Thank you for being there for me. I have had a series of surgeries within the past beginning with two neck surguries. The first failed due to incompatable donor bone. The second was successful but after 10 years bone spurs appeared and no more surgery was possible due to too much scar tissue and bone spurs. The last thing I was told was that bone spurs and scar tissue build up on the plate holding C5 & C6 were now pressing on C7 and it although it was rapidly deteriorating, any further surgery could lead to my being paralyzed from the neck down. Extreme pain spasms in my right shoulder from a torn labrum received surgery which shortened the labrum one inch. it was also held in place by four pins. Both neck and shoulder injuries occured in an accident at the same time. i had absolutely no movement of my right arm for over a year. I was eventually fixed until two years ago bone spurs of neck began to grow with such force that they pressed on the spinal cord which created extreme and constant spasms in shoulder blades and down both arms and up sides of my head. These spasms continued the shooting pains past the elbows, down to both hands until fingers locked. i could no longer hold objects in my hands. i was about to seek medical attention when I got side scraped by a taxi and injured my left leg and knee. i was told by a doctor to excericise it and to work it out so i waited another year but it progressively got worse and worse. I finally found a highly recommended surgeon who did an immediate preliminary surgery on my left knee. The pain and loss of motion increased. He then advised i needed a knee replacement and demonstrated a titanium knee which he would use. This demonstration was witnessed not only by myself but also five other of his staff doctors in my examining room. Unfortunately he chose not to use the titanium knee promised and i did not heal. He blamed it on my inablility to fire up the nerves needed to heal and told me to seek a neurologist to find out why they were not shooting . There was nothing more he could do. As soon as he left the examining room his nurse told me the truth. He had inserted a recalled knee not the titanium one. She strongly suggested I avoid finding a neurologist as it was the fault of the bad recalled knee and i should seek another orthopedic surgeon as soon as possible. I asked her why he had showed me an xray of my knee which was not mine. i told her i had just picked up all my films and records before the appointment and showed her the xray I was given was not the one on the light box. She just shook her head and repeated i take the xray i had received from the record dept. and find another doctor. When I found another orthopedic surgeon I told him everything. He was not surprised. He told me his office saw five cases a day where recalled knees were being used instead of titanium one promised. He could not get involved as it was a big problem and big business. If he repaired or was able to remove the recall knee i would not be able to come back again. i agreed. He performed a partial knee replacement as he could not remove all of the recalled knee but he had inserted a more recent model that should reduce the pain and problems of balance and not being able to walk. This did not happen and i remained in severe pain until complicatons set in and i developed severe sciatica over the left knee surgery just finished. i called him but he suggested I go to the emergency room of cape coral hospital. I waited for 8 hours in their emergency room before being discharge and told they could not help me there. I never saw a doctor or was admitted. Instead a PA gave me a cortisone shot, told me the doctors were too busy and she was not authorized to take any xrays or admit me and that i had to leave. I could not walk and went home in a wheel chair. i tried to endure the pain another few weeks until i fainted and called 911. Since cape coral hospital already rejected me, i was taken to ft. myers lee memorial hospital by ambulance. i waited on a guerney for over 20 hours and the last patient to be seen by an exhausted PA in charge of their emergency admittance. She asked why I was there and I explained i had about the failed knee surgery and extreme sciatic for past 3 weeks and having fainted from the pain. She admitted me and five hours later i was taken for an MRI where they immediately found a large bone growth pressing on spine L5. Althought i was finally admitted into a room the on call doctor told me the mri showed a large bone growth causing the pain but I was not going to have any surgery. They, would do what they could. i remained in pain as there were no drugs that relieve the pressure. The last day of coverage by medicare arrived and I was told I was being discharged the following day. There had been no treatment or relief the entire week at Lee Memorial, but I was suddenly told there were able to transfer me to a pain management clinic for a shot in my spine before I was discharged and released from the hospital. The numbing shot before the cordisone shot was the first time in four weeks the pain not as severe, but the shot itself did not work and I went home in the same pain and condition I arrived at the hospital to correct. Still I hoped for the best and returned to the pain clinic for the second shot but when the doctor realized I was still in great pain he became alarmed and called an associate to administer an outpatient nerve test (emg?). That doctor was upset that I had not immediately received surgery to remove the large bone spur on L5 as the EMG clearly showed lack of treatment had allowed the nerve in my left leg to deteriorate and it was almost dead. That I had to have immediate surgery or dragging numb left foot, swollen sharp pain in left ankle with curling locked toes would remain. Now I faced the same problem with my left leg as I had with both arms with nerve damage and fingers locking or unable to move. Both this doctor and the pain management doctor recommend a great surgeon who worked at Lee Memorial where I had been for all that time. He expertly removed the large bone