British citizen getting INR blood test in WDW

[shaun&miranda]

Hi all,
Is there anyone on this board who is a Brit and had to get their INR blood test whilst out in Orlando?

I see on some of the other boards that there are clinics nearby that do the service but can only find Americans talking about it and it is easy for them! What paperwork would a Brit need to get an INR test done? I assume I would need to pay?

Anyone had to do this at Disney before? What British end stuff did you need to organise?

Thanks
Miranda
(on Warfarin for blood clots )

 

[alisonbestford]

Hi Miranda

I have to admit I don't know the answer to your question at all but I'm happy to offer a few suggestions in case no-one else is able to offer their experience

Does your GP normally check your INR or do you have to go to the hospital?
I'd start by asking their advice first and foremost.

How long are you going for?
Do you normally have it checked weekly?
Have you been taking Warfarin for a while?
Is there some sort of pattern/regularity to your INR levels / dosage?

20 question "nurse head" on at the moment

As I say I have absolutely no experience of this but I'd start with your own healthcare professional's advice first

 

[shaun&miranda]

Hi Alison,
Thanks for trying to help me!

I have been on warfarin for just about 4 weeks now. I am having my INR tests done at the hospital where I was treated for my blood clots. I am mostly having my INR done weekly or more often, there is no set pattern yet.

The Warfarin nurse said I would probably need to get my INR checked while we are away (16 nights) and said she had no idea how to do this for the USA and suggested I ask here when I told her about these boards!

It seems that a lot of people are on warfarin and need INR checks so I can't be the first person this has happened to, and I wondered if anyone on this board had any experience of needing blood tests whilst in the US.

If you (or anyone else) have suggestions I would be very grateful!

Thanks
Miranda x

 

[martinrmn]

Hi I have no experience of this but suggest you speak to your GP/INR clinic first. My wife runs an INR clinic and will ask some of her patients who have been. In the meantime do you have support hosiery to wear on the plane? Are you currently on Klexane/Enoxeparin? Make sure you drink plenty of fluid on the plane and get up and walk around every 15 minutes or so.

Feel free to remind me Monday in case we forget.

 

[alisonbestford]

Hmmm, I suppose 4 weeks isn't really long enough to establish any sort of pattern.
If you'd said years I'd have wondered whether you were better having it checked before you went and then as soon as you got home (working on the principal that the fewer folk involved in your INR care the better).

Then again I have no real experience in this area but it sounds as though Martin's wife might be able to come up trumps for you

 

[barnaby1]

Another nurse's hat on here.

I think you can easily attend one of the walk in clinics scattered all over but you will pay (I suspect quite a bit) for it. You will need to have a predetermined plan from your warfarin clinic for what you will adjust your warfarin to depending on your blood result.

On a side issue (sorry if this is putting a bit of a downer on your question) and I obviously do not know your medical history but if you are only 4 weeks post DVT/PE then your risk factors for flying long haul are very high. Your insurance will not cover you if you have related problem in the US. Speak to your haematologist to make sure they are happy for you to go and if they are get specific advice from them about ways to reduce your risk.

 

[alisonbestford]

I found this site "Googling" and there's mention of $79 for an INR check in Florida.......

http://www.dvtforum.com/index.asp?forumID=17383&subject=Getting-INR-checked-while-visiting-the-US-?

Don't know if the link will open or is of any use

Barnaby1 has a valid point about the flight so soon after diagnosis
I hope it all works out well

 

[shaun&miranda]

Thanks everyone!

I think I might make a phone call to one of the walk in clinics near Disney and ask what paperwork they would want before they did the test, as no one seems to have done it yet themselves on these boards.

Martin, if your wife could also find out please I would be hugely grateful!

I totally understand the posters who are concerned this may be high risk - I was very surprised when the nurses at my Warfarin clinic said I could go!

I had bilateral multiple massive pulmonary embolism on October 11th (both lungs, lots of big clots) and I thought they would say no for sure... but they are happy for me to go since I am recovering so well. They said that being in the sunshine and open air in Florida would also be good rather than inside with cold rain and grey skies here in the UK.

We have upgraded our seats to premium economy so that I have more room to move and am not so cramped, and will be wearing stockings etc. They are deciding whether to give me more heparin (Clexane) injections or not at the moment.

I know there is still a small chance I won't be able to go, but I am doing everything I can to make it as safe as possible. That's part of why I am keen to get my INR checked in WDW if the nurses want me to.

Thanks everyone for your help!

Miranda x

 

[martinrmn]

After reading this and seeing how many nurses responded, perhaps we should start a nurses discussion forum as well!

<a href="http://distickers.com/ticker/"><img src="http://distickers.com/ticker/tickers/96ckurdb28x5kann.png" alt="DIStickers.com Ticker" border="0"/></a>

 

[alisonbestford]

After reading this and seeing how many nurses responded, perhaps we should start a nurses discussion forum as well!

<a href="http://distickers.com/ticker/"><img src="http://distickers.com/ticker/tickers/96ckurdb28x5kann.png" alt="DIStickers.com Ticker" border="0"/></a>

Oh my, whatever would we all post on there...........?

 

[barnaby1]

Oh my, whatever would we all post on there...........?

Probably no stories that could be told in a public forum!!

Or we could post a poll as to how quickly friends and relatives volunteer you as a nurse in a perceived emergency as you are trying to pass yourself off as a secretary!!

OP: No disrespect to your warfarin nurses but please check with your haematologist about whether they are happy for you to go to put your mind at rest. The rubbish weather in the UK is not a risk factor - a 9 hour flight potentially is!

 

[martinrmn]

Me again. My wife, a.k.a. boss, checked in work today and the advice she had was check with your haemotologist. Sorry it couldn't be more.

 

[buzz for boys]

I dont know the answer to your question im afraid but can i suggest you ask on the diabilities board ? Its predominatly americans and Im sure they will be able to help with where they go etc

hope that is of some help !!

 

[shaun&miranda]

Hullo again everyone!

We had a wonderful time at WDW, and it has done me the world of good. The advice in the end was to wear thigh-high compression stockings, get my warfarin dose up to put my INR above 3, take fragmin and get an INR blood test out there.

We successfully did this, which is why I am reporting back in case other Brits find themselves in the same position.

The place we went was near the Florida Mall, and was called "Any Lab Test Now" http://www.anylabtestnow.com/orlando_southeast

They are just a shop with a nurse inside who takes your blood, they send it off to a lab for testing (mine was sent to a Quest lab) and then they give you the result. You can pick it up in person or they can email it depending what you are having tested. We went to the shop around 1pm and the results of my INR were emailed to me around 9am. You don't need to make an appointment, just walk up and wait (although I didn't even need to wait when I went).

It is important to note no doctor is involved, so no medical advice is given at all. They just test your blood and give you the result. However, the place was modern, well kept, clean and professional. The nurse gave me strict instructions on how to keep everything safe and sterile, even how to take a plaster off without exposing myself to infection!

The INR test only cost me 49 dollars, which is fantastic. They give you a big tick sheet when you go there and you tick which tests you want done on your blood, with different prices for different tests, ranging from 49 bucks to I think about 200 for the rarer stuff.

This is a national chain which essentially serves people who don't have medical insurance, so is perfect for non-US nationals.

Anyway, thanks everyone for your help and ideas, and hopefully in future someone will find this thread and find it of use.

Happy new year!

Miranda

 

[dixonsontour]

Glad you had a great trip and really useful info for anyone needing a blood test whilst away.

 

[Tanzanite]

Hullo again everyone!

We had a wonderful time at WDW, and it has done me the world of good. The advice in the end was to wear thigh-high compression stockings, get my warfarin dose up to put my INR above 3, take fragmin and get an INR blood test out there.

We successfully did this, which is why I am reporting back in case other Brits find themselves in the same position.

The place we went was near the Florida Mall, and was called "Any Lab Test Now" http://www.anylabtestnow.com/orlando_southeast

They are just a shop with a nurse inside who takes your blood, they send it off to a lab for testing (mine was sent to a Quest lab) and then they give you the result. You can pick it up in person or they can email it depending what you are having tested. We went to the shop around 1pm and the results of my INR were emailed to me around 9am. You don't need to make an appointment, just walk up and wait (although I didn't even need to wait when I went).

It is important to note no doctor is involved, so no medical advice is given at all. They just test your blood and give you the result. However, the place was modern, well kept, clean and professional. The nurse gave me strict instructions on how to keep everything safe and sterile, even how to take a plaster off without exposing myself to infection!

The INR test only cost me 49 dollars, which is fantastic. They give you a big tick sheet when you go there and you tick which tests you want done on your blood, with different prices for different tests, ranging from 49 bucks to I think about 200 for the rarer stuff.

This is a national chain which essentially serves people who don't have medical insurance, so is perfect for non-US nationals.

Anyway, thanks everyone for your help and ideas, and hopefully in future someone will find this thread and find it of use.

Happy new year!

Miranda

Hi i am glad your trip was wonderful. I was wondering my Mum was to visit me for holidays didnt come over because she had a stroke in Oct now doing well on Warfarin.Cancelled trip she had booked in summer b ecause insurance with Barclays cancelled her we could not find new reasonable cost insurance she is 77 yrs old but doctor said ok to travel.Will we be able to find insurance for next christmas all being well or is age against her.I live in states and have 3 kids not always affordable for me to visit .I missed her this holiday was not the same without her .My sister visited as lost her husband in Oct 2010 was not a good year for us so sad. Thanks anyone for help.

 

[shaun&miranda]

Hi Tanzanite,
I'm sorry but I don't know the answer to your question about insurance over here. All I can tell you is that insurance companies are almost certainly not going to give her insurance cover for the same symptoms if they re-occur.

So for example, I can no longer buy travel insurance that will cover me if I have another pulmonary embolism. Some companies will insure me but will add in a clause that excludes problems with my lungs. Basically they think I am too much of a bad bet for them as far as my lungs go.

Your Mum might be able to find travel insurance with a company if she is happy for that exclusion to be put into the contract. She just needs to call around. I don't know if age will matter or not, sorry.

Good luck though

Miranda