The knee is to be Biomet's Signature replacement, which utilizes MRI technology to create personalized positioning guides, the guides using advanced technology to help surgeons accurately position the knee implants. To put it bluntly, the MRI will allow the surgeon to saw off less of the ends of the tibia and femur. That procedure may still occur only in a parallel universe, but the MRI is easy enough. So that appointment is easily kept.
I showed up at the designated location a little early. I have undergone two MRI's of hourly durations, completely enclosed for the entire times, for much more ominous explorations, so a 30-minute MRI did not faze me. After leaving all metallic belongings outside the room, I entered to meet the technologist. She seemed quite detached, probably bored, describing the procedure by rote. A brief description, not mentioning how she would be observing or how she could be contacted if necessary, as I recalled being told during my previous experiences. Today's MRI was divided into 4 parts, the first two involving only the legs, and proceeded uneventfully. The third part meant being fully enclosed in the machine, and started out okay, but after a few minutes, things got heated. I mean literally heated; hot air seemed to pour out of the machine and my head began to feel very warm and flushed. The noise was overpowering, as always, but after a time, it seemed so wrong that I spoke into the speaker advising of the heat. No reply, which I may not have been able to hear, but she did not come into the room, and allowed the MRI to run its course. I was at the point of preparing to extricate myself from the thing, but I didn't want to risk wasting what had already been done. When the technician did re-enter the room, to prepare for the next, and last, part of the series, I told her how uncomfortably hot the machine had been. At first she said she didn't know what the cause could be. I commented that if she didn't know, who would, and asked if the machine could be malfunctioning. She didn't think so, she told me, in her don't-give-a-damn monotone, and added that sometimes people do complain about the heat, and then added that the machine was scheduled for maintenance that day. Yikes. I said it felt like the fan wasn't working, and she asked if the fan had been on for the other parts of the procedure, including the last section just completed. She's asking me? Yes, I could feel the air circulating when the fan was on, but not during the fully-enclosed part of the procedure. She seemed unimpressed, and told me we were finished and I could leave. She said this from the other side of the room, like she had other things to do.
As I left, I did report my experience to the front desk, where there were two women, who also couldn't have cared less. The service agent for the machine was in the building at the time, I was told, that they service the machine every 2 weeks. A little late for me, and for those other folks who sometimes complain about the heat. My personal opinion is that the technician was out of it, and had forgotten to turn on the fan, as well as neglecting to respond to my message.
I considered reporting my experience to the management, but decided against it. In the event that I do follow through with the surgery, I don't want to be labeled a difficult patient. They'll probably come to that conclusion soon enough anyway. I won't have another MRI at that site, though I don't think that's part of the procedure anyway. I just hate it when people don't do their jobs.
Speaking of that, I had to return to the lab in Troy today for a do-over because they forgot to do one of the tests ordered for my follow-up appointment. On my way home, I stopped at the Medical Records Department of the hospital where other lab tests were done, and I learned from reading the report that some of the tests were invalid because of hemolysis, meaning that the idiot who drew my blood tore through the veins. I mean, medical care is not like stacking cans in a supermarket, and those people do a pretty profesional job.
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