The patient became disgusted with the whole event and checked himself out of the hospital "against medical advice". My sister is in a dither because the insurance may stick him with the bill.
He went in because he was in pain. The pain was so great that he could not unclench his teeth.
During the admissions process, one of the nurses noticed some bruises (good for her!) and asked about the cause. The patient said he fell and tried to elaborate. He had been carrying a ladder through tall grass and stubbed his toe on a cinder block. The cinder block did not move. He fell atop the ladder.
The nurse focused on the software, trying to find the correct radio button to click than on listening to the rest of the story (not good for her!).
The patient could not even go to the toilet without a nurse in attendance.
The most likely diagnoses was either kidney or gall bladder stones. The imaging was clear but showed no stones. The pain had diminished so the patient figured he had passed both the crisis and the stone. The patient's blood work was a bit goofy but Gilbert–Meulengracht syndrome runs in the family.
The doctors wanted to do exploratory surgery but the patient has some understanding of the risk of surgery. It is not something to be done simply to satisfy an attending physician's curiosity, especially when the patient is 88 years old.
And his birthday is tomorrow. And he just wants to be home with his wife.
Smart man... Surgery is NOT for the fun of it!
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