CafeenMan

I gave myself a nice birthday present yesterday by putting three fingers through my table saw. The wood grabbed and it was over before I knew what happened. Some bandages, a paper towel and some masking tape and I was back to building an hour later.

This is the only significant injury I've had as a model builder and I hope the last. I hate bleeding on my wood.

FLYBOY

My Feedback: (11)

Damn dude! I feel your pain from here! That looks like it hurts like heck!

I have been building one handed for 2 months now but not for the same reason. Carpal tunnel surgery a month apart on each hand. You can build one handed for a while now eh!

Speedy recovery to you!

CafeenMan

well, I work at a crisis stasbilization unit and had my shoulder dislocated by a hostile patient three weeks ago - same arm. So, I already have pain meds, but yeah... it hurts a lot and it bled all night. Took over an hour today to soak off the bandages. That's why my fingers are pruned in the photo.

I'm finding I can build with one hand, but it's a challenge. But the show must go on, right? I can't understand why people think I'm a zealot. Don't they understand that going to the hospital takes away from my building time???

Thanks for the well wishes. I hope you are recovering well from you surgery.

ps. I normally type 100-110 wpm. I'm down to about 11 wpm now.

Mike Ledbetter

Dude, where's my hand?


I wish you a speedy recovery. GET SOME REST. Don't overdue that hand or you'll end up with too much scar tissue and future problems. Ask me how I know; I just had to have surgery on a two year old wound to remove internal skin formations.

Regards.

GrnBrt

My Feedback: (5)

It would be the smart thing to do to go and see a doctor and get it fixed right, to hell with the building it's just a hobby.

CafeenMan

I'm one of the millions of americans who's health care is less important than bombing 3rd world countries. I simply can't afford it. The doctor will give me a gauze, a prescription and a $1,200 bill. It will heal on it's own.

FLYBOY

My Feedback: (11)

Too funny, I had a prop pop back on me one time starting on OS 61 SF. It made a pretty big cut. I wrapped it in paper towels, started the plane and walked out to enjoy the flight with my friends. Dave says "how bad is it?", I say "how bad is what?". He says, "your going to the doc", I say "why, he will put some zap on it, put a bandaid on it, and charge me $100, I can do that at home for free".

We leave to go to lunch, he was driving, guess where we ended up! The doc cleaned it, tried this cool new glue he was so excited about, and put a bandaid on it. Waste of $100 if you ask me.

Soak it in hydrogen peroxide so it doesn't get infected. Thats what the doc had me do when I cut my finger tip off. It sounds painfull, but you don't feel anything. It bubbles and gets any infection out. Works fine.

You can send me the $100 and save the trip to the doc. hehe.

EagleOne

Once I cut my finger with the hobby knife in a moment of distraction while building. I was cutting a strip of balsa and left my finger in the path of the blade. Wasn't a severe cut, but it bled and hurt a lot. What did I do??? I just wraped it in paper towels, put some rubber bands to stop the bleeding (by reducing boold circulation) and in 10 minutes I was back ginishing to cut the strip of balsa. Why should I neeed a doctor?? For him to put something more high-tech than paper-towel but that does the same job, and tell me I should be more careful??Ah, and pay $60 (here in Brazil is not too different from the US, but instead of bomobng another countries, the government cares the most about it's own bank accounts) just for this little cut??? Oh no, I would never do it.

When I had a nail pass through my feet (that hurt like nothing else....) I didn't go see a doctor........

Scalebuff

Sorry to here about that cafeen, and you also flyboy, speedy recovery to ya both...

you guys really pay that much when u visit the doc's? bloody hell lol, i didnt think it was that much, but saying that you guys get higher wagers than us so that covers it i guess

Zpat

My Feedback: (2)

Well at least it will be highly unlikely to happen again and you have all your fingers intact.
Experience is the best Teacher.
I had a circular saw blade on my Dremel and ran it through the webbing between my thumb and forefinger.
I could have sworn I could see the bones down in that hole. It took some stitches, but now everytime I use that tool I certainly have more respect for it.

FLYBOY

My Feedback: (11)

Thanks Scalebuff

As far as docs cost, the surgery was 20 minutes for each hand, about 30 minutes pre op and 15 minutes post op, cost was just over $5000 per hand. I should have been a doctor, but then who would finish the surgery when I passed out after cutting into someone? hahahaha

Flyboy Dave

My Feedback: (21)

CafeenMan ....

....my twin brother lost the ends off both his forefingers just like
the damage you have....in a printing press. You need some minor
reconstructive surgery on that finger if you want it to heal right.
That nail will probably have to go as well. You have too much meat
missing there for it to be right without some expert attention.

I know....I know....I've cut my fingers down to the bone, and fixed
it myself with butterflys and a splint....ect....a few times....

