Today I had a doctor's appointment with a new doctor. I need to have a colonoscopy and I was going to discuss this with the new doc. My appointment was at 3:00pm. I took time off from work and arrived at 2:50pm. The office was empty of patients. I heard the doctor talking to the receptionist for 10 minutes (3pm to 3:10pm) about something he planned to do this weekend. At 3:10 the nurse opened the door and asked me to come back. As I was walking to the dreaded scale (which weighed me 6 pounds heavy ugh) the doctor walked by and said I will be with you in a moment. I said "oh, okay."
3:15 - no doctor
3:20 - no doctor
3:25 - no doctor
3:30 - no doctor
3:35 - no doctor (it was at this time that I heard him pick up the phone in his office and begin a phone call) WOW really!! I thought, "this dude has no intention of seeing me any time soon." The office was empty. I was getting the "my time is more important than yours" message loud and clear.
I walked out of the room and stopped by the reception area. I asked "my appointment was at 3pm...correct?!? She said yes. I said "well it is 3:35 and the doctor has not yet seen me. She said "oh he had to run to the hospital (which is connected to his office) to see an inpatient. I said, "Oh it would have been nice if someone had told me (apparently when he said "I will be right with you," that was him telling me he was going to the hospital to see a patient and would not be with me for 45 minutes). She went on to say, "he is back now if you want to see him. My response, no thanks and I walked out.
Here is the deal. The medical field is so competitive now, why should I have to deal with this? And I honestly do not believe he went to the hospital because I heard him in his office the entire time. Why would I want someone to conduct a roto rooter on me if at my first appointment he cannot even meet with me at my scheduled appointment time? At the bare minimum someone should have stopped by and communicated this to me.
Maybe I am just being mental but this really grinds my gears! What are your thoughts?
3 comments:
You're not being mental. Just because you're a doctor doesn't mean that you have to be rude. There's a level of trust that needs to be established in doctor-patient relationships, after all.
That is so frustrating. I actually had a doctor forget about me in a room. I could hear all of the nurses and office staff saying their goodbyes at the end of the day. Can you imagine the shock on their faces when I walked out of the exam room. Ugh...not happy!!
There are some offices where I can ALMOST relax and take in a few minutes of peace and quiet, eventhough I still don't like to wait. However, waiting to discuss a colonoscopy or the vulnerable gyn waiting game are anxious enough moments where folks shouldn't be left simmering. UGH!
Post a Comment