Havin to wait 6-8mos to see ortho dr, isgood?i have severe spinal stenosis and moderate to severe bilateral stenosis neural forminal stenosis at c5-c6

How to avoid waiting: Luckily in america, each of us is free to go see a doctor at any time, as long as the doctor will give us an appointment. Always buy good insurance (ppo or better) so one does not feel restricted. With good insurance, a patient should be able to refer herself to an ortho-spine doctor for an opinion. Otherwise, one can try to budget money each year for self-pay consultations, not using insurance.

Call around : First, call the doctor that you have been referred to and request to be put on their cancellation list in case someone with an earlier appointment cancels. Secondly, that is a particularly long wait for a common problem. You may be able to call other spine surgeons in your area and get an earlier appointment. Check out spine-health.Com and healthgrades.Com to learn more.