Mark's Medical Fund

Hello Everyone. I have thought about doing this many times but didn't. Today I decided it's worth a try. Mark and I have been married for over 26 years. We have two sons. Mark has been an insullin dependant diabetic since he was nine years old. Through the years we have both experienced health issues as I am sure we all have. In 2007 he had a surgery at Hillcrest for carpel tunnel and trigger finger surgery. This particular procedure was scheduled for the early afternoon but didn't actually take place until after 5 pm. The reason I point this out is because he wasn't able to take his insullin or eat anything prior to surgery. His blood sugar dropped to 42 and he started exihibitng symptons of a diabetic reaction. I pointed this out to the staff and asked them to get the doctor. At this point, the doctor advised the nursing staff to give him glucose in his IV which brought his sugar back up to normal. Within 30 minutes later however, it had dropped back down to the 40's again. I told the staff that we needed to hold off on the procedure because it wasn't life or death that we do it that day and didn't feel comfortable with them putting him under in his condition. The surgery tech told me he was going to take him back and see the doctor. The next thing I know, they were telling me he was in recovery and I would have to go to the main hospital to get him. The was the beginning of our medical financial woes. Within  24 hours after this procedure, he was admitted into St. John's ICU. He was in DKA. His blood sugar when we arrived was over 1300 and the doctor couldn't believe Mark was still talking. While at the hospital, Mark had a heart attack. They put him on blood thinners via IV and the next day scheduled a Heart Cath procedure. Needless to say this was very scary. I neglected to point out the initial procedure was workman's comp related. All of this information was passed on to the hospital staff. He hired an attorney because we started receiving bills for the entire stay at St. John's totalling over $40,000.00. We felt that this all happened because they took him into surgery when his body was already experiencing a diabetic reaction. Going under to perform the surgery was just too much on his body. The attorney said that this would be a hard case because there were so many people to interview (hospital staff, doctors, etc) and going against a huge Corporation. We are still paying on this balance. In 2011, I had a heart attack and we did not have medical insurance. So we now had an additional bill from the hospital for my 3 day stay in the sum of $32,000.00. We pay twice a month to an attorney for the collection of these 2 stays along with other medical bills that we have incurred. At last check, we still owe $28,000.00 for these. On November 9, 2013, Mark was in his tree stand (deer hunting) and fell over 20 feet. This fall caused numerous injuries. He had 9 broken ribs, broke his pelvis in 3 places, had a compression fracture of the T11 vertebrae and had a broken sacrum. He was transferred from Sallisaw Hospital to St. Francis where he stayed for over a month. After being discharged from the hospital, he required a hospital bed at home as well as a wheel chair. Mark hasn't been able to return to work since this accident. I have been working 2 to 3 jobs at a time to try and keep things going. Being diabetic, it takes him longer to heal and hasn't improved. He went to a pain specialist for the year following the accident, receiving injections in his back to no relief. We went today and met with a surgeon and he will be having surgery on 4/21/15 at Hillcrest South. In February of 2013, I was experiencing acute pain throughout by body. I was having difficulty with my neck, back and feet. I went to the doctor and was referred to a Rheumatologist. They thought I had RA. After blood tests and numerous xrays, the results were Spondylararopathy (arthritis of the spine) and Fibromyalgia.  So the medical bills keep climbing. In January of this year, I tore my rotator cuff. I have received an injection and am trying to put off surgery. I know it's the future but will deal with it for now. It's really hard when you are a 2 income family with all the normal bills and existing medical bills from the past. Now we are getting futher into this huge hole that seems like there is no bottom too. We tried to file for Social Security disability but were denied. We are appealing but the attorney says he believes Mark is too young and to discuss again with him after the surgery. I know this is a lot of information and I might have lost a few of you in this story. I just wanted to put our story out there incase there is anyone that might be willing to assist. Thank you so much for taking the time to read this.