....but really Sir....have that finger treated properly by a good surgeon,
you might end up seing him later anyway, for the corrective surgery. []

augiep38

My Feedback: (3)

z

Geistware

My Feedback: (16)

At least get a shot so it will not get infected!
$100 at the most and you are done.

EagleOne

$5000 per hand???? WOW, that's too expensive!!!! I can't beleive a doctor would charge this much!!!! But I know it happens....A friend of my father had a heart problem and was about to die, the doctor said to his wife (who took him to the hospital) that unless she left a R$15000 (yeah that's right, fifiteen thousand, our currency at that time was 1.8 to a dollar, so that would be US$ 8300) check he couldn't make the surgery in him....Please keep in mind that it was a life saving surgery....This doctor should be in prision...that's the same as poiting a gun to someone's head, give me the money or die......This is what makes me sad.....

I really wish a good and fast healing to all you guys (and to your wallets too.....)

cdsmith

You ever heard of staph infection?

CDSMITH

CafeenMan

First, thanks to everyone for their concern. I am keeping it clean with hydrogen peroxide and then applying neosporin and bandaging until it is healed enough to leave bandages off.

If at any time it looks to be getting infected, I will seek medical attention. For now, I'm just going to let nature take its course and try to avoid a major debt that I can't afford. That's really all I can do. Even though it's only been 24 hours, it seems to be doing well.

NOVAflier

My Feedback: (21)

Ok, can I see through your finger at one point there, I think I can see the building board, a little small hole..Dude, it is not worth it, there is way too much meat missing, you need some help. There are too many infections out there to take a chance at totally losing the thing!!!

DBCherry

My Feedback: (4)

I sure have! My wife went into the hospital for a few days in January (Asthma). She contracted a staph infection from an IV for the Solumedrol they put her on. She nearly died; had to have surgery on her chest to clean out an abscess that "ate" through one of her ribs. We came about an hour from her getting a heart valve replacement due to the infection attacking a valve....

Remember she went in in January? She didn't get home again until mid June. So I know about staph infections, and that hospitals is where most of them are contracted.
Dennis-

DBCherry

My Feedback: (4)

Having said all that; CafeenMan, that really does look serious. I also think you should at least get it looked at. You can probably judge from the doc's reaction whether or not to pursue anything.

Just having it looked at won't cost alot, but it will bring many of us some peace of mind. []
Dennis-

CafeenMan

I have an appt tomorrow for a follow up on my separated shoulder. I'll ask the doc to look at it, but he's an orthopedic surgeon.

I DON'T WANNA DIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


ok.. I feel better now.

scottrc

I cut the tips off two fingers with a chefs knife. Being a 1st responder, and cleaned it out and stitched it up and took a couple of Tylanol. But my boss made me go to the doctor. He looked at the bandaged finger, said it would be better to leave it alone, talked into a tape recorder, and wrote me a prescription for painpills in about 3 minutes time. total cost to workers comp: $250.00.

I know about those "medical" costs. And it's not the doctor getting the dough. Blame malpractice, workers comp fraud, and the other insurance companies schemes. My out of pocket expenses this month for a gallbladder operation is exceeding $4000.00. Not including the rise in insurance premiums this month. I paid out of pocket almost $10,000.00 for medical expenses/insurance premiums/deductables this year thanks to the insurance companies jerking me and my company around. If I didn't have insurance, I would have paid 1/2 that.

Needless to say, I've reduced my collection of RC to pay this little debt.

FLYBOY

My Feedback: (11)

My niece and a good friend both had the same problem last summer. I hate hospitals. They are where people go to die. Both of them almost did, and spent 4 months with permanent IVs in their arm pumping meds in all the time. What a pain. Total cost for my niece was almost $40,000, sams was more. Luckilly,they both had good ins.

When I took my finger tip off, the tip couldn't be found. They did nothing. Just soak in Hydragen peroxide a lot and let it grow closed. That is more than likely what they will do to yours too. Too late at this point to do anything. You won't have as much feeling in it, but that is no bid deal. I haven't missed it.

Nitroaddict

Man - you people havnt seen anything. Last year, my father had a heart attack, was sent to the hospital via an ambulance, and then went through quadruple bypass open hearth surgery. Total cost for the surgery, ambulance, ICU care, and all the other things that needed to be done was 485,000USD. He had insurance, so his out of pocket cost was only 1000.00 but what if he didnt? wow.

74 marley

BEING AN OLD HIGH SCHOOL WOOD SHOP TEACHER, I'VE SEEN A FEW CUTS. MOST HEAL WITHOUT ANY PROBLEM BUT---- I'VE SEE ONE INJURED LIKE YOU, WHO ENDED UP LOSING HIS WHOLE HAND TO AN INFECTION. YOUR WISE TO SEE A DOC.