So it's Keeler not Keller

[jimb16]

Glad you're back Painter. Been missing you.

[W5USMC]

Even Riesch got this one correct. Keeler Brass Co. Grand Rapids, MI. Imagine just a spelling error on Lukes' magazine website.
Why the stitches in your head Charlie? Are you still cutting the rocks out of that Maple trunk??

[Surpmil]

Last year my Wifes health took a turn for the worse. Some forum friends were aware of it. She has Parkinson's and her meds got all out of whack. I became a 24-7 caretaker. At times I didn't sleep for a few days at a time. It seriously took just this side of going to jail to get all her Doctors on the same page and do a Medicine Evaluation. She's 5'6", her weight had dropped from about 142 to 96lbs. She was experiencing extreme hallucinations, not even knowing who I was most of the time. I couldn't get her admitted in to the hospital because all they were letting in were Covid and basically ready for death bed patients. Her main medicine for Parkinson's is Sinemet. As her symptoms worsened they kept increasing the Sinemet mixing higher strength time released with Instant release. Finally after months of screaming for and trying to get other opinions U of M did a Med review and they found she had Toxic levels of it in her. She couldn't walk, stand, concentrate or communicate and was wheelchair bound. Toughest thing we've been thru by far as a by stander. Office visits are a thing of the past around here. They want to handle everything thru a Q&A via a online Portal. Or diagnose you thru a zoom meeting. I really thought I was going to loose her. Things have slowly improved with her still fragile but mobile. She's up to 116lbs and can understand, communicate, cook (Thank God) and no longer having the severe Hallucinations. Pretty much fully functioning like before, but still building her strength and not yet confident to drive yet again.

She almost joined the stats for the third leading cause of death in the USA: "medical misadventure", now more politely known as "iatrogenic causes". (Presumably a phrase less likely to be understood by us plebs than the other?)

Good for you for fighting for her, so many don't bother and pay the price.

[DaveHH]

I've been with Kaiser for about 30 years, it used to be the tip of the arrow, best of the best. Now they got rid of all of the American doctors and brought in Chinese and others. My doctor is a Syrian, maybe a vet over there, who knows. My best friend, like a brother to me ,Viet Vet Marine. Has the same doctor as me. He went to Kaiser with an ear ache and within a year of "Care" they killed his kidneys and thus killed him. All he did was follow their orders. They'd give him some high grade medicine and then forget about him for a few months. He had in this order: Anti-biotic induced pneumonia, Dehydrated him until his organs started to shut down. He was about 30 minutes from dying when he went to the ER. Last was another huge drip dumping medicine into him while they ignored him. That killed his kidneys. Kaiser of course increased their patient load until they are unavailable for most customers. If you show up with your head under your arm, they have you taken care of by a good surgeon contract or otherwise. The regular stuff gets used by the homeless and immigrant illegals that the state pays for. In a word, they now suck.

[painter777]

Thank You to the Mods for allowing this post.
This will end this Off Topic Posting by me in the Carbine Forum.

I'd like to add to anyone forced to care for a loved one via todays health portals and zoom calls to document everything by printing off portal instructions and recording zoom calls.
I can't stress this enough. At first I did this to help me keep track of everything going on but found it to be valuable 'Proof' of errors on the part of the her medical team.

Recorded and printed records showed when the 'Health Professionals' made changes in medicines, dosages or dosage schedules then later asked why she was taking med A @ every 3hrs instead of every 4hrs. I could show when they made the change (s). I was surprised how often they had no record of making the changes or referred to it even though most of the portal messages read like a forum or text message when all you'd have to do is scroll upward to a previous date where you could find that discussion. Zoom calls are different, they rely on their notes. If not physically documented, they had no record.

I kept a 24hr daily log on all her medicines/strength/time.... including over the counter.
Another log on her food intake and daily weight.
Another log about my observations, especially noting when a new or increased dosage was introduced.

You hit a stonewall when your not the 'patient' just the spouse. They want to talk to the patient. Late 2021 my Wife had been approached by her Neurologist of 13 years to enter a Clinical Drug Study group he was going to do, she declined. Things were going fine for her until this same Neurologists office increased her Sinemet (early June 2022) and added a new to her med called Ongentys 50mg capsule 1x a day. We were told and our research showed that Ongentys works like a Helper to Sinemet's main ingredients: levodopa and carbidopa, easing the wearing off period and symptoms before the next dose is due. First red flag was our Pharmacist and Family DR telling us they'd never heard of it so not familiar with it. Next was getting approval from our insurance because of the very high cost of it. All the while we thought since my Wife had been under some heavy stress from a loss in the family was more Parkinson's meds required? I wanted to hold off she wanted to try it. I was concerned because you couldn't find much online about Ongentys as far as Study Group results in the US. This was when I found it had only received FDA approval in early 2020.
After 7 days of use nearly every severe side effect listed and then some were happening. I have it in my log. My next dozen Portal messages were asking repeatedly How do you get off of Ongentys? Countless phone calls with no return calls. Neither Family Dr or Pharmacist had any idea how to wean off from it. I actually called the FDA Hotline and they recommended reducing to the Ongentys 25mg capsule. The FDA contacted her Neurologist whose office made a appointment for 3 months later. In the mean time we pulled some strings and got in to the University of Michigan for the testing which revealed the toxic levels of Sinemet ( levodopa and carbidopa) . That combined with the Ongentys which extends the life of the Sinemet resulted in the Severe Side Effects from both drugs. Like a horror show coming to your home.

1: I believe she was part of a 'Clinical Study' that she was unaware of.

To Surpmil, More correct than you'll ever know, Thank You
2: iatrogenic causes

[jond41403]

Sounds like that neurologist needs to be taken behind the building for a good old-fashioned knuckle sandwich. He asked her if she wanted to be a part of the study and you guys declined, that should have been the end of it. The audacity of him to include her in it anyway, unfathomable to me. I would try to find out if it were me the people that did agree to his study, what they were taking. If exact or simular, I would fry him

[breakeyp]

Keeler Brass is located in Grand Rapids Mi. They were founded to produce brass furniture fittings, hinges and drawer pulls for GR's furniture business. I dealt with them 20 years ago when they were making Ford Cougar steering wheel horn pads for me.

[Surpmil]

Well, in my book you just went from "sensible" to "very smart indeed"!

Mr. Neurologist was probably going to be very well paid for everyone he got into that "study" and just as probably he's so used to dealing with ignorant and complacent sheep that he thought nothing would be noticed.

You're just a name and a number to most of them and that trend is only going to accelerate with the moral degeneration of our societies. I know an elderly former nurse who has three young doctors living nearby and she says she can't believe their behaviour and attitudes.

But if recent events and the sudden spike in deaths and injuries didn't wake us up probably nothing will.

[painter777]

Mr. Neurologist was probably going to be very well paid for everyone he got into that "study"

Mid to late summer of 2022 during our quest for a medication review. He had mentioned a 'New' Parkinson's medicine he expected to be FDA approved for use by late Oct or late Nov 2022.
I can't help but wonder if this was a result of the 'Study' we declined to partake in