Dear Doc
your advice would be appreciated as to whether I should let my GP know of a concern with a procedure I had a few weeks ago.I had an endoscopy by a senior English consultant under my private health insurance.I hung around from 08.30 until 15.30 to go down to theatre and he was about to sedate me when I told him I wanted to drive immediately afterwards, as I had an appointment elsewhere. I agreed to go for it without sedation and was therefore fully aware of all that was going on around me. He said it would be like sucking a boiled sweet but it felt more like swallowing a sword
Anyway, while the camera was looking at the esophagus and stomach the anaesthetist inserted another tube and took a biopsy. Job done.
I met with the consultant a week later and he gave me the result of the examination and I asked the result of the biopsy.He looked at his notes and said he didnt take one. When I reminded him he said he will have to go through his theatre notes as he could not recall asking for a biopsy, and was sure none was taken.
Another 7 days later the consultant ring me at home and was quite excited to inform me he `had` taken a biopsy and they had discovered Helicobacter Pylori and he then sent me a prescription
to treat it.
Now I really like this consultant, and I was confident in him up to this procedure. But, if I had been sedated, I would probably not have been any the wiser and the condition might have been missed. What do you advise ?
