United Brachial Plexus Network, Inc.

bumping for jmar

i had an evaluation visit with dr. mackinnon yesterday. on tuesday of this week i had my very first post accident evaluation by a resident dr and a fellowship dr in the plastic/hand clinic at barnes jewish/wash u, those 2 work under the mackinnon/tung team and gave a very extensive exam. then on weds i got a call that dr. mackinnon wanted to see me on thurs. it's interesting that i come online this morning and here is this thread. it appears dated but since my injury 8/25/10 i've been doing a lot of research and mackinnon's name comes up a lot. based on what i read she is probably is in the top 5 for certain procedures, nerve transfers being one of them. she is a nice lady. washington university/barnes jewish is a teaching facility, at least the part i have entered into. so dr. mackinnon during the process of evaluating me is also in the process of educating/training resident/fellowship dr's. she also has a physical therapist who works closely with her and lorna was present for part of the evaluation. overall it was a very crisp/intense evaluation. i have learned in the past week that my injury is quite severe and for the most part any spontaneous recovery of wrist/elbow/shoulder is not going to happen. so i'm being presented with surgery options. as dr mackinnon explained to me any operations that i elect to have done would be performed by members of her team of resident/fellowship drs with her in attendance to oversee and that she would perform "the hard parts". that is pretty much what washington uni is all about...teaching. so from what i've read and experienced dr. mackinnon is no doubt one of the best drs in the states to have perform certain procedures. i would have no hesitation whatsoever to have the mackinnon team perform surgery. for me, as an uninsured unemployed individual the prime question is, can i afford it?

I had a major surgical procedure with Dr, Mackinnon 17 months ago. It was risky to begin with and has yielded a 0% recovery. She was honest and extremely knowledgable. The support staff and facilities at WUMC are fantastic. I valued her opinion and thank her for the attempt and for removing all doubt in my future decision making processes. On a side note, in my experience with Dr. Mackinnon at all vistis, her bedside manner left something to be desired. Regardless, she is a pioneer in the field. I also highly recommend the staff at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, New Hampshire, Perry Ball, Joe Rosen, Susan Durham, John Bell.

Best to all

I had a major surgical procedure with Dr, Mackinnon 17 months ago. It was risky to begin with and has yielded a 0% recovery. She was honest and extremely knowledgable. The support staff and facilities at WUMC are fantastic. I valued her opinion and thank her for the attempt and for removing all doubt in my future decision making processes. On a side note, in my experience with Dr. Mackinnon at all vistis, her bedside manner left something to be desired. Regardless, she is a pioneer in the field. I also highly recommend the staff at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, New Hampshire, Perry Ball, Joe Rosen, Susan Durham, John Bell.

Best to all

thank you djk. anyone has to be better than the doc that caused my injury. basically he told me "it will heal up in 18 months to 2 years so just accept it and do nothing about it." when i was released from therapy at 8 months, i was told it was as good as it could get. i went into a rage after that and told him he WOULD DO SOMETHING or we would have some very serious issues. it was at that point i got an EMG and nerve study done. i never expected to have such an outstanding doctor as mackinnon. so i feel like i have gone from the lousiest to to the best. WOW!!! i have not seen her yet, but i have read a lot about her on this site and research i have done. looking forward to having an appointment with her.

question: if i forget to ask a question, will the info she gives me be enough to answer what i want to know without having to remember everything i need to know? i will bring a list of questions with me but sometimes i forget to write some of them down.

jmar,
if your experience turns out to be similar to mine dr mackinnon or a member of her team will try to answer any questions you have. SailinSolo mentioned a bedside manner impression and i would characterize it as "crisp". however that said she is extremely talented/intelligent, busy and many of those types sometimes do not present as a people person in a clinical setting simply because they are very serious/intense about the job at hand. overall, my time with mackinnon was one of a very complete evaluation of my current situation as far as the injury and then a presentation/explanation of what she suggests be done and why and what to expect as outcome.

Crisp...I could live with that. I flew in and had a list of questions which didn't work so well for me, she actually walked out of the room saying I don't have time for this! However, that being said, I wasn't there for a social experience. I was there to see one of the most experienced. I suggest narrowing your questions to the absolute most important, deceiding upon meeting her if you trust her and can take her word, and going with it. The door to the exam room was wide open and nurses were buzzing in, out and around her constantly. She had a patient with an exposed brain as we were meeting. Her nurses, the ones you interact with, are fabulous. Even though my surgery didn't take, and I stress that, because it was not a case of it not working or failing, I was damaged goods, I would still recommend Susan and her team. Research the situation as thoroughly as possible and try to become as educated as possible prior to the meeting, and as I have discovered in the past few days, use this site. It is a treasure trove of information.


I would also recommend trying to recruit the services of client relations, an advocate, or someone versed in hospital works to help you negotiate the visit. Even having an extra set of ears there to help sort it all out after will be helpful. On my followup, my advocate actually had to flag Dr. MacKinnon down to get her in the room, then the visit was thorough. I don't want to be a downer towards her, just sharing my experiences. I would do it all again, all said and done. This is a complicated injury and the circle of experts is very small, so if you have te time and resources you may be able to locate a physican who meets all your criteria. She met mine at the time and I am able to make decisions without the shadow of doubt now.

WOW i can see why she was a bit "crisp" if she had someone with an exposed brain. WOW

yeah, that one was a reality check of sorts for me too. They always seems to be someone out there with a situation that makes the one we are in look worse. She's a brilliant doctor and has helped many helpless people. Her work along with others has advanced the treatment of this injury. I just have to wonder what those learning under her will bring to the table down the road, limitless.

My daughter is currently under the care of Mackinnon and Tung. If you'd like any information on them I can get you that. Mackinnon has pioneered the BPI surgeries and I have many of her research articles that I can copy and send to you. She has written over 350 research papers on this alone. She also is Chief of Surgery. This is huge for a women even in todays world believe it or not. So whatever questions you might have i can get back to you on them. We have been seeing her and Tung since last June and go there about every 6 weeks since. Next surgery is this coming July.