Hack #5: Going to The Mayo Clinic - Day 1

My last "sugar bomb" before my initial diabetes diagnosis appointment: Bananas Foster - a specialty of a local Rochester restaurant frequented by Mayo Clinic staff.

​One thing to keep in mind about Diabetes is that, as with many diseases, the person carrying the disease isn’t the only person being affected by it. My wife was equally taken by surprise by my condition and diagnosis, but probably was more anxious about it than I was because she likely felt helpless to do anything about it. And it didn't help that our winery tour friends - who also were accomplished retinal doctors and pediatricians -- were asking her or me several times a week ‘how was I feeling,’ which only reinforced her concern that things were worse than we assumed they were. 
         Nine months ago, I probably would have guessed the wrong answer to a multiple-choice question about what an "endocrinologist" specializes in. I’m still learning about them. But once I googled and found out that this is the type of doctor one goes to for pancreatic issues (another test I might have missed the answer to: What is the purpose of a pancreas? or, Where is it located in the body?), it was time to find out where the best doctors or advanced research was.
       I did a quick online search, and chose US News & World Report’s survey, which labeled the Mayo Clinic’s Rochester, MN location as the best by far for endocrinology, way ahead even of the Mayo Clinic's other locations in the country. I had heard, of course, about people going to the Mayo clinic for heart-related conditions, but never imagined I would soon be planning at trip for myself.
       Amazingly, I called the Mayo’s hotel-concierge-like service center and was able to get an appointment only a couple of weeks out (by contrast, I’ve been affiliated with a locally based endocrinologist for several months and STILL have never met my actual endocrinologist, but only her nurse-assistant team on my visits -- see HACK #8 for more thoughts on this experience).
       We made arrangements and headed to Rochester, which, by the way, is in the middle of NOWHERE, though a flight to Minneapolis will get you closer to (or about 2 hours away from) the nowhere location. Upon visiting the town, it is clear that everything in the town revolves literally around the Mayo Clinic center. And by the names of certain wings or art displays, it is also clear that the Mayo Clinic has, like other institutions, healed or prolonged the lives of some very wealthy people who made hefty donations to show their appreciation, if not extend their personal legacies.  
       The main building is tall, the waiting rooms giant, and the connecting buildings of related practices and supporting resources extensive. But the “hotel concierge” analogy holds for the whole place, because EVERY SINGLE PERSON I interacted with, from the guides, to the check-in staff, to the team members, nursing assistants, specialist doctors, to cafeterias, garage attendants, retail checkers and pharmacists, was kind, caring, friendly and helpful (by contrast, my ”local” office staff at various physician clinics seem to greet people as if they are an annoyance who is in the wrong place, or keeping them from doing their work, and clearly have more important things to do than to get me checked in to see my doctor). 
       I also found an amazing ability to squeeze in a lot of activity in a few days than can typically be completed in my home town among doctors, blood takers and testers, dietitians, diabetes educators and other practitioners I met with during my stay. When I arrived I had ONE appointment; by the end of the first day, I had seen my endocrinologist TWO times for more than an hour each, had gotten my blood drawn, tests back, and a preliminary diagnosis in one working day, along with THREE NEW appointments the next day to learn about diet and dosing insulin. I also left that first day with new drug prescriptions that were ready in less than an hour and the onsite pharmacy.
       Don't get me wrong. I was a little overwhelmed and emotionally distraught soon after my first endocrinologist appointment that morning, as I absorbed the reality of my fresh diagnosis, and prepared myself for the lineup of appointments that now faced me in that short period of time. But the efficiency, kindness, and coordination that were now going on for my benefit, helped to make the experience more acceptable, with the exception of sharing elevators, hallways and waiting rooms with people who had more visibly debilitating symptoms that impaired their mobility or physical appearances. (Jump to Hack #6 for details on day 2 of the Mayo Clinic visit.) 
 

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