Be safe out there, especially during the stay-at-home order.

A patient came in today after a bike accident 4 days ago. She had a large bruise on both sides of her elbow and down her forearm. She told us she had attempted to call several of her regular practitioners, but all of them were out of the office and not returning calls due to the shelter in place order. She was also reluctant to go to the ER, since it would cost her up to $2,000 just for an X-ray, and $6,0000+ for the visit. As a self-employed jeweler with no health insurance, and currently unable to work during the pandemic, this alone could have bankrupted her. Not to mention that during the pandemic, she could have potentially been exposed to people sick with the Covid virus while waiting in the ER. 

Luckily for her, she was recommended to HeCares. We are committed to keeping our community healthy, even during the pandemic, and were able to see her right away. We gave her acupuncture to improve the circulation, reduce the swelling, heal the bruising, and reduce the pain. The patient mentioned that she felt a hole in her elbow, which made us suspect a displaced fracture. We were able to get her into local imaging, one of the few still open.

As we suspected, she had a displaced fracture of the olecranon which is to the tip of her elbow broke clean off, leaving a gap between it and the ulna. She will still be required to see an osteopath and possibly an orthopedic surgeon. They will set the bone back together, then splint or cast it until the bone reseals. With luck (and acupuncture!) she’ll be back to making jewelry in 6 weeks (and hopefully by then, the shelter-in-place will be over as well). And instead of spending thousands of dollars on an ER visit, she got quality care plus an X-ray for just over $100. 

Please stay at home until the pandemic lifts. But until then, rest assured, the HeCares team will be here for you if you need us!

David Dick, L. Ac., DAOM