Day 402

Today I went for what was to be the final test on my leg before I get on the road again on the Walk for Peace, and I have to say, it was an absolutely hysterical experience.

After waiting more than two weeks from when the test was pre-authorized by my insurance for the imaging center to call me, I decided to call them to schedule it. I was told that the test was designated “walk-in”, so no appointment would be necessary. I arrived at the imaging center at 12:12 pm, looking forward to getting the test and moving into my afternoon. The first glitch came when I walked up to register. The woman explained that I had to have an appointment, and I could use my cell phone to call scheduling  (the call would ring in an office just beyond the wall I was facing), to make an appointment. When I explained that it was scheduling who told me the procedure was a “walk-in”, I was given a number and invited to sit and wait until my number was called to be checked-in.

After I was checked in, I waited until an easy going radiology technician came to get me for the SCAN-O-GRAM. Yes, that is what it is called. The test is used to measure the length of my legs, to be sure they are even. When I walked in, I was instructed to take my shoes off and to stand with my back against a backboard that had a four foot plastic ruler crudly attached to it with bandaging tape. I stood, and the technician manipulated the machine until she had it where she could take the first X-ray. She had me hold my breath, took the shot, and told me to exhale. We went through the same procedure for the second X-ray. As she prepared me for what was to be the third and final X-ray, the technician realized that the camera could not be lowered far enough to get the third angle. The technician apologized and thanked me for my patience while she tried to determine what to do. I smiled, wondering why it hadn’t been thought out before the patient entered the room, but agreed to wait.

Hang with me folks – it gets better.

After consulting with someone else, my technician was going to have me climb onto a step stool that she had placed atop the platform that was already raised, and balance while she took the final X-ray. I looked at the step stool and indicated it didn’t feel safe, because the two legs at the front of the platform were actually only about 50% on it. After agreeing that it might not be safe, the technician suggested raising the platform with me on it, using her shoulder to steady myself as it rose. Again, I declined for reasons of safety. Both technicians thanked me for being so kind and for my patience. I asked if they always have this difficulty, and was told that “normally” this procedure is done on children, and that “normally” it is done with the patient lying down and a tube with a camera in it moving on a track along the length of the patient taking pictures along the way (CT imaging), but that when they looked at the order from the doctor, it said three images standing…I asked if they could contact the doctor, and was told that they weren’t authorized to make those calls.

Finally, the two technicians decided to bring a three step library ladder in for me to climb up on so that they could get the three images they needed. They carefully removed the taped ruler from the backboard and moved it to the ladder. Guess what? The first X-ray was going to be too high for the machine that held the tablet! So, one of the technicians donned a lead apron and volunteered to hold the tablet while the shot was taken. Ironically, she asked me to carefully lean forward without moving my feet or knees while she placed the tablet in position. After images one and two were taken, I was beginning to feel a sense of relief that this process was nearing an end. One more X-ray…and wha…wait! The metal bar on the library ladder obscured the final image!

Two and a half hours after I walked into the building, I made my way outside with the cd that held what images they did capture, and I found myself laughing out loud.

You see, when I walked into the room initially and saw the ruler, I wondered how accurate the test would be, given that it wasn’t even fastened in place. What I could not have known was going to follow, was so far removed from “normal”, that I couldn’t help but find the humor in it.

First, the ruler. Need I say more here?

Next, the state of the art equipment can’t account for a 5’4 1/2″ tall person to have three X-rays at descending points on the lower half her body?

Then, the request to climb into position on a stool atop a platform followed by the suggestion of balancing on a moving platform. Both ideas seemed a bit circus like to me.

And finally, a library ladder? They’re made of metal. The first thing an X-ray technician has you do is remove the metal from your body and/or your clothes, and this seemed like a good platform?

So, what does this have to do with the Walk for Peace? Everything. I could have met this situation with anger and frustration. I could have gotten boisterous or made the technicians wrong for not “knowing how to do their job”. They could have gotten irritated by their circumstances. None of that happened.  The entire time we were together, we were respectful and courteous. They were gracious about my patience, and I honored the fact that they were trying to find a solution. In the end, I thanked them for trying, and they thanked me for working with them. And, I had a hearty chuckle at the absurdity of the whole thing. I also thought about my Dad (an architect) sitting in his office laughing out loud while reading the story, which made me chuckle again.

I expect that tomorrow, I will put some time into getting the test reordered and written in a way that calls for the “normal” procedure. Wouldn’t it be funny if I got the same technician(s) next time?