broken ankle no big deal? ow says they won't pay for cast.

[nyseides]

OW turned me down for "air cast walking boot" again today. Its so
upsetting...

Hurt myself running aug 14. Went to emerg. they sent me home on
crutches. I didn't get better, so i went back a few days later, as
instructed, but Emerg told me it wasn't broken, sent me home again.

In spite of not weight bearing, using ice, anti-inflammatories,
raising it, and compression, swelling and pain still didn't get
better. It got worse. So my family and friends forced me to go back
to emerg on sept 9 , and doc did another set of xrays. results show
he said a bad grade 3 sprain torn ligament with damage to achilles
tendon. He prescribed one week rest, then very gradual progression of
exercise. he made referral to orthopedic surgeon to see if i need
surgical reattachment of ligament, and said i should have been in a
cast from day one...prescribed an aircast walking boot.

got quotes. 160-200$. applied to ow.

ow said no to paying for cast. not without a letter from doc saying a
less expensive option won't do. (plaster casts paid for by ohip.)

in the meantime, no word from fracture clinic. i called they said no
record of referral. emerg never followed up. sheesh. i got them to
track down the referral, but no appointment available in the
forseeable future...there's a waiting list and i'm not a priority.

in the meantime, went back to gp who says 2nd set of xrays show MY
ANKLE IS NOW broken. referred me for mri and prescribed same cast.

I go to ow and wait in line, and talk to someone who says she is a
worker, but who i later find out is only a clerk! but she said ow
still says no! said i still need letter from doc saying plaster cast
not ok.

went back to doc and waited another 2 hours to talk to her...and she
said plaster cast hasn't been used for 20 years for this injury. but
she won't write the letter. for the love of christ she couldn't come
out and say that instead of making me wait for 2 hours!

said to go to emerg to see if they have any used walking boots i can
get for cheaper.(ick) i did try to get a used one on freecycle, and
asking everyone i know who ever broke their leg. no such luck.

If i need a plaster cast, why hasn't anyone put one on me the last 3
times i went to emerg?

i just got hired by elections canada as a revisions officer. I am
meant to work tomorrow from 1-9 walking door to door. if i broke my
ankle walking around for the last month, will it get broken worse if i
walk? should i start work tomorrow? or should i take the job so i
can pay for my cast...i won't get paid till after the election. it
sucks being poor.

please give me suggestions.

[Lynn Johnson]

Hi There....I suggest that you try calling your local MPP's office and ask for suggestions.  It sounds to me like you are getting the proverbial run around....and remember, the squeaky wheel gets the grease!
I would explain to the MPP's office that you have a chance to work but this injury is making that nigh impossible, and that if the injury is not treated properly, you are looking at long term problems.
Good luck...and I wish you speedy healing.
Have a dandy day...
Lynn

[larr...@gmail.com]

Your ankle is BROKEN *and* sprained, and after trying for WEEKS, they
still wouldn't give you a CAST for it?

I thought we are supposed to have socialized health care or whatever
it's called in this country??

I don't know if there's anything I can say to help, but thanks for
posting, because I'll keep it in mind that things are done this way,
that's for sure.


But how can your ankle become broken after the accident? Are you
saying they screwed up and misdiagnosed the first time?

Well, there must have been a lot of healing done by now, thought,
after a month? Won't it heal into a deformed shape or something
without a cast??

I mean, jeeze, where is all the tax money GOING, anyway?
Serious problem, relatively inexpensive solution. It's such a total
no brainer. That's just amazing.

By the way, though, this is the ODSP group, not about OW.

Have you considered the fact that you can sell the boot later, so the
net cost is less than the purchase price? If I were you, and I had the
money or the credit capacity, I would have bought the cast and fought
with OW later. You could end up with a limp for the rest of your life
because of this, couldn't you?

[Deb Johnson]

Hi,

A couple of things I can maybe help clesr up here for everyone who has been following this thread.

Sounds like the first set of xrays were either misread or done poorly. The person who has the broken ankle probably has breaks that  aren't displaced which are harder to see. I broke several bones in  both ankles and legs in a fall last year and this happened to me. A CT scan was done and everything was apparent from there.

 

Plaster casts are still used and are substantially cheaper than walking air casts. Plaster casts are listed in ambulatory care units and I believe are $30 compared to  $160-200 for the walking cast. A plaster cast cost is covered by ODSp or OW as are crutches which are necessary if one has a cast. 

 

I would suggest that the injured person who started this thread go back to Emerg or their doctor and tell them that they cannot afford the walking air cast and therefore need the plaster cast. I can't imagine how this poor soul has been walking around (hopping maybe? on their good foot) as I could bear no weight whatsoever on either of my broken feet and had to be physically carried even to the bathroom until I was casted. Even with cast I am still laid up to a degree due to the amount and types of injuries I got. It may be more complicated for this person but  they
can still recover- not alot of breakage occurred (relatively speaking) and it likely isn't too late for a cast. FYI my son broke his foot about 9 years ago and he was plaster casted immediately without us even knowing about a walking aircast .

 

So good luck in your recovery and rest assured that a plaster cast is covered and most definitely still used in hospitals in Canada.

Deb

[Charmaine Voisine]

Deb I have been following this thread....

 

I thought that "plaster casts" were covered under Ontario Health if you were to go to the

hospital.

 

I fractured a bone in my elbow about 4 years ago and was sent to the fracture clinic at my

local hospital and they put on a plaster cast and did not charge me anything, go figure?

 

Charmaine

[Malcolm53]

Just to chime in late on this thread. There is a small disclaimer
with surgical supplies - and an Air Cast qualifies as such when
ordered by a doctor - that stipulates the need cannot arrise from an
accident. You said you hurt your foot running but didn't say exactly
how and that may make a difference in your eligibility for
qualification under surgical supplies.

Here again is another example of how disconnected our province is in
services. Niagara Region has covered 50% of air casts in the past as
Maggie required one a couple of years ago. We are still fighting with
ODSP on covering their half and have a SBT hearing in October.

Malcolm

[born beautiful]

My child broke a finger, the fracture went across the growth plate.
The doc said if the bone didn't fuse properly the finger wouldn't
grow. All they did was duct tape it to the adjoining finger with a
splint made out of tonque depressors and sent us home with an
appointment to return almost a week later to have a proper mould and
splint made. I was charged for it. I got intouch with the hospital
billing and accounts department, told them I was an odsp recipeint and
they paid the fee with funding from their charitable donations
account.