Who did you get to pick you up from the Clinic?

[bluenose]

  As we all know, having gynecomastia is very difficult to talk about, and I think a lot of us want to be as discrete as possible when undergoing surgery.
  My question is:  Who did you get to pick you up from the Clinic after the operation?  I am thinking about getting this done, but I don't really want to tell anyone about it, so I don't know who I could get to pick me up from the Clinic.  I went in for a consultation and they made sure to be clear that I needed somebody to pick me up.  But who?  It is too sensitive to ask any of my close friends.  I was thinking about calling a cab and asking the driver to come in and get me, or posting an ad on craigslist.
What did you guys do?

[hammer]

Your world must be lonely! If you live in MiniSoda I will come and get you!

Don't you have one close friend or love one that you can confide in to give you a ride?


Bob

[Dr. Elliot Jacobs]

I do virtually all my gyne surgery in my office OR on an ambulatory basis.  Thus, every patient has to be able to get home (or to a hotel) safely.  That is MY responsibility.  I cannot and will not operate on someone, give them anesthesia (with its lingering effects) and then show them the door.  I absolutely insist on someone to accompany the patient.

Some of my patients are in your situation -- they do not wish to share the info about their procedure to anyone -- family or friend.  In those situations, we arrange for a nurse or nurse's aid to meet them in my office, take them to their home, make them comfortable and secure and then they can leave.  It is not necessary for a patient to have another caregiver in attendance during the night after surgery.  However, I do not approve of having a cab or car service take you home.  The driver is concentrating on driving and is not medically skilled to attend to any problems while you are in the back seat of the vehicle.

Yes, some of my smart-ass patients tell me they have someone arranged to pick them up -- and then after surgery there is a "problem" with the arrangement and they have no-one to help them.  In these situations, I have done my absolute best for them but they have chosen to be on their own.  In these circumstances, I request that the patient sign a release prior to departure for their home.

Pose these concerns to your surgeon and I am sure he will have some solutions to offer.

Good luck with your surgery!

Dr Jacobs

[bluenose]

Thanks for the tips.  I will talk to the clinic and see if they can suggest something.  I want to do everything by-the-book, but at the same time keep this procedure as discreet as possible.  I was just curious what other options existed outside of having to tell a friend/relative about it and getting them to pick you up.  I wouldn't want to do anything that could jeopordize my health or infringe upon the agreement with the clinic to have somebody pick me up and take me home.