Waiting

"But the important thing about learning to wait, I feel sure, is to know what you are waiting for." - Anna Neagle

I had an ultrasound appointment scheduled at 10:40 this morning at PMH. I decided to leave a bit early so that I would be on time if I experienced construction delays. Traffic was abysmal. Weaving my way through the city was slow but I was still poised to arrive and park in the garage behind the hospital with a full fifteen minutes to spare. Wrong. Toronto Rehab Hospital is undergoing renovation. By the time I sat and waited for the traffic cop to waive me through, the margin on my early arrival time had been seriously cut. Then I was delayed trying to park. The garage behind PMH has narrow lanes and lots of blind spots but I've navigated it so many times that it is like second nature to me. Not so for the five cars in front of me. By the time I got into a parking spot on Level 8 on the roof, the clock read 10:38. The elevator was slow and I ended up jogging to the hospital.

I needn't have bothered. The breast imaging department was so backed up, it was another full hour before I got into my appointment. I sat in a small cramped waiting room trying to keep the too small gown pulled across my chest while reading fourteen month old magazines. Every chair was occupied and the tension in the room was palpable. I don't know why I didn't bring my book reader with me this morning. After more than five years of the PMH experience, I ought to be more prepared. Tests and treatment is never the worst part of being there. It is the waiting that is so hard.

Every time I go for a diagnostic appointment at PMH be it ultrasound, mammography or MRI, I'm given a form to fill out. The form hasn't changed in the more than five years I've been going there and I fill it out at least four times a year. It asks questions about my cancer history and previous surgeries. It asks when I had previous MRIs, mammograms and ultrasounds. I always wonder if anyone ever actually looks at the form. Shouldn't all that information be in a data base at the hospital? When I had an MRI in June, I was give a two page form to fill out. Then the technician asked me every question I had already answered. I couldn't for the life of me figure out why I was asked to fill out the form if I was going to be asked the questions orally just ten minutes later. I also wonder if anyone would notice if I change the answers from one appointment to the next. Clearly I have too much time on my hands sitting in waiting rooms.

Today's ultrasound itself was quick and uneventful. I have several more appointments scheduled in the next month at PMH. I'll try to do better next time - book reader, current magazine and soduku book or crossword puzzles close at hand.