So, a year and a half ago my 70 year old father was diagnosed with a hernia because his testicles swelled. The hospital in Loma Linda put him off for surgery numerous times because of a “waitlist”, and he wasn’t in any discomfort or pain at that time. Some time goes by and he attends routine appointments for his general health, and comes to find out there’s also a lesion on his colon. After many more tests and appointments, this “hernia” is then re diagnosed as a hydrocele. In the midst of all of this, he also gets a pacemaker while awake the entire surgery, and zero pain medication.

So much time has gone by that his testicles now touch the toilet water when he uses the restroom and he has to urinate constantly.

About a week ago, he finally reached the surgeon, or specialist, who is supposed to drain the hydrocele. Only to find out that- over the course of a year and a half of appointments and testing, the team of healthcare workers never even took the right tests that would clear him for surgery. So, they couldn’t schedule one, yet again, and he was referred back to his primary physician. Again. The primary physician who originally misdiagnosed him.

Among spending thousands of dollars on appointments and medications over the course of this time, my father also feels that they simply do not “want” to treat him as they make comments about how it could just “come back”, or he would have to stay longer than overnight, or perhaps go through a second surgery to treat the hydrocele. All of these comments comical to my father because of how well he’s managed tending to his health and prior surgeries. He is not scared, but he feels they are trying to deliberately scare him.

He has been refused treatment and pain medications for his very severe gout due to the fact the he consumes marijuana and is considered at “high risk” for addiction because of that. Why it matters if my elderly father with, not much time, becomes an addict is beyond me. He’s in pain, and he is not being treated.

I am at a loss for how I can assist- as he’s (being a a boomer) private and does not externally show any signs of discomfort. I want nothing more than justice, of course. But first I want my father to spend his last years in comfort and have no idea how to help.