Anticoagulation Clinic Locations

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Thank You, Gina

Thank You, Gina

This is wonderful. Tomorrow I start dialing. As I read the list for Arizona, I was astonished to find clinics in hospitals that I already called. They list Banner Anticoagulation Clinic. Banner owns three of the hospitals that I called, including the one that Al's doctors work out of. Actually, I spoke with more than 15 doctors and medical people who work in Banner facilities, including the cardiologist who regulated Al's coumadin in past and the internist who regulates it now. There just has to be at least one place on this list that can do a draw and the test in the same location. I see the light at the end of the tunnel. Thanks for the hope.
Blanche
 
Hi Blanche

You should be able to find at least one 'Coumadin Clinic' or similar in your city. In turn they may have a Coaguchek or similar PT monitor in office that will give you STAT results. Just a prick of the finger and it's done. Almost instantaneous results.

You may want to check out local Hematologist offices....some do run clinics.

Most of us appreciate how exasperating this process can be. I am home testing now and have freedom and a much better quality of life. No more outpatient labs while traveling!

Best of luck
Keep us posted,
 
Coumadin Clinic in Gilbert

Coumadin Clinic in Gilbert

Hi Blanche,

I live in mesa on Baseline and Lindsay Rd. I go to a coumadin clinic that is on the corner of Gilbert and Guadalupe Rd. They use the CoaguChek machine which involves a simple finger stick and your done. It's little or no waiting. Their information is below. How nice to have so many people local in our area. We should get together sometime.

Advanced Cardiac Specialists
201 W. Guadalupe
Gilbert, AZ 85233

(480) 892-2800

Let me know if you need anything.
 
I started long ago looking for Coumadin clinics at acforum's clinic site. There are none in my large area into which I can get care. They are for specialized patients, either vets or patients of certain cardiologists. I found a few others by talking to the Avocet people, but cannot and have not been able get into those practices for some time because of the acute doc shortage here.

My solutions was to get a Protime, the script for which took some education of a local doc who had trouble monitoring INRs.
 
Thank you, my friends

Thank you, my friends

Gina

You are my angel. I have found that the best time to call medical people is early am. There I was poised with my dialing finger at 7am. I called most of the Phoenix area clinics on the list. And, most have Coagucheck machines. The Banner clinics use that one too. Some of the clinics were rude, some out of business, and some would not treat Al because he does not belong to their plan.

The rub here, as I understand it is that Al's doc won't use the ProTime because it did not match the lab (blood draw) of his choice. Ms. Barrett from QAS suggested that we go to a lab and have blood drawn on the spot and tested STAT. She feels that the differences between the lab and our machine have to do with the long time laps between the draw and the actual testing of the blood. So, on the one side, I'm saying the lab results are in question. Dr. B, however is saying the machine does not match the lab....and everyone I know uses the lab...so there must be a problem with the machine.

I really don't know what evidence he will accept. It appeared to me that if we were able to find a lab to draw and test the blood quickly, we could show that indeed the problem is not with the machine. Finding the lab has been the problem. I truly believe that if there were labs here that used the Protime monitor, and if our dear doc knew more about point of care testing, we would not have this problem. But here's the GOOD NEWS.......
Cigna at 7th. and McDowell in Phoenix has agreed to do the blood draw and test within 45 minutes. Yes, I did say Cigna. And, we are NOT members. Knock me over with a feather!!! I explained my problem to a woman at Cigna who runs the Clinic, which incidentally uses a monitor, and she made arrangements with the Cigna Lab to do the blood draw and testing...Imagine..,And, she will give us one of her clinic rooms to do the tests with our monitors...We see Al's doc on Thursday. He has said he will write the orders. Testing will begin a week from Wednesday. Three tests will be done. Without you Gina, this would not have happened. There is no way on God's green earth that I ever would have called Cigna. Your list made me powerful.

Blanche

:)
 
Hi Hank

We are practically neighbors. We live near McClintock and Baseline. I appreciate the info on your clinic. As I read your post and Gina's, it occurred to me that Al's doc might accept a comparison from a clinic that uses a point of care monitor. It certainly would be easier for Al and your clinic is very close to us too. I truly believe that he just won't trust the monitor because it's outside of his experience and because he knows little about it.

I have another possibility. Since you now have a machine, and Christine in Tucson has one, and we have two, if we could round up a few more, we could test Al a dozen times. That would be data that would be hard to refute ignore. SMILE! That was my poor attempt at humor. Perhaps I've been standing on my head too long. I do appreciate you and everyone here. It's like a doctor said of a difficult operation last week, "I prayed and God sent down angels to surround me."

Blanche
 
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