and the pressure causing the siatica attacks diminish, but the damage was already done. My left leg knee and foot would not function normally. i was just greatful the sciatica itself has stopped the acute shooting pains over my knee and down my left leg. After two months i could finally sit again. if I had this same surgery in this same hospital upon admittance and confirmation by an MRI of the problem and immediate need of surgery i would not have lost the nerve in my leg and the 2nd knee replacement may have healed normally. i still cannot walk or balance normally. i still have extreme problems with motor control of my arms, hands and left leg but I was told there was nothing more they could do. Finally I had another accident at home. i tried to reach the door of the microwave, but my arm swerved to the right instead and fell on the hot oven burner. Since the bone spurs in my neck and deterioration of C7 I was not able to wear any straps or I was in immediate spasm. This was a big problem as I was very big breasted and my breast tended to swing when I experienced loss of balance from the failed knee surgeries. I returned to the spine surgeon to ask what I could do about the unexpected loss of balance and swerves which caused more problems by the swinging of the large breasts. He told me suggested i may qualify for a breast reduction which would reduce the neck and shoulder extreme pain spasms. I found an excellent doctor who just performed that surgery a few days ago. I am healing well but I cannot walk without loss of balance from the damaged recalled knee which seems to be falling apart. I am grateful the removal of the extra weight and instability of the upper body has been so successful and has lessened the pain. The lack of mobility better but the neck spasms are not gone, nor will they ever be. At least now I can balance my upper body better when I lurch. However the knee is much worse. i can feel the metal bar down my leg. It has been over a year since the second replacement and third surgery yet it is very painful to the touch and collapses when I try to walk. I can t put any weight on it and the knee bone itself feels loose. it is very painful when I lose my balance and lurch sideways or forward. i have begun to fall at least a dozen times but have been lucky enough to grab something close by to support myself as my cottage is very small and the furniture is stable. I am also able to avoid falling by shifting my weight if I am quick enough. I still have constant pain up both sides of my neck and constant migraine headache. I take no other pills other than mild tramadol taken with half a alprozlam which have been prescribed for me for over 20 years. We know they are not a cure, but without them i cannot move at all now. The Florida Medical Association (Lee Health & its four hospitals) are limited by a dysfunctional system. I am sure that every one who has treated me (except that first dishonest knee doctor) are doing their best and are wonderful people. They are not the problem. The State of Florida is. They have falsely regulated and bullied and prevented the true medicine to limit practice into the state of chaos.. They have wasted hundreds or thousands of dollars paid by Medicare and Medicaid to corrupt insurance and pharmacy companies who are holding them by the throat. They have created a lego system which does not ever inquire about an overview of a patient. Insurance companies and pharmacutial companies are now completely in bed together, motivated only by profit. The best doctors in the world are now in a constant state of fear they will lose their license because of false claims by pharmacuital and insurance companies that regulate everything they do. They are no longer allowed to be doctors. They are no longer allow any respect to practice what they were trained to do. Nurses are angels and doctors saints but all must clock in and keep track by recording every single step they take to the point there s no time for their patient and so many mistakes are made. I am living proof. My records are available. I may not be able to work or walk or avoid another heart attack, but those dedicated doctors and nurses and hospital staff members are in more danger than i myself. I no longer trust I am safe or harbor any false hope my bad knee surgerys will be corrected. I need to find out what to do. i was told by my home health care PT nurse that a titanium knee is never given on the first surgery. The Insurance industry requires a wait until a third replacement to be allowed to use a titanium knee. No wonder doctors are using recalls. No wonder they have given up. It is a true loss of trust and preditable malpractice. They are forced into mistakes because of corrupt rules they are being forced to follow. i am not interested in litagation. i feel all doctors and nurses and hospitals are doing their best and have enough to bear. I just must get better and back to work. I have taken more than two hours to write this. I am now looking forward to wasting 29 dollars just to have you read this. I have no firm hope you are not just as limited as our local system. I just hope to be able to say the emperor has no clothes . i am extremely exhausted from the pain and stressed from the deceit. There has been so much waste of so many good people. Of both patients and doctors and nurses and hospital staff because the system has failed. It is corrupt and needs to be brought back to life. If nothing else I hope you can make an educated accessment of how much of these problems noted were uneccesary. I have left out many many other incidents that were almost criminal but I am trying to stick to the main issue of hospitals and doctors only. All I want is an honest appraisal of what I can do to get my life back again. It s worth being fooled into thinking I was going to get free advice. I should have known better, but if I got lucky and you are truly a legitimate group of physicians trying to help others I will be grateful to pay. Happy Thanksgiving and thank you for your kind consideration if indeed you are what you have advertised you are.