American Medical Association [AMA]

On Friday, September 20th, I hit my head very hard on the roof of my car. The pain was intense and that night I began to vomit. Due to my history of having a subarachnoid cyst and hydrocephalus, which I had a VA Shunt and underwent a total of 52 brain surgeries, as well as me having a stroke during one of my operations in 2001, I decided on Monday, September 23rd, to call my Neurosurgeon, Dr Holly Gilmer, because the pain was getting worse, and I was still vomiting. I spoke with Dr Gilmer's Registered Nurse, Wendy. She advised me to the Emergency Room to get checked out to rule out a concussion and a possible brain bleed. I did what I was advised to do, and I went to the Ascension satellite ER in Macomb, located at 23 mile and Romeo Plank. I explained to the Triage Nurse that my Neurosurgeon sent me to the ER to be checked for a possible concussion or brain bleed. I also gave her a detailed explanation of my medical history, and informed her of my current symptoms (terrible pain and vomiting since hitting my head). While the Nurse was finishing up, Dr Douglas John Wheaton came into the room. I informed him that Dr Gilmer had sent me to the ER to get checked out for a possible concussion or brain bleed. I also informed him that I have had 52 brain surgeries due to have a shunt. I then explained to him that I am in a lot of pain and I was vomiting, and since the pain or the vomiting was consistent, I was concerned about having a concussion or brain bleed. He looked in my ears, looked at my throat, touched my head where the pain was, and declared "the part of the skull that you hit is the strongest part of your skull, therefore you did no damage." He then walked out of the room. I was in shock because he didn't really examine me, and was in the room for literally 3 minutes. About 10 minutes later, the Nurse came in with my discharge papers. I asked if I was being sent for a CT Scan or MRI. She informed me that I was not being sent for a CT Scan or MRI, and that I was being discharged. After signing the discharge papers, I walked out of the room. Dr. Wheaton was sitting behind the desk. I went up to him and said I had some questions before I leave. Here is how the conversation went:
Me: I'm a little confused as to why I'm not getting a CT scan or MRI. My Neurosurgeon, Dr Gilmer, sent me here to be checked for a possible concussion or brain bleed.
Dr: The area of your skull that you hit is the strongest part of the skull, so there is no way you caused damage.
Me: Can you really rule out a concussion and brain bleed without having a CT Scan or MRI done?
Dr: Where you hit is the strongest part of your skull, so I know you did not cause any damage by hitting that area. You have a tension headache, not a concussion or brain bleed
Me: Because I have had 52 brain surgeries, I am a bit nervous that I have a concussion or brain bleed. I am also concerned that I may have caused damage to the area where my shunt used to be. I have a 'natural' pathway where my shunt used to be, and if I hit it hard enough, I could shift that pathway and it could close off. You honestly can rule all of that out without a CT Scan or MRI?
Dr: Yes. You don't need a CT Scan or MRI because I know you didn't cause any damage. Besides, it is a known fact that the radiation in a CT Scan and MRI causes cancer. With your medical history, I'm sure you've had a lot of CT Scans and MRI's, so your risk for cancer is already increased. We don't want to send patients for CT Scans or MRI's for just anything. I know you didn't cause damage because of the part of the skull you hit. Besides, I'm not understanding how you hit the back top portion of your skull on your car.
Me: I explained that as I was putting my work bag and purse into my car, my sunglasses fell to the floor of the front passenger seat. Instead of walking to that side of my car, I put both knees on my driver's seat chair and reached over to pick up the sunglasses. After I removed my knees from my seat, I placed my feet on my driveway and as I was coming up to exit my vehicle, I hit my head on the door frame. I also told him that I'm not concerned about getting cancer and that I am very concerned I have a brain bleed or concussion.
Dr: I'm still not understanding how you hit your head
Me: (At this point, I physically reenacted what I did and how I hit my head)
Dr: There's no way you caused damage by doing that. You have a tension headache
Me: I regularly get tension headaches, so I know how they feel. This is not one of my tension headaches. The pain is getting worse and I am vomiting. That it why I called Dr Gilmer, and she advised me to come to the ER to get checked out.
Dr: You probably spoke to a Patient Care Advocate, not a Nurse. Their first line of defense is to immediately send patients to the ER. I know you didn't cause any damage
Me: Ok, well I'm still concerned because I'm still in a lot of pain and I am vomiting.
Dr: If it's a pain situation, you need to speak with your PCP.
Me: I'm not worried about the pain, I'm worried that I may have a concussion or brain bleed. If you are questioning if I am here for painkillers, I am not. I don't take painkillers. I'm here to rule out a brain bleed or concussion.
Dr: Like I said, there is no damage because the part of your skull that you hit, is the hardest part of the skull
Me: (At this point, knowing that I wasn't going to get anywhere with this Doctor who could magically rule out a concussion or brain bleed without doing a CT Scan or MRI, I decided to leave)
As I was walking to my car, I called my husband and told him what happened. I also informed him that if I were to drop dead due to having a brain bleed that Dr Wheaton ignored my concerns and request for a CT Scan, he needs to sue Dr Wheaton & Ascension St John. I then called Dr. Gilmer's office and left a voicemail about what happened. Since I couldn't immediately get a hold of Dr Gilmer, I called my PCP, Dr Lange, to inform him of my concerns. His medical assistant was shocked that Dr Wheaton didn't do a CT Scan, especially given my history of having 52 brain surgeries due to my hydrocephalus & subarachnoid cyst. Dr Lange sent me for a STAT CT Scan. Later that day Wendy from Dr Gilmer's office called me back. She was appalled that Dr Wheaton ignored my symptoms and request to be checked for a brain bleed & concussion. I informed her that I will be filing a complaint against Dr Wheaton and she agreed that is a good idea.
As a patient that has a serious and extensive history of brain trauma, I am appaled that Dr Wheaton ignored mine, and Dr Gilmer's request to be checked out for a brain bleed & concussion! Dr Wheaton did not take the take to examine me, nor did he take my concerns seriously. He violated his own Hippocratic oath to take care of his patients. Hypothetically speaking, let's say I did have a brain bleed and I died, Dr Wheaton & Ascension St John would be responsible! Dr Wheaton's arrogance was ridiculous and got in the way of him fulfilling his duties as a Physician. He, and Ascension St John, had the gull to bill my insurance! Dr Wheaton was with me for 3 minutes, and he billed Aetna $593.00! I was in that ER for a total of 15 minutes, and Ascension billed Aetna $422.00! Dr Wheaton and Ascension are lucky that I did not have a brain bleed that could of caused my death, but I fear that next patient that Dr Wheaton ignores due to his arrogance won't be as lucky! I am planning on turning Dr Wheaton into every single medical board there is for his arrogance and his lack of fulfilling his Hippocratic oath!