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Helen C... I go to Kaiser Woodland Hills (L.A. suburb) and am not pleased with the neuro, tho have nothing but positive Kaiser experiences otherwise. The neuro probably isn't a bad doctor for general neurological services, but he ISN'T a movement disorder specialist, and THAT was readily apparent when we met for the first time last month. As my general PD knowledge became obvious to him he adopted an authoritarian attitude. He left no doubt that HE was the expert and _ I _ was the patient! (I got the feeling the word "ignorant" should have preceded the word "patient!") <rueful smile> That said, at least he HAD heard of Mirapex and several of the other new PD drugs. A couple things, Helen.... I like to go to my physician and tell HIM what's going on with my body when I'm not feeling well. My primary physician works well with this and isn't at all insulted that I consider myself his CONSULTANT as well as his patient. <smile> I'm not adverse to being seen by a doctor/absolute dictator IF my physical condition warrants that kind of attitude from a physician (i.e., as when I had my pallidotomy. I kept my mouth SHUT and offered no medical or surgical advice! <g>) Regarding the usual 6 to 8 week wait to get an office visit at Kaiser (and this is pretty much the norm, as I understand it), you can ALWAYS get a same- day or next-day office appointment IF you know the ins and outs of the Kaiser system and aren't THAT nice of an individual! <LOL> (and I bet you're a real sweetie). You HAVE to have an aggressive, EXPECTANT, positive attitude when you call for a same-day appointment. At the same time, ya have to express gratitude for the efforts of the nurse to squeeze you into the doctor's busy schedule - all the while keeping your sense of humor. Also, DO consider seeing one of their nurse-practitioners, as usually they're top-notch and it's MUCH easier to get a same-day appointment with one of them. Finally, Helen, I've found that when I need Kaiser to "step outside the box," to go that extra mile for me... or to do something they haven't done before, they MAY turn me down initially - out of habit or out of initial hesitation to ANY change - but IF I go to a Member Services Supervisor, Kaiser HAS come thru. It never hurts to practice being a "squeaky wheel!" <smile> Barb Mallut [log in to unmask] ---------- From: Parkinson's Information Exchange on behalf of Helen J. Coleman Sent: Thursday, August 28, 1997 12:16 PM To: Multiple recipients of list PARKINSN Subject: Re: Kaiser Does Collagen Injections! I would be interested in where you are in location of Kaiser. I'm in Southern Cal. San Diego and find I'm not getting the best care or knowledge from my Nuero here. I had one Nuero who first told me I may have PD 10 years ago but said I could get a second opinion, which I did. That means I've seen two Kaiser Neur's and they limit us to only two Neuro's. We have had Kaiser for 28 years and except for this, have always had the best of care. Due to freezing I had a very bad fall 5 weeks ago (broken ankle which required surgery) so I had to cancel an appointment on 8/19 and the next opening I could get is October 9, almost 2 months wait. Fortunately we spend 5 or 6 months in Georgia so I sometimes see a Nuero in Atlanta but he is hampered not being my Primary Dr. If you would care to comment I'd be glad to hear from you. Helen J. Coleman [log in to unmask]