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...having a possible broken arm...Nothing stops you from looking at a few places before treatment Except that you're laying on the ground writhing in pain, not

...having a possible broken arm...Nothing stops you from looking at a few places before treatment Except that you're laying on the ground writhing in pain, not the easiest time to pull out your phone and pull up pricewatch.com before you call 911 to find out which hospital has the best deal on x-rays today.

nightwing 7y ago
Most people have some family members or friends who would do that. Where i live (admittedly not USA) it's very rare for a person to go to a doctor alone.
alistairSH 7y ago
In the case of a broken shoulder (collarbone), the ER often does some X-rays, puts you in a sling, prescribes painkillers, and sends you home. You find a specialist the next day. And if you require surgery, that's another day or two. There's no reason you couldn't do a cursory sanity-check on pricing in this case (if pricing info was easily accessible).
- filoleg 7y ago
  yep, sounds correct. Broke hand, went to the closest urgent care, they did xrays, confirmed it was broken, put it in a sling, and referred me to a specialist (by just giving me a note confirming that they referred me with the specialist's phone number) that they thought was good and was close to where I lived. However, they didn't have to pick that specific specialist. In fact, they even asked me if I had a preferred specialist and/or hospital. I called the specialist the same day, had the appointment a few days after.
lancesells 7y ago
Having had plenty of surgeries from fractured bones and torn ligaments you can certainly do this. There will be emergencies where you can't but I would think in the typical scenario you have the time and ability to price compare. I've even broken bones on vacation and only had x-rays after I've arrived home. Does it hurt? Yes. Am I incapacitated? No.
- Johnny555 7y ago
  I've only seen one person break his arm, and that was a fall from a tree, the bone was completely broken (his arm was bent at an unnatural angle), and he was in severe pain, the EMT's injected him with a painkiller almost immediately.
  - lancesells 7y ago
    That's definitely going to the emergency room but there's a good chance it's a temporary cast and then surgery is scheduled the next day. That said, I'm not a physician and I'm only relying on my own experiences.
Darthnasa 7y ago
> Except that you're laying on the ground writhing in pain, not the easiest time to pull out your phone... It's very doable. When I broke my arm in highschool, I was in mind bending agony for a few minutes. Then I put some ice on it and went to work the next day. Didn't get a cast on it until after work.
brianwawok 7y ago
Very seldom does going to ER 1 vs ER 2 15 minutes apart for a broken arm matter. It needs treated in hours or days, but not minutes.
jessaustin 7y ago
When I broke my arm, I immobilized it for a few days, then when the pain was still present after a week I went to urgent care. They took an X-ray and scheduled me to visit an orthopod a week later. He prescribed that I keep immobilizing it for a few months until it felt better, after charging me lots of money for an MRI. When I broke two fingers a year later, I took my own x-rays at a dental clinic for which I did some maintenance work. Yep, they were broken. No, I didn't pay anyone to tell me to stop using them for a while. Sure, lots of broken arms need a cast, but this idea that you can't shop if you're in pain is goofy.

nightwing 7y ago

Most people have some family members or friends who would do that. Where i live (admittedly not USA) it's very rare for a person to go to a doctor alone.

alistairSH 7y ago

In the case of a broken shoulder (collarbone), the ER often does some X-rays, puts you in a sling, prescribes painkillers, and sends you home. You find a specialist the next day. And if you require surgery, that's another day or two. There's no reason you couldn't do a cursory sanity-check on pricing in this case (if pricing info was easily accessible).

filoleg 7y ago
yep, sounds correct. Broke hand, went to the closest urgent care, they did xrays, confirmed it was broken, put it in a sling, and referred me to a specialist (by just giving me a note confirming that they referred me with the specialist's phone number) that they thought was good and was close to where I lived. However, they didn't have to pick that specific specialist. In fact, they even asked me if I had a preferred specialist and/or hospital. I called the specialist the same day, had the appointment a few days after.

lancesells 7y ago

Having had plenty of surgeries from fractured bones and torn ligaments you can certainly do this. There will be emergencies where you can't but I would think in the typical scenario you have the time and ability to price compare. I've even broken bones on vacation and only had x-rays after I've arrived home. Does it hurt? Yes. Am I incapacitated? No.

Johnny555 7y ago
I've only seen one person break his arm, and that was a fall from a tree, the bone was completely broken (his arm was bent at an unnatural angle), and he was in severe pain, the EMT's injected him with a painkiller almost immediately.
- lancesells 7y ago
  That's definitely going to the emergency room but there's a good chance it's a temporary cast and then surgery is scheduled the next day. That said, I'm not a physician and I'm only relying on my own experiences.

Darthnasa 7y ago

> Except that you're laying on the ground writhing in pain, not the easiest time to pull out your phone... It's very doable. When I broke my arm in highschool, I was in mind bending agony for a few minutes. Then I put some ice on it and went to work the next day. Didn't get a cast on it until after work.

brianwawok 7y ago

Very seldom does going to ER 1 vs ER 2 15 minutes apart for a broken arm matter. It needs treated in hours or days, but not minutes.

jessaustin 7y ago

When I broke my arm, I immobilized it for a few days, then when the pain was still present after a week I went to urgent care. They took an X-ray and scheduled me to visit an orthopod a week later. He prescribed that I keep immobilizing it for a few months until it felt better, after charging me lots of money for an MRI. When I broke two fingers a year later, I took my own x-rays at a dental clinic for which I did some maintenance work. Yep, they were broken. No, I didn't pay anyone to tell me to stop using them for a while. Sure, lots of broken arms need a cast, but this idea that you can't shop if you're in pain is goofy.