Unusual Incident / Trip to ER

[Sheila]

Friday, I went shopping at a large "chain" department store. I was in the aisle looking at rugs for my 2 doggies, and I turned around and felt a stab in my L (affected) arm. The blood started flowing immediately...(I seem to be much more of a bleeder on Herceptin/Xeloda)...I reached into my purse to grab a kleenex, then noticed this sharp thick wire sticking out from a bed cpomforted package.....I had found the culprit that caused my puncture wound! I then went to find someone from the store that I could get a bandaid and something to clean the wound with....the next thing I know, I have the store manager, and 2 more employees, one with a camera and one with an alcohol wipe and bandaid. Of course they wer concerned about getting pictures of the wire poking comforter...I cleaned the wound, put the bandaid on and told them that my concern was I have a puncture wound in my L arm, where lymph nodes have been removed...and felt I needed to get it checked to avoid infection. Also, I had not had a tetanus shot in 10 years....the store people laughed and said, "Oh, you'll be fine, just a little puncture!" I called my local GP, and he told me to go to the ER for Tetanus, Antibiotic Cream and Antibiotics....which I did. The ER Docs reitereated the significance of a puncture wound (which are the dirtiest) to a post mastectomy arm and the risks of infection and possibility of lymphydema from this. Like WE ARE NOT EVEN TO GET A SHOT IN THE AFFECTED ARM BUT A PUNCTURE WOUND IS SOMETHING TO BE TREATED PROFESSIONALLY. It was deep, hit the muscle so now I have a huge bruise and puncture wound! I was given Augmenten (kills your stomach & 80.00 ) and Bactroban Cream (whoa, 75.00 a tube) and Tetanus. I called the store to tell them that my insurance will not cover this when they find out it was an accident, and asked what they would like me to do. I don't feel I should have to pay 400.00 worth of bills for something that happened in a store. The became very arrogant and said I was taking it to the extreme, going to the ER (hey its a weekend, no Dr's office open) and getting antbiotics and Tetanus.....looks like it will be a fight to get the bill paid....GUESS NONE OF THEM HAVE EVER HAD CANCER AND LYMPH NODES REMOVED! Am i being unreasonable here, expecting them to foot the ER bill?
Just my advice...if you get a dirty wound to the affected arm, do get it checked, the complications could last a lifetime if you don't! Puncture wounds are the worse, as the ER dr. said, and our infection fighting is compromised due to lack of nodes.....