Basejumper.com - archive

Hey all… Just looking to touch base with anyone who has dealt with the University of Utah – University Orthopaedic Center. I injured my right knee on a hard landing a couple years ago, which I have been trying to get treatment options for from the University of Utah. I have been working with two of their doctors for over a year (I requested to see a second doctor because of a very poor assessment from the first doctor). Over all my whole experience with working with the University of Utah – University Orthopaedic Center has been a really poor experience, from the doctors initially doing a very poor assessment to them just being completely disorganized every time I show up for an appointment (they are greatly over booked, causing me to have to wait very long periods of time to see the doctor or they simply cannot find my appointments and they tell me that I can wait hours or come back another time). Jut to put things into perspective, I have worked with them for over a year now and I still don’t have a full diagnosis or treatment plan from them, even though we have done X-Rays and an MRI. I got my MRI today, but they couldn’t find my follow up appointment so they told me to come back for results (I drive over an hour to that location so I very specifically requested that the follow up appointment happen on the same day as my MRI, which they told me was no problem and is how they normally do things…).

Anyway, I am posting this post for two reasons… The first, I would like to know if anyone has had any success with the University of Utah – University Orthopaedic Center (i.e. Good experiences with them that would prompt me to just overlook my experiences with them so far..). If not, does anyone know of any good Orthopedic Centers or Orthopedic doctors in the Utah area that you recommend?

Thanks ahead of time for any feedback that anyone may have on good Orthopedic Centers or Orthopedic doctors in the Utah area…

Did you receive the results for your MRI yet, or are you still waiting to go over the results with the doctor?

If the doctor determines from your MRI results that you are not a candidate for surgery he should recommend some further treatment, physical therapy, or some sort of pain management.

I am going to assume based off the duration of your problem that your issues do not require immediate intervention. That being said, there is a process the provider has to go through before he just sends you off to surgery & it is often times a slow process.

If you don't like the standard of care you are receiving, talk to your insurance & go somewhere else. Write a nasty review on Angie's list, have a coke & a smile, & be glad you don't live in Somalia.

Hey Dave… Thanks for your feedback…

The MRI that was taken right after the injury showed an ACL strain (MRI was taken and evaluated at Jordan Valley Medical Center). But after a period of time my knee started to lock up and make a grinding noise. So I went to UUOC to get further evaluated. But the first doctor I saw at UUOC did no X-Rays and did not request my original MRI, even though I told her that I had a recent injury to my right knee. She told me that I simply have either Runner's Knee or my knee cap is not tracking correctly. So she sent me off to physical therapy. And so after a year of it getting worse I finally requested to see another doctor at UUOC. They did X-Rays last week because the first doctor did not. And they did another MRI today. So basically we started from scratch because the first UUOC doctor did such a poor first assessment. But the whole experience of trying to get re-evaluated again has been a nightmare at UUOC, which is a long story. But all in all, I still don't know the source of the grinding and locking in my knee. But I will be seeing a third doctor at UUOC (an actual orthopedic surgeon) next week.

All in all, you are absolutely right… It is probably time for me to move on to another doctor. I only posted this because typically facilities like UUOC are top notch. And they are likely the best in Utah. So I was hoping to see if anyone else has had better experiences with UUOC.

As far as living in Somalia… I severed in Somalia in 92/93. And to be honest, I disagree with your comparison, because I believe you are implying that I am being impatient. If that is not what you are implying, my apologies. But all in all, I have been very patient with UUOC.

Anyway, thanks for your feedback!

That grinding and locking up sounds the same as when i tore my meniscus it would pop and grind and lock up every now and them. It healed on its own though. If youre having trouble i would see another facility. I encountered the same issues with a pain clinic that i saw for a herniated disc. They bounced me around and never provided me with any solution just things to hide the pain. I cancelled all my appointments and went to another dr and its feeling a lot better now. Good luck man i hope you figure it out because i know how annoying chronic injuries can be

Take your MRI and x-rays to a Dr. you like. Get as many recommendations, opinions, and Drs. (orthopedic surgeons) names as you can. Google them, research em and pick one your comfortable with. I got 4 Drs. opinions before I picked one. He was the second one I saw. Good luck!

