Positive Press

So, as noted, I had looked up my glomerular filtration rate (GFR), and was concerned that my physician did not tell me of the issue until I was at Stage 3B, but what kind of made my suspicious mind go into overdrive was when I noticed that my GFR records from Kaiser, showing >33 GFR, from prior to 2023, have gone missing. They are no longer available on the Kaiser website.

The tests are for creatinine and GFR; they are on the same report. The creatinine record goes back to 2011 when I started with Kaiser, and the GFR starts in 2023 at 28. I know that prior readings were >60, >50 and >30, but those are gone.

My nephrologist told me today that it is policy (as earlier noted) to not refer to Nephrology until Stage 3B, and that seems foolish.  I am very disappointed in this. Waiting until a patient is at a critical level of illness to inform them seems terrible as a policy. I was not able to ask my nephrologist about the medical records, and I have to ask Kaiser this coming week, what is going on.

So why are my GFR records gone? Does Kaiser have something to hide? The mystery unfolds…  Yes, I am perhaps melodramatic, but something definitely does not seem right.

However, my concern that my physician failed to refer me to a nephrologist until too late, was tempered by the knowledge that he was following hospital guidelines. Now my concern is, ‘Why does Kaiser wait that long to sound the alarm?!’

So even if my doctor acted in good faith, I personally think the policy should change. I don’t know anyone with cancer who’d want their medical provider to wait until their patient had Stage 3 cancer before informing them there was a problem. With cancer, one can even be cured, but with kidneys, there is seldom regeneration, so a CKD diagnosis is a one way journey to dialysis, transplant or death.

ꭥ

“The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble.”

— Psalm 9:9