Ami Angelwings14h ago

I need help with anybody from continental Europe in trying to find, vet, and contact any clinics/hospitals/colorectal surgeons that would take on a Canadian patient to do a ventral rectopexy which is apparently a surgery Canada doesn't do??? This is so I wouldn't have to go to the States, and also if there's a faster turnaround time since I've been suffering for over a year

Any personal knowledge (asking people/family/doctors/connections you know/personal experience) would be helpful too

you can DM me for more details of my symptoms

I've been able to get into contact with surgeons in the US, UK (though I could still use more help in the UK), Australia and NZ, but Europe is a bit of a puzzle for me, I don't know which countries I should be looking in or the private/public systems, etc

Show threadAmi Angelwings14h ago
A friend has noted that it's pretty f-ed for Canada to essentially be forcing Canadians to travel to the states in this climate (esp if those Canadians happen to be trans and/or non-white) for procedures because they aren't offered here
Show threadAmi Angelwings14h ago

it is kind of effed up that I basically had to figure this out myself and now I have to solve it myself

*I* had to find out about the scan I needed (MRI defecography)

*I* had to find the hospital that did it

*I* had to dig and find the form for referral for the scan to prove to my doctor it existed and that the hospital did it and then *I* had to show her that it didn't require a specialist to refer, she could do it and *I* pushed for it

and now that I have a solution *I* had to find the surgeon to consult that told me what procedure I need because my doctors had no clue who to refer me to

and *I* now have to find my own surgeon that will do the procedure and fund it myself because CANADA DOESN'T DO IT

Show threadAmi Angelwings

I'm lucky I have resources, connections to the medical and scientific and queer community here through friends, family, my own work and study history, and that I have connections in other countries through extremely kind and generous friends willing to even use their privilege and connections to help me

and I'm lucky I didn't give up when multiple doctors told me to (one literally told me I'd reached "the end of the line" for tests and should just accept that there's nothing wrong with me and this was WAY before we started to do other tests like CT and the scan that ultimately found it)

I can't imagine what it would be like for other people suffering from this who just accept what their doctors tell them, maybe they took their own lives, i was pretty close to doing it

10:59pmWeb
Show threadAmi Angelwings14h ago

i don't suppose anybody is in Germany, knows German or knows anybody in Germany

https://www.diekoloproktologen.com/praxisklinik-2000

somebody who dealt with the same issues as me (but lives in Europe) got it fixed here but the surgeon who did the surgery retired, and also the site is in german, i'd like to ask them if they'd take on an international patient, if a surgeon replaced the one that retired who would do it, etc...

Praxisklinik 2000 | DieKoloproktologen.

DieKoloproktologen.
Show threadJ Carr13h ago
@ami_angelwings Well I would say 90% of people in Germany speak English just fine, and probably 100% of people at a medical clinic. Insurance situation would be a little bit weird I imagine
Show threadNatanox 🇺🇦🇵🇸2h ago

@jac @ami_angelwings Yep, you'd probably be hard pressed to find any doctor (especially one that offers highly specialized procedures) in Germany not able to speak English. Usually it's the other way around and in addition to German and English they also offer a third one (more often than not Turkish, Arabic, French or Polish).

Best to just send them an email, they might respond with english information material. 🙂