I might have hepatitis, I might have HIV

One of many dreading test results, man loses sleep, appetite

Tiffany Brown

Rollie Gibbs, one of more than 40,000 people urged to be tested for possible exposure to hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV at an endoscopy clinic, worried incessantly while he awaited results of his blood test, even at work in a cab company’s office near the Las Vegas Strip.

By Mike Trask

Thu, Mar 20, 2008 (2 a.m.)

Sun Topics: Hepatitis Scare

Former patient sues clinic, doctor, says rushed exam missed colon cancer(3-12-2008)
Tests may find existing cases, not clinic victims (3-6-2008)
How hepatitis probe led to clinic (3-2-2008)

For Rollie Gibbs, the worst part has been the wait.

It was no surprise when the envelope with the return address of the Southern Nevada Health District showed up in his Las Vegas mailbox. He had followed the news and knew he would probably be on the list.

Gibbs, 52, was a patient at the Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada in 2006. It was just a routine checkup as he entered his 50s.

The lack of shock didn’t make it any less infuriating when he got the notice that he was one of 40,000 people who may have been subjected to a deadly disease because of dangerous practices at the clinic.

So he scurried over to a diagnostic center to see whether he had hepatitis B or C or HIV.

He and his wife have been married for 18 years. He works hard, prays and cares for his son. He’s a good guy. A few years ago he even won an award from the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce for helping people out when he drove a cab.

Like others among the 40,000, Gibbs, who now works in the cab company offices, found himself wondering, Why me?

But there he was at 6:45 on a Saturday morning waiting to be pricked — waiting to find out whether he had, through no fault of his own, contracted a potentially fatal illness.

That wait lasted only 45 minutes March 8 in the lobby of Quest Diagnostics on South Rainbow Boulevard. He got the blood drawn. “I made sure they had clean needles and syringes,” he said.

That, however, was just the beginning of his waiting.

Four days after his test, he learned he didn’t have HIV. He breathed a sigh of relief: One down, two to go.

Over the next six agonizing days he wondered, “Do I have hepatitis?”

A Southern Nevada Health District spokeswoman said labs are experiencing a much higher than normal volume of blood draws, which is why it may be taking longer than usual to get test results — in some instances, as long as three weeks. Typically, it takes five to 10 days to get blood test results, medical experts say.

Each day for Gibbs got a little worse. He couldn’t sleep. He lost his appetite.

He’d stay up past his bedtime to watch 11 o’clock newscasts that simply fueled his anxiety.

At work the thought crossed his mind every few minutes, hundreds of times a day.

His mind started playing tricks on him. He had been feeling a little sluggish — maybe it was hepatitis. He sneezed. Was that the beginning of the end?

“I waited all these days thinking, ‘Why is it taking so long? Did they find something? Am I going to get this shocking news?’ ”

He and his wife, Cindy, called the center every day. Each day they were told to stay patient, that the results would be in soon.

“That’s a long time to be waiting,” he said. “It was very emotional just knowing this. It was like, ‘Do I have a death sentence?’ ”

Finally, on Tuesday, he got the results. All tests had come back negative.

“We hugged,” he said. “It was a big relief. Then it was like, ‘What attorney do I call?’ You know, though, I don’t even want money. I’d be happy if they just gave me back my $30 co-pay and threw the doctor in jail.”

Sun reporter Steve Kanigher contributed to this story.

Discussion: 8 comments so far…

By cds

3/20/08 at 6:58 a.m.

Suggest removal

Money for what, JJ? With your standards, you should have to sue your partner every time you have unprotected intercourse or every driver in town that that comes close to but does not accident. When does it end? Fear does not equal malpractice. You have to prove injury. Litigation is NOT the answer to everyone's problems.
By ExVegasChick

3/20/08 at 1:06 p.m.

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My mother, who was also one of the 40,000, luckily received negative results (whew). Although her ordeal is over, I know there are thousands others who are still waiting results, or are having to deal with positive test results. A class-action suit against the clinic is not about money, and it's not an answer to a problem. HOWEVER, it CAN be a means to an end. Simply just pulling a license may not necessarily stop such unethical practices. Sometimes you have to bankrupt a person, or a system, to create change in how the medical profession does business.
By illsaywhatsonmymind

3/20/08 at 1:53 p.m.

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To cds:

Fear doesn't equal malpractice, however ignorance, stupidity and intentional negligence does. Just because the majority of these people may test negative, it doesn't mean they were not "injured" in some sort of way. The bottom line is that these people were subjected to ILLEGAL practices out of GREED, by those that were suppose to help. Litigation both civil and criminal is exactly what these doctors need.
I am still praying for all those affected.
By AngryPostman

3/20/08 at 1:56 p.m.

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Yep ExVegasChick explains it all. Hit them hard enough financially so that no other doctor would ever consider this kind of crap.

Desai should be sued into oblivion. The State medical board also. Those retards are trying to argue that it was not there fault or problem. Too bad! It was on your watch, you blew it, now GTFO!
By bloodsucker

3/20/08 at 6:47 p.m.

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I'm going to enlighten you on HIV testing. The current test for HIV that is being used is unreliable. This is a basic HIV antibody test that gives a "reactive" or "nonreactive" result. If a person is infected with HIV and is tested, it may mean nothing due to a process called "seroconversion". What this means is that from the time of infection until the virus is detected in the blood may take months. So, a person may be infected and not know it for months. The person may be tested and get an O.K., yet they are infected and may pass the virus on to their partners. Don't take my word for it, check it out with Quest, Labcorp, or any other lab. I tried to give this info to Channel 8 and Channel 13, so they could inform the public, but they were not interested. So...........There is a test that will detect an acute HIV infection, it is called HIV, DNA, RNA, by PCR, but, it is much more expensive than the regular HIV test....................so, if you have been given an "all clear" test result............it may be wrong. I work in the medical field and i am aware of this........so, my friends.............good luck........bloodsucker
By buyckergal

3/21/08 at 9:48 p.m.

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i have e-mailed and phoned the national news stations abc-- nbc to find out why they haven't had this horrible story out there more... it seems none of them want anything to do with this story. my husband is one of the 40,000 and results aren't back yet. this story needs nationwide attention so this doesn't happen anywhere else
By pained_girl

4/10/08 at 1:04 p.m.

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I know when I got my results back I was so happy to hear I was safe. I was lucky, the story broke on that Wed night. I had set up a regular doc's appointment for that Friday to get a referral. My doctor put me in for that Monday morning to get tested. My HIV test came back find the next morning, but it took a week to get the Hep C test back. I can tell you I also didn't eat, I cried, I didn't sleep, I couldn't work very well. I never want to go through that again.
I finally started talking to my friends about this and I find out that I have friends who went through the same thing, or they have family members or co-workers. One friend, her co-worker's husband has been affected the the co-worker was going to get tested. I couldn't believe the pain these people are feeling. I am grateful that I am not infected. I still want to join a law suit, not to get money, but just to be another nail in the coffin for these docs and nurses.