Charles L Pucevich, MD

I chose this particular rheumatologist for convenience since my former rheumatologist’s office was moving further away. I actually found Dr. Pucevich to be pleasant, intelligent and very competent, and I think my problem was not with him but with his telephone staff. The doctor explained to me that he did not treat my condition with cortisone injections as had my former, but that he felt there were oral meds available which might help. I agreed to try that, and he gave me a script for one of them, to be taken in increasing dosages. After a number of weeks, it was clear to me that this drug was actually making me worse; I called and left a message to that effect. When I’d not heard back by late the following day, I left another message begging someone to please call me back. I finally got a call-​back the following day, and was advised to pick up samples of a different drug to try. After a week and a half, I felt the worst I’ve EVER felt in my life – I was constantly in bad pain, I could barely walk even with the help of a seldom-​used cane, and I was exhausted both from poor sleep and from pain. So I called Dr. Pucevich’s office and got a recording saying that the doctor was on vacation and would not return until the 12^th. Period. So I left quite an emotional message {on either the 8^th or 9^th} that I needed help very badly as soon as he returned. Then I left a similarly emotional message either on the 11^th or the 12^th, hoping to up the urgency of my situation. I heard nothing on the 12^th. I called again late morning on the 13^th, and an actual person answered, some sort of assistant, I suppose. I identified myself and reiterated how bad my situation was. She informed me that they had my prior 2 messages. She then proceeded to read back to me snippets of what I’d said on those messages in a tone I felt was designed to make me feel foolish. She then advised me that the doctor had just gotten back, that he was very busy, and that «patients just had to be patient». {Sadly, in my poor, diminished state, I failed to point out that uneducated redundancy…} I told her that I understood all that, but that I needed SOME kind of help. She told me that she could perhaps get him to call in a different script for me. I was sobbing at this point and said PLEASE, no more pills, I can’t deal with that. She then asked «Well, then, just what do you think the doctor can do for you?» At that point, I couldn’t deal with it a moment longer, said something lame like I didn’t think this was going to work out, and I hung up. So that was my experience. I called my pharmacist who said I could just stop taking the pills rather than having to cut back first. So I did, and my pain level is more tolerable now. But it just seems to me that if you’re checking messages for the doctor and you have 2 completely desperate messages from the same person, perhaps you could, oh, I don’t know, possibly PRIORITIZE A BIT??! Additionally, I found out that Dr. Pucevich has another rheumatologist to cover for him when he’s away… PERHAPS THAT COULD HAVE BEEN MENTIONED TO ME!