I see that my insurance is now calling this service the 24-Hour Nurse Advice Line.
I looked up Nurse Advice Line for my area and lots of health insurance offers them, as well as the large clinic systems. I checked bordering states, too, and the same thing was true there.
I've had several different health insurance policies over the years. Every one of them going back at least 30 years has offered a Help Line. Same for my husband. His policies had Help Line services. They all have given out magnets with the number. In addition, the clinic we used had an after-hour answer service. You'd get the doctor on call and they wouldn't necessarily have access to your chart (I'll bet that has changed!) but you would get professional advice and the call would be logged.
I assumed that all insurance and most clinics had advice lines of some kind. Is that not true?
Sometimes it is hard to know whether you should wait to get a same-day appointment tomorrow or go to an ER tonight, or wait it out a while. When I was undecided I always called the help line. I'd say, "I have a rattling/gurgling sound in my chest as I breathe." They would ask a series of questions, pretty much as we have done on this thread. I learned to always take my temperature before calling because they always asked for that. Once they urged me to get an ambulance. Other times it would usually wind up something like this: "You should see your doctor in the next few days. If symptom X gets worse or symptom Y appears, go to walk-in care or the ER. Definitely follow up with your doctor, even if all symptoms clear up on their own."
I remember lying on the floor in excruciating pain, having crawled to my desk and pulled the phone down. I called the help line and described my pain to the nurse. She had me go through a series of movements. Does it hurt to lift one leg off the ground? Try straightening your body. And on and on. Finally she said, "it sounds like a gall bladder problem. Call your clinic first thing in the morning, but they can't do much until this episode is over." OMG! I was sure they'd send an ambulance. But I was glad not to have to go through that if they couldn't do anything immediately but send me back home. I had surgery when the acute symptoms went away.
I see a lot of posts describing symptoms and asking for opinions. I am definitely NOT criticizing this. Really. And it can be very helpful to hear what other caregivers did for their loved ones or for themselves. But I always wonder if people don't have access to a help line or just forget or don't want to use it for some reason.
How about it? Does your insurance and/or clinic offer a phone number to help you decide what your next step should be?
Thank you all so much. I am going to the doctor next week, but if it gets worse, I will go to ER. I have had this rattling for awhile. I had pneumonia two years ago, and had the pneumonia shot. I have a pacemaker, so I will talk to cardiologist.
Breathless, I am not a doctor nor a nurse... it could be phlegm in your throat, which sounds like it is in your lungs or something else.... best to get that checked out ASAP. Go to your nearest urgent care facility if you cannot get in to see your primary doctor. You don't want it to turn in pneumonia.
Everyone is right. Even if there are doctors on this site, we couldn’t possibly diagnose you over the Internet. Seek in-person medical advice from a medical professional.
Breathless, Go to Acute Care or the ER, right now, but only If you can be driven there by somebody else, otherwise call 911 to have them come check you out and to be transported. Its no good if you were to have heart sx while driving yourself there, as you could pass out behind the wheel, risking injury to yourself or others. You Could be having CHF, Congestive Heart Failure symptoms, and you may or may not have swelling in the extremities, as some people only hold their fluid buildup in the abdomen, and in their Lung's of course. Time is of the essence for a proper diagnosis and treatment, as sometimes folks with acute CHF do begin to having heart rhythm issues, which could lead to heart attack or death, so please, Best to be safe, not sorry! Good luck, stay calm, but get checked out immediately!
64 years, not too short of breath, no ankle swelling, short of breath if I talk while laying down. No cold, gurgling sound when breathing, and no cold. Chronic bronchitis
I looked up Nurse Advice Line for my area and lots of health insurance offers them, as well as the large clinic systems. I checked bordering states, too, and the same thing was true there.
I assumed that all insurance and most clinics had advice lines of some kind. Is that not true?
Sometimes it is hard to know whether you should wait to get a same-day appointment tomorrow or go to an ER tonight, or wait it out a while. When I was undecided I always called the help line. I'd say, "I have a rattling/gurgling sound in my chest as I breathe." They would ask a series of questions, pretty much as we have done on this thread. I learned to always take my temperature before calling because they always asked for that. Once they urged me to get an ambulance. Other times it would usually wind up something like this: "You should see your doctor in the next few days. If symptom X gets worse or symptom Y appears, go to walk-in care or the ER. Definitely follow up with your doctor, even if all symptoms clear up on their own."
I remember lying on the floor in excruciating pain, having crawled to my desk and pulled the phone down. I called the help line and described my pain to the nurse. She had me go through a series of movements. Does it hurt to lift one leg off the ground? Try straightening your body. And on and on. Finally she said, "it sounds like a gall bladder problem. Call your clinic first thing in the morning, but they can't do much until this episode is over." OMG! I was sure they'd send an ambulance. But I was glad not to have to go through that if they couldn't do anything immediately but send me back home. I had surgery when the acute symptoms went away.
I see a lot of posts describing symptoms and asking for opinions. I am definitely NOT criticizing this. Really. And it can be very helpful to hear what other caregivers did for their loved ones or for themselves. But I always wonder if people don't have access to a help line or just forget or don't want to use it for some reason.
How about it? Does your insurance and/or clinic offer a phone number to help you decide what your next step should be?
I have a pacemaker, so I will talk to cardiologist.