I just arrived home again from Philly, and getting in two hours earlier than expected is just the BEST thing ever sometimes. I never sleep very well in hotels, and my leg has been hurting (obviously) and I think I ate more at this training than I have in a really long time, so I am very much looking forward to being a blob on the couch tonight.
Overall, the training was really useful, covered many of the activities I will be doing for the first time during my three weeks in South Africa, but the trainings through this company are also a great way to network and hear of other people's work experiences in various parts of the clinical drug research process, and, to me, that is very enjoyable. It is always interesting to hear how different companies operate, and especially for me, coming from a very different place than most, if not all, of the other attendees (the non-profit side), it's always an interesting comparison to hear what it is like to work in a world of profit, without budget dictating most of your activities. Half the time I think I can see myself working in 'industry' in the future, on the sponser side or on the actual clinical side, however, the other half of the time, I just cannot imagine it. So I always try to keep my ears and eyes open during this trainings, making mental notes about job functions, companies, etc.
No improvements on the hip front. I have still been taking 1/painkiller a day, at night, b/c I have been having trouble sleeping due to pain. I DID get some really good news when I was gone though; I got a call from a doctor (Dr. M) that I had emailed a few weeks ago who is a good friend of many of the friends I have made through triathlon in NYC, and he is a well VERY well respected ortho.
After telling him of my experience last week, Dr. M told me to cancel the spect scan I had scheduled on Monday, and to make an appointment with his office first thing Monday and we would get to the bottom of it. He said the Spect Scan won't provide much more info past the bone scan, that I shouldn't get that much radiation anyways (esp after the xray and bone scan last week). He said the MRI is the best way to see what is going on and will tell us all we need to know.
After talking with him, I got to thinking. I am pretty appalled that the ortho I had been seeing did not read my bone scan, or even look at it, just the radiologist. I feel like, if this is a fracture, it is a pretty serious injury and for the ortho to send me off, walking on it for a FULL week before a final diagnosis, is just not the best way to handle the situation. I feel 100% comfortable transferring my care to Dr. M. He is also a triathlete himself, with multiple Ironman finishes, including Kona, and multiple Boston Marathon's, so it will be nice to be treated, whatever the final diagnosis it, by someone who 'gets it'.
OH! I also am going to get my hands on electronic copies of my x-ray and bone scan to take to his office, so hopefully I can keep a copy for myself and show everyone what is going on!!
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