Hello..



I have been seeing the same family Doctor for many years. He recently retired. I thought he was a great Dr. and I really got along well with his nurses. Before he left he provided me with refills for medications that I take on a regular basis. My husband passed away shortly before my Dr. retired and these extra refills have helped me through a difficult period. I have a connective tissue disorder, degenerative disk disease and fibromyalgia. I was also recently diagnosed with Lupus. The clinic I have been going to all these years told me, when I called to make an appointment, that my former Dr.'s nurses did not stay with the Dr. who was hired to replace him. They had, however, transferred to another Dr. in the same clinic. When I asked about an appointment with the Dr. that the Nurses had transferred to, I was told that she was not accepting any of my former Dr.'s patients. I see online that she is accepting new patients. I can understand her position, as my former Dr. had many patients, but now I am not only without a Dr., but also a familiar Nurse. I am well into my senior years and like many my age, really dislike making such a radical change. I spoke with the clinic manager today as I thought she might have a solution for me. She said that if I did not want to see the replacement Doctor, that perhaps I should find another clinic??? I could not believe what I was hearing. This is causing me a great deal of stress. I will need to have my prescriptions refilled before too long. One is considered a narcotic, which I take for severe spinal pain and fibromyalgia flareups. I take this on a daily basis. I have both cervical and lumbar problems, according to MRI's. I also take clonazapam for panic attacks, but only at bedtime. I have a stomach disorder, so I do not take nysaids. I really need some advice about what to do at this point. I am afraid that if I leave the clinic, a new Dr., who would not have the immediate access to my medical records, might be unwilling to prescribe what I have been using for my pain, which is severe at times. I have experienced withdrawal one time when I forgot to fill my clonazapam and stopped taking it for a short while. I did not realize that stopping abruptly would cause this, but my former Dr. told me that this was what was happening when I began to feel ill. I certainly do not wish to go through that experience again. I feel as though this clinic is attempting to intimidate my former Dr's patients, but cannot understand how the clinic manager can be so rude to people who have been patients there for so many years. I do understand that the Clinic is paying this new Dr. and would want him to take on a lot of my former Dr.'s patients. He is only shortly out of internship and would only be my choice if the former nurses, who are well familiar with my medical problems were there to assist me in communications with him. At my age and with the multitude of medical problems, I do believe that the Dr. that I ultimately see, should have much more experience. I would appreciate your advice. I am still experiencing a lot of stress re my husband's death and now with this, I have no idea which way to turn. I resent someone attempting to force me to see a certain Dr. against my wishes. I have over 20 years of medical records in that clinic and I know that no new Dr., outside that clinic, is going to want to take the time to read same.