Second Opinion

I work up in the night realising that I had failed to get around to making copies of letters to me from Mrs Cornish, plus an updated treatment timeline document. It took me an hour and a half, and I got back to sleep for two hours before the alarm went off. At eight thirty I had a call from the Nuffield Hospital to ask if I could come at nine forty-five, and I agreed to try, as it's only a twenty minute drive west of Cardiff to the village of Hensol where the Vale clinic is located. But it was rather a rush, as doing my daily ablutions takes time and cannot be forced. I admit that my anxiety level shot up as I was trying to organise all that I needed to get out of the house on time and start driving there. I arrived safely and on time, and was greeted by Professor Haray in the reception area, as he'd just come out of his office to look for me.

The Prof interviewed me carefully with a nurse taking notes. He could see that I was stressed out. It happens when I'm under pressure and faced with uncertainty and scrutiny. He gave me a thorough physical examination and reviewed with me the overall treatment process. He concluded by saying that he could certainly take me on, but questioned whether it was the right thing for me to commit to, as there was no certainty that the fourth operation would be the end of it all. The hospital would need to re-do all the preliminary tests and a MRI scans as there's no sharing of this information between public and private sectors, And this means extra cost, and maybe a recurring cost. He didn't think that I could afford this, clearly aware of how impecunious self funding clergy are!

He very kindly volunteered to write to Mrs Cornish and my GP to tell them I had visited him for a second opinion, and that given the over-granulation problem, in his opinion "they should get on with it as soon as they can." Well, I agree with that, for sure, but heaven knows what impact his 'second opinion' will have when it arrives. I doubt if I will be seen before Easter. So I'll just have to go to Ibiza and carry on coping with things the way they are. 

The medical component of my travel  insurance puts up the price I have to pay from £111 to £292, but I'll talk with EHIC PLUS about this tomorrow, and see if this can be reduced by exempting the condition from the insurance package. There's no way I'll be getting surgery abroad if anything did go wrong. I'd have to return home as soon as possible. 

It seems odd to be thinking about this at all. I'm not worried, I've had reassurances that I am managing things well. Also in the past week or so, there have been fewer setbacks and the wound seems to be closing and drying up despite the Seton's suture (or maybe because of it). The less trouble it gives me, the more confident I am that I'm making progress despite everything. I still have to conquer my anxieties in order to make progress however.