What is Up with Froedert?

Interesting news: I also have a broken arm. The tubersosity (ball end) of my humerous (the bone that runs from my shoulder to my elbow) is also fractured.

According to my doctor friend who read the MRI, I shouldn't be putting any weight on it. In fact, he says, he's not sure why I was released from the hospital.

In addition, there is a tear in my rotator cuff muscles that is not serious.

With the humerous, I should have it in a sling, immobilized. But that obviously would prevent me from doing anything on my walker or crutches.

My friend says I can still get around on the walker, but it will hurt and take longer for the fracture to heal.

Not sure why Froedert treats patients like me as separate body parts. Next week I return for appointments with one orthopedic who will treat my leg, and another who will treat my shoulder and thumb.

At least they're getting treated, I guess.

Why wouldn't Froedert want to treat a person first, then work on individual issues? I realize it's a teaching hospital, but seriously.

On Friday, while I was still in the hospital, an orthopedic resident came in to look at my hand. I was still wearing the club they gave me in ER. This is a minor distal fracture of the tip of my thumb.

So he removed the club, fashioned a metal splint around it, taped it up and called it good.

That afternoon I was called down to the hand clinic. There they told me they were casting the thumb down to my elbow!

Uh, no?

I told them what happened earlier so they called a doctor. We compromised on the smaller cast, but I still thought it was ridiculous.

The next day, the doctor who put the splint on came in to check on me. He did a double take when he saw the cast.

"What's that?" he asked.

"Ah, so that answers that question. It wasn't you they called to confirm the orders."

"No, it wasn't." He promised to talk with whomever. But seriously?