Hip Replacement Part 3 - Pre Op Physical Exam, Most of It Anyway

On December 27, 2011 Dr. Cates requested that I get a pre-operative physical exam.  I usually do this in August but I had not made my annual trek to Dr. Bingham’s office, so this was a good time to kill two birds with one stone so so speak. 
My appointment was at 10:00 am, but I arrived at 9:30 am and was immediately ushered to the dreaded scales.  When I first started visiting Dr. Bingham some years ago, they still used the old fashioned standard with the double sliding bars.  The Army used them the entire time I was on active duty… they were supposed to be calibrated, but I suspected they were part of a communist plot to make everyone think they were heavier than they were.  Why else was I always 4-5 pounds heavier in the office than at home.  Anyway, I was pleasantly surprised to see they have installed new digital scales… no improvement on the weigh-in.  Still heavier in the office than at home.  There’s basis for a new years resolution.
After weigh-in I was placed in the “private” waiting room… they call it an exam room, but actually it is just another place to wait for the doctor so you have the illusion of something happening.  The nurse (I assume) took my BP, which was slightly elevated and my pulse… she did not say I had one.
From there we went to X-Ray… I sure wish they could figure out how to warm those machines… was rather chilly  for a chest X-Ray.  After we finished it was back to the waiting room for an EKG.  Another surprise… no more messy cream and suction bulbs.  New technology again… tiny little stick-on electrodes and then just clip the leads, run the machine and we were done.  After that I was back to waiting on the doctor.  In between I was asked to leave a sample which required a visit to the bathroom. 
Dr. Bingham came in, read the EKG and said that there had been no changes in 10 years.  I think that is good.  He listened to my heard, my neck, ears, nose and throat.  The last exam involved a pair of rubber gloves on which I will not elaborate.
From there I was asked to donate blood.  I am not fond of this, but 20 years in the Army and flight physicals every year have helped me build a tolerance to the practice.  There must be a lot of test to run, instead of the usual two vials, they took six.  A quick swipe of antiseptic and a Band-Aid and I was done.
My next big day is January 3, 2012.  All day at Parkwest and Tennessee Orthopedic Clinic.