Michael1942's Blog

I just had cataract surgery on both eyes ( one at a time), results are very good. I would like to commend the staff in recovery and surgery as well the Surgeon. The staff at the Springfield clinic are all great and always  do a great job. My little issue with the clinic in general are the surveys you get after a visit or procedure. This survey appears to one of the many designed to provide information to the administrators or higher-ups who may or may not be  medically trained. These surveys in my opinion are useless in that they do not directly relate to the staff involved in the procedure so I have decided not to reply to them. A survey to get general information is kind of useless as there is no specificity on the staff. In this case there should be some questions or opinions related to the individual parts of the surgery. The surgery consists of a receptionist who checks you in, verifying who you are and why you are there (she or he already has this information on-screen in front of them but this is part of the check system). After that you see another  check in person who also verifies who you are and why you are there along with who is there with you. At that time the person with you receives a pager so they can be notified  when you are in recovery. Next  you see  what I call the prep nurse who again verifies who you and what you are there for. At this point you are outfitted with the remarkable and appropriate hospital wear (you know-the open back gowns that everyone loves), insert an IV line if required. Again all information is verified. This seems like a lot of  informational repetition but suppose at any point this was not done, things could go really wrong! Next up an anesthetist who verifies who you and what you are having done while telling you what state of consciousness you will be in and that some will be there to monitor your state at all times, this includes your oxygen levels, BP and the effect of the anesthesia. The surgery, well you usually do not know what’s happening there but consider that you wake up in recovery (a good sign) and some of the same questions come around again. Once you are fairly lucid you are offered a drink and perhaps a snack until you completely aware of what’s going on around you and where you are. After everyone is sure you ae able to understand what is happening you are allowed to leave. The next day you will receive a phone call asking how you are. None of these areas are covered on the “survey” which makes the survey in my opinion a waste of paper, postage and not much use in evaluating the real story, that is the story of the staff who actually  take care of you before, after and during your short stay.