The suture removal story

I'm just going to leave this here so I can point people to it when I want to tell them this story. Because, while at the moment it's topical and amusing, it probably won't remain that way.

Okay, I had minor surgery a few weeks ago to remove a basal cell carcinoma from my scalp--see my previous posting about that little adventure. At the time, the doctor who performed the surgery told me that he had resigned from that practice, so when I came back to have the stitches removed it would be a different doctor.

Fine with me. Let's just get this over with.

So, three weeks later I return to keep my appointment to have the stitches removed. As I enter the office building where the dermatology practice was located I noticed that the doctor who had performed my surgery had his own practice in the same building. I figured, oh, that's why he resigned, to start his own practice.

I've worked in the health care industry for over a quarter century so I know that some doctors change practices as often as they change underwear. In short, no biggie.

I continue on to the other end of the building where my doctor's office was located. And they're closed.

Not closed for the day. Closed as in out of business.

So, I'm standing there, with these bloody damned stitches in my head, wondering how in the hell I'm going to get them removed. For a medical practice to just close without making arrangements for their patients or even letting them know is sort of the ultimate in uncool behavior.

I went back to the front of the building and dropped in on the doctor who had operated on me. He happened to be up front when I came in and he remembered me, and had his staff work me in. He also told me the other practice had closed a week earlier and they hadn't bothered to tell anybody. He was exceptionally nice about it. His nurse removed my stitches and he did an exam--no further signs of cancer, nothing to worry about--and we had a little chat about his former employers. He was as unhappy with them as I was.

So, I got extremely unlucky and got equally lucky right afterwards, which is sort of how things work for me.

So, if you came here because I mentioned the suture removal story and you wanted to know what it is, this is it.