d_squared431 0 #1 October 1, 2009 and the office is running behind your scheduled appt time. How long do you wait before you go to the counter and complain? I normally give it 15-20 minutes. My childs appt was 10am we arrived at 950am and we sat in the waiting room for 30 minutes and not one person came out to say "hey, we are a bit behind." I went up and they gave me the BS speech. I know the damn BS speech because I have had to give it a few times in the past to patients. Would you be okay with office telling you the truth that they are over booked and are behind or do you just sit there and wait an hr or however long it takes?TPM Sister#130ONTIG#1 I love vodka.I love vodka cause it rhymes with Tuaca~LisaH You having a clean thought is like billyvance having a clean post.iluvtofly Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BillyVance 34 #2 October 1, 2009 We are always at the mercy of these asshat drs' offices... I have waited more than an hour a few times, good thing I don't work."Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cocheese 0 #3 October 1, 2009 I tell the doctor that i don't make him wait, so please don't make me wait or I'll find another doctor. Fair enough? It works. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wmw999 2,116 #4 October 1, 2009 It's the thing I hate most about going to the doctor. Yeah, I could go to another doctor, but then I lose the continuity. The only answer is to be healthy Wendy P. There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ketia0 0 #5 October 1, 2009 If your appointment is at 10am, you arrive there early, and it takes over an hour for the DR to see you; send a bill. Send them a bill for your hourly rate. Not your fault they are behind. If you wanted an appointment at 11am, you would have booked it then. Not at 10am. just my .02c"In this game you can't predict the future. You just have to play the odds. "-JohnMitchell Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cocheese 0 #6 October 1, 2009 That's right. More people die in the hospital than anywhere else. I'm sewing my own damn head back on. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
futuredivot 0 #7 October 1, 2009 I just usually say that I've got some nearby errands to run, should I come back in 1/2 and hour, one hour? What works for them. I try to use an understanding tone and point out that I'm not complaining, I just need to effectively use my time. That being said, I only go to the doc every few years. I go to the ER more often and they usually take me back quickly and at least stop the bleeding.You are only as strong as the prey you devour Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
YahooLV 0 #8 October 1, 2009 I just went to an Endodontists office where I waited 90 minutes for a possible root canal. After I FINALLY got into the chair I questioned the dentist on his wasting of MY time. He looked me dead in the eye and told me.."I deliberately overbook by 70%. This way, with cancellations, I still have business to do". No kidding, folks. Like GOD, their time is valuable...ours isnt! They dont give a crap about our time or our schedules. Oh, and BTW...ALWAYS review your bill from a dentist. I've caught 2 this year double billing me AND the INSURANCE company!http://www.curtisglennphotography.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
topdocker 0 #9 October 1, 2009 This is why my staff knows I will be really upset if we run behind schedule and leave patients waiting. Everyone's time is valuable and we need to respect that. If we know we can't seat a patient at the appointed time (emergency patient/procedure is running long), we try to call the patient and reschedule or let them know how long its going to be. If the patient wants to reschedule or leave and come back, it works for everyone involved. It doesn't happen often, but we have a way to mitigate the impact on the patients involved. I absolutely hate to keep my patients waiting! topJump more, post less! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
d_squared431 0 #10 October 1, 2009 I asked them if they know they always run about an hr behind and if that is the case why dont they adjust their schedule. That this was the 3rd time I have been there that it has taken over an hour to get in even with an appt. Told them the only thing that can justify an hr behind is an emergency such as a transport from the office to an ER and this is poor time mgnt and they need to evaluate why they can not stay on time or close to the times of scheduled appts. I did and said this all in a calm and nice manor.TPM Sister#130ONTIG#1 I love vodka.I love vodka cause it rhymes with Tuaca~LisaH You having a clean thought is like billyvance having a clean post.iluvtofