# Incompetent Doctors in Ski Villages?



## aubzobot (Feb 19, 2011)

I've noticed that the hospitals in resort towns seem like a military field hospital, they patch you up and then give you the boot. Last January I was at Lake Louise and got a very serious concussion, the doc said id be riding within the week. After two months at home I was back to normal life and three and a half months later i could ride again. To make up for my shitty season I went to Camp of Champions in Whistler, which was by far the best week ever. A photographer from Transworld showed up and I wanted to get a sweet picture so I tried a front board on the down flat down box.I landed on the kink bounced off gapped the rest of the feature and smacked the ground with my arm under me breaking my wrist. The ER doc originally said it wasn't broken and gave me a splint and some tensor. In the morning it was very swollen and very painful so i went back. upon second look he decided I had indeed fractured my radius and gave me a cast, which was pleasing cause I could ride again. I went in for my two week follow up appointment in Calgary today. They looked at it and immediately decided it was my scaphoid and told me I was in the wrong type of cast. Is this a common occurrence getting bad treatment from doctors at the resort town? 

At least Torstein Horgmo, Seb toots and Mark Mcmorris signed my cast 

This doesn't nearly compare to my coaches crash, two shattered ankles and a broken back. 

Beau Bishop returns after injury - YouTube


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## snowklinger (Aug 30, 2011)

My riding buddy broke his ankle xmas day and all I know is the Dr. Lady at the slopeside clinic was fucken HAWT!


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## ETM (Aug 11, 2009)

aubzobot said:


> A photographer from Transworld showed up and I wanted to get a sweet picture so I tried a blah blah blah down the blah blah blah


Your problem is actually snowboarder incompetence not doctor incompetence.


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## BurtonAvenger (Aug 14, 2007)

Scaffoid is one of the hardest bones to diagnose as broken it takes time.


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## aubzobot (Feb 19, 2011)

ETM said:


> Your problem is actually snowboarder incompetence not doctor incompetence.


Well obviously it was my incompetence, but my point was it felt like they looked for the easy solution and then told me to leave, maybe incompetence for their performance wasn't the correct word. But she is an amazing photographer, so I had the right to get over confident, and try something I shouldn't have

Her site ashley barker photography

Proof she was actually photographing, heres the 50 50 i did to "get feel for the feature" barker_20120705_2925 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

To BA- Is it possible that although fractured, it couldn't have showed up on the initial x-ray, but after healing began it would be visible?


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## BurtonAvenger (Aug 14, 2007)

Yes it is very possible. It's one of those bones that's so small and sits in a weird spot that initially you can't notice it but down the road it happens. I have had more than a few friends with issues with that bone, I thought my right one was fucked but got lucky. 

One of the issues with resort town docs/ER's is that you get so many idiot tourists that come in for minor issues that over exaggerate it that they pass on you. I find if you go in and just be calm and explain everything it goes a lot easier. I dislocated my elbow this season and the ER docs thought it was hilarious how calm I was even though my forearm had twisted 180 degrees and was out of the joint and the guy in the bed next to me sublexed his shoulder and was screaming like a bitch making it out like he was dying.


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## aubzobot (Feb 19, 2011)

Well, thanks for the info. There were definitely a lot of people in there for stupid things, scraped chin, a painful toe, etc. 



I definitely enjoyed seeing Reed Speedman, star of Shit Skiers Say, who had a broken elbow with a ping pong ball sized lump and no feeling in his arm due to nerve damage say to the doc "Fuck the hospital" and then leave.


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## ShredLife (Feb 6, 2010)

Snowolf said:


> I really think it depends on the resort. I can`t speak for Canada and I don`t know how your single payer health care system factors into this at resorts. In the states however, some resorts only have clinics with ski patrollers who hold Wilderness EMT training but with limited facilities and equipment. Others like My home mountain actually have a clinic run by area hospitals staffed with ER doctors and nurses and have a full compliment of medical equipment. On more than one occasion, I have seen the Life Flight helicopter land in the parking lot and air lift a patient to a major hospital.
> 
> PS: rails are evil.......


Mt. Hood Meadows Clinic by Providence Health is a fucking joke and those assholes will lie about the price of your treatment if you're uninsured. there may be some docs in there that have spent some time in the ER but in my experience there are more clueless folks in there than helpful ones. fuck those lying, price-gouging dickholes.

sucks you did your scaphoid - i think i needed a cast on mine for like 3-4 months, and they still said it would be a 70% chance of surgery even after that.... got lucky and healed without it


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## Deviant (Dec 22, 2009)

This isn't just ski village docs, I went to the ER and was sent home with a wrist fractured in 3 places diagnosed as a "sprain". Went 3 days without a cast before seeing an Orthopedic

As far as the scaphoid, I was advised by my doc that if there's swelling in that area that it should be put in a cast regardless of whether or not the initial x-ray shows the fracture. I don't know if that's what he does as a precautionary measure or if it's standard practice but that was one of the bones that I fractured in my slam, got lucky myself and didn't need surgery.


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## ColoRADical (Dec 1, 2011)

I'm not sure if you guys know, but are doctors/practices associated with ski resorts or are they independent? Does the ski resort contract doctors to work? Is there a demand for doctors in ski towns/at ski resorts? I


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## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

idk, but around here its more of an informal arrangement, volunteer and get a pass there are some travellers that will do a week or month. I got a bud that does the season in taos. 

However on the hill its really just to triage/stabilize *for transport* and only a guess as to diagnosis and certainly no treatment is assumed/implied....at least here it field stabilization and there are no labs, xray or such. Its always recommended to follow up with your doc or go to the er. But it is free and they will give you a cardboard splint....however the heli or medic ride to the er is not.

To Op the nearest hospital is at least 70 minutes away by car/medic and 20-30 by heli...but they have to get there first and there are times the weather is to bad to fly up.

Personally I like the arrangement in that my ticket prices are not supporting a on hill medical clinic.


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## BoardWalk (Mar 22, 2011)

What's a resort prostate exam cost, I mean as long as I'm on vacation I might as well enjoy the local flavor......


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