Sorry I came off like a dick, I get a little edgy when people are quick to put the fault on the provider. Did you follow up with your doctor after the prescribed treatment regiment was ineffective, how long did you wait before you followed up? The doctor makes an assessment based of clinical evidence presented at the time of the encounter with the patient. Doctors are not perfect, but for that matter neither are patients.


During this time frame, did you go back to the doctor & tell them that physical therapy was not working? Did they have any way of knowing that their choice in treatment plan was perhaps not the right course of action? Your biggest complaint with this facility seems to be access to care from what you said earlier. With that being said, did you just deal with the pain for a YEAR before requesting to see another provider?

Just FYI, U of U has one of the top orthopedics training programs in the country.

TOSH is where the US Ski Team gets their knees done. I liked the experience, but my injuries sound more straight-forward than yours.
http://intermountainhealthcare.org/...tosh/Pages/home.aspx
Good luck and heal fast.

Everyone... Thanks for your suggestions and support! I really appreciate being able to reach out to our community with being able to put myself out there and ask for advice... Much appreciated!

Hey again Dave...

No worries brother. I know where you are coming from. You do have valid points, which I am listening to.

At the end of the day it is true that it is my bad for not pushing harder for a better assessment at UUOC, especially because my MRI from the original hospital did show knee trauma. Maybe my first doctor at UUOC was just too busy that day to really hear what I was saying. So yes patients and doctors are both not perfect. But, as a patient, I did trust my doctor and followed her prescribed path, which did not include a follow up. The impression she gave me was that it was something that I just need to learn to deal with. The physical therapist gave me the same impression (just to be clear not a UUOC PT). The reason I am frustrated is because I requested to see a different doctor at UUOC a year later and he told me that I do not have the issues that the first doctor said I had, and my issues are likely due to the initial injury. And the second doctor feels that it can be resolved with surgery, but he needed to finish his assessment to truly know. I am frustrated about the second assessment because it ended up being a scheduling nightmare (if you want the full details, I am happy to PM them to you). Anyway, I only went back in to UUOC because after dealing with my issue for over a year, my gut told me that the first UUOC doctor was wrong. And since I know facilities like UUOC are typically top notch, I felt it was worth going back to them.

Anyway… Let’s get back to my initial intention for this post, which is not to bash UUOC. My initial intention was to see if anyone else has had great experiences at UUOC and highly recommend UUOC. I am asking for this because I just want to see if I have just caught UUOC on bad days and that UUOC is worth overlooking my bad run of luck with them. Or if no one recommends UUOC, my second intention is to find out where everyone else is going in Utah.

All in all, I appreciate where you are coming from Dave. I know that you are just trying to make sure that I am being fair and not just trying to bash UUOC.

Don't know if you need an orthopedic surgeon but...

I broke my left acetabulum (hip socket) and I was taken to intermountain medical center off 53rd south. My orthopedic surgeon was the best doctor I've had by far. 7 hour surgery, a plate and 11 screws and 10 days in the hospital. He had to cut the several ligaments and stitch them back. I was walking 5 weeks later and I had 99% mobility and use 12 months later. I don't know if this was because of the doctor or not, but every nurse had amazing things to say about him and one of the RNs said they wouldn't have any other orthopedic surgeon operating on him.
He explained things very well too. If/when I need orthopedic surgery again, I will go to him first to see if he can do it.
Dr. Robert Hillyard

http://intermountainhealthcare.org/...pedic%20Surgery#1147

Hey rippedbx... Thanks for the info! I will definitely look into this guy's availability...

Intermountain Healthcare did me right on a compound tib/ fib. Dr Hawes did a good job of installing a rod and 3 screws. 3.5 days in the hospital and released. Not quite the problem you are dealing with.
It might have to do with your insurance or lack of it. Don't want to go there but they do want compensation for their services.
Hope you get it figured out. Best of success in a good diagnose and speedy recovery.

Your the second person to recommend IHC... Good to know...

Thanks!