our physicians ask the patients to share their location when on video calls.

My annoyance is everyone in my house is sick, including me.

[tacokick]

The car/home insurance company my dad had seems be staffed by 22 year old bros and it’s been a time canceling his insurance and getting refunds. I swear one literally called me bro and then corrected it to ma’am.

It is like no one has ever died before. First they tried to email my dad the refund. My dad never had an email address in his life and I paid his bills.

They emailed a link to an electronic refund with a note that it was to be deposited by my dad only to an email address of my brother who had an auto policy there over a decade ago and which was never associated with my dad’s account. I guess because they shared a last name and briefly an address it crossed in their files?

Then they sent a check to him to his house and not me/the estate like I asked.

Now it’s the flood insurance dragging on.

[starburst604]

Sept 17, 2024 5:12:54 GMT -5 SwimDeep said:

Wouldn't lying about being in state impact the practitioner more than the patient? As in possibly put their license in jeopardy if they're found to be treating people in a state where they're not licensed?

Also, location info can be tracked via networking data. Anyone can use your IP address to look up general locale (state, zip code, etc), but it would take an official warrant to get the exact address. Using a VPN makes it harder to track this data even though it doesn't make you fully anonymous.

I agree healthcare is ridiculously annoying. Just thought I'd share some info that might help.

My ridiculous annoyance is a new hire at work. They're supposed to be taking work off my plate so that I'm not so overwhelmed. But the amount of handholding needed right now has actually increased my workload. And these are not difficult tasks. I know not everyone is like me (I don't wait to be told exactly how to do something), I know this person is new, and I'm trying to extend grace... but the simple grammar/punctuation errors and general lack of attention to detail are slowly killing me. This is not they're first job in this field, but they're acting like they're brand new 😮‍💨

I think the underlying issue is how the patient's location could impact a malpractice case. So, the providers are taking steps to show that they made every possible effort in advance to let the patient know they need to be in state by having them sign forms and so forth. I can't imagine that there is anyone actually taking steps to make patients prove this, but they're covering themselves in case it ever came up in a claim that the patient was out of state when the appointment took place. I'm sure as telemedicine evolves we will see more regulations put in place that may either ease this up or further enforce it. 

[sunshineandpinot]

omg yes. My cousin got married 24 years ago. dh and I were married 4 years later (so 19 years ago.) To try and make a long story short I causally mentioned to my cousin's wife (my cousin is the husband) that our wedding dresses were designed by the same (small, boutique) designer. It was just a random coincidence that I think I discovered when looking for our wedding announcement online and I came across their's which listed her designer. (we have a very unique last name.)
It has now been turned around that I copied her dress; we wore the exact same dress; it's so dumb, not true and I wish I never would have mentioned this causal coincidence. (I rarely see this side of my family, it was mentioned 2 years ago at a reunion and apparently is still being talked about between my aunt and maybe cousin-in-law, idfk.)

[cmeon]

Honorlock (test proctoring software) made a simple 5 question quiz an hour + long nightmare last night for my son. I feel awful for him, he was so stressed because it kept restarting (which is a whole process). Restarting chewed up all the time allotment, and there was a fair amount of arithmetic on these (and no calculator), so he's not sure he even finished.

Our internet connection was stable all night, and it's worked "fine" before on this laptop- I huess it may have been on their end. It really is a dumb chore, though, just to maybe stop a few cheaters from cheating (I'm not convinced)

[starburst604]

This is ridiculous in that I'm being ridiculous about it, it's just a small annoyance that has built over time. Each condo in my complex has a garage and one deeded spot outside. The spots are all parallel with the Unit letter stamped on it. I am Unit I. To my left in Unit H is an older couple and right after I moved here in late June, the husband was hospitalized and just came back from rehab last week. His car is parked in the space behind me and his wife uses the garage. To my right in Unit J is a single dude who parks his Tesla in his garage, and in his outdoor spot there's a pickup truck that has not moved once since I've lived here. I don't know if he just uses it in the winter or something. So neither car in the spots that sandwich mine have ever been gone since I've lived here. This means I have had to parallel park into my spot EVERY. SINGLE. TIME I come home. Every other car out here moves sometimes but no, not these two. There is never an opportunity for me to just pull into my spot! And yes, I could park in my garage but it's full of hockey nets and shit right now, but I'll probably start using it in the colder weather.

[cville]

In my new role, I have to attend business-focused meetings. Not meetings with business people, but meetings about the money parts of business.

I have endeavored my entire life to avoid learning anything about accounting or finance. And now I'm routinely being forced to Google accounting terms so I can follow along and actually contribute.

This is both ridiculous and annoying because:

1. Boy is accounting boring.
2. This has confirmed what I long suspected, which is that money people give things weird and fancy names to make them sound more complicated than they are.
3. People have far over estimated my capacity and intelligence. I'm about to be exposed as a troglodyte fraud.