February 15, 2007

• PICC Lines and Co-Pays

  So, today, I had made an appointment to get the bandage on my PICC line changed.  It is supposed to be changed once a week.  They changed it last Thursday when I had chemo.

  But today, I found out that for a 5 minute appointment with a nurse, where they clean and change the dressing on the PICC line, I would have to pay $50.  OK, if I absolutely had to...

  So I called the nurses' line at the doctor's office, and they didn't call me back for a while.  So, I called appointments, and cancelled.  And then, pulled out the kit that home health had sent for PICC line redressing.

  There are some things that I couldn't do. I didn't change the statloc, because it seemed to scary to me. I gloved up, Paul gloved up, and we did everything that I have watched the nurses do for weeks of having this thing.  Except for changing the statloc.  I cleaned it well with iodine, and cleaned the skin with the skin protectant/cleaner swabs.  We placed a sterile gauze pad over the entrance  into the skin, and then put on a new tegaderm.

  THEN the nurse called.   I told her what I'd done.  She said good for me, and that it would probably be fine until next Thursday when I'm coming in again anyway.  I think she wished I had changed the statloc, but last week when THEY did it, the line pulled out a bit, and that just heebed me too much.  She just said to watch it for infection like always, and that it would probably be fine.

  So take THAT, insurance.  I'm not paying you $50 to basically change a band-aid.

  If you've never seen a PICC, here's a link with a picture.  They're showing this one going into the lower arm but mine is in the upper arm.  It's easier to hide that way.  Harder for me to flush by myself, but since Colton has taken that on that responsibility, I don't have to be able to reach. http://www.picclines-sat.com/serv01.htm

  • 5:42 pm
  • 1 Comment