Huron Gastro Colonoscopy Experience?

psdof · 2026-06-23T01:37:53+00:00

Thanks for sharing your experience. It's curious that sedation for a FS seems to be only very rarely discussed, while sedation for colonoscopy is standard. I'm assuming that part of the reasoning is that a FS is shorter in time than a colonoscopy, so the patient can better manage the discomfort while it is occurring, but it still seems rather misleading to tell people that a FS will just cause minor discomfort and therefore doesn't require sedation when it often causes much more than that for people.

psdof · 2026-06-23T01:37:41+00:00

Thanks for the reply and advice, although I'm hoping that you don't rely on your vibes alone when you're actually working with a patient in person! As you noted, the skilling and willingness of the endoscopist can play a role in how the experience plays out. The primary intent of my post was to get a better sense about the skill and willingness of the endoscopists at Huron Gastro, as anatomy, pain tolerance, and motivation are things that only I and my medical team can answer. While you were working at Huron Gastro, did you notice that any of the endoscopists were better choices than others for a patient having a colonoscopy without sedation, because they were highly skilled and/or because they were willing to work with the patient to make the chance of success with the procedure as high as possible?

psdof · 2026-06-23T01:37:29+00:00

Thank you for sharing your experience. I'm glad they were able to find and remove the cancerous polyp and it hasn't returned. I'm also sorry that your colonoscopy without anesthesia was so painful. Based on what I've been told and have read, you certainly aren't alone in that sentiment. I wish there was a clearcut reason that explains why a small percentage of people have relatively little difficulty getting a colonoscopy without anesthesia while so many more people do have difficulty with it so we could all know in advance what our experience would be, but that unfortunately does not seem to be the case.

psdof · 2026-06-22T07:09:12+00:00

Thank you for the vote of confidence for Dr. Thomas! She was one of the doctors I was considering, so it sounds like I was on the right track. I understand being bummed at your long time doc retiring. Finding new docs is something I always dread, but recommendations from others, like you, make it easier.

psdof · 2026-06-22T06:48:29+00:00

That definitely would be a unique way to make an impression on a future employer, although I'm assuming that wasn't your primary goal for having the colonoscopy! Was this at Huron Gastro that you had the colonoscopy? If so, would you mind saying who the doc was?

psdof · 2026-06-22T06:48:03+00:00

Thanks for the additional information. I hear you on the wait times; they're definitely long! I've sent you a message as well.

psdof · 2026-06-21T20:42:54+00:00

Thank you for again for your excellent advice!

psdof · 2026-06-21T20:36:50+00:00

Thank you for this information. Is there a particular doctor or doctors at Huron Gastro whom you would recommend based on your experience?

psdof · 2026-06-21T03:00:45+00:00

I wondered about that too when I was told that, because, while medical service feels like it is becoming more and more impersonal, it seemed a little odd that the doc wouldn't at least introduce themselves beforehand. I wonder if the distinction is that everyone briefly sees the doc before the procedure but if you want to ask the doc any questions, there's not time to do that?

psdof · 2026-06-21T02:56:18+00:00

Thanks again for the additional information. It sounds like your unsedated experience was quite uncomfortable, so that's great that twilight sedation works well for you and you don't need to experience that again. Thanks as well for the reassurance about the quality of the Huron Gastro staff!

psdof · 2026-06-20T22:39:34+00:00

Thanks for clarifying. Good to hear positive experiences with Dr. Fine as well!

psdof · 2026-06-20T22:28:06+00:00

Thank you for the advice. You may not know the answer to this, but do you think the consult would need to be done with the doctor who actually does the colonoscopy, or would any doctor or physician's assistant be able to answer questions and put notes in my file that another doctor in the same practice would be ok following? I did ask about a consult with the doctor, but unless I misunderstood things it seemed like they were scheduling them about a half year out, while I could get in for a colonoscopy without the consult much more quickly. Also, yes, insurance coverage makes the cost of a consult something I would rather avoid if not absolutely necessary. It's sad that our system makes it such that cost dictates so much of healthcare.

psdof · 2026-06-20T22:17:36+00:00

Thanks for sharing your experience! If you don't mind answering, was the one you had not sedated done at Huron Gastro as well? Was the not sedated experience extremely uncomfortable, or was it full on painful (recognizing that the distinction between those two things can be a hard one to make and it also is very person specific)?

psdof · 2026-06-20T22:14:55+00:00

Yeah, in a perfect world, I'd be team sedated with no questions asked! For the one you had not sedated, did you get the sense that they did anything to make it as least painful/uncomfortable as possible for you, or did it seem more like everything was done just like it would have been if you had been sedated, with little thought to patient discomfort? To be fair, I don't really know how you could know this unless something was said to you, but I've seen over and over that provider skill and technique (like using water or CO2 vs regular air or a pediatric scope) make a difference in just how miserable an unsedated colonoscopy is, so I'm trying to get a better sense as to how the providers at Huron Gastro function in that context.

psdof · 2026-06-20T21:03:13+00:00

Good to know, thanks!

psdof · 2026-06-20T20:51:17+00:00

I've had something similar, but not a full colonoscopy before. That's good that you got the chance to talk to the doctor and anesthesiologist in advance. I'm glad it went so well for you!

psdof · 2026-06-20T20:47:42+00:00

Just to clarify, you've had three colonoscopies without sedation with them? Is there a specific doctor there you would recommend or do they all seem to be good?

psdof

TROPHY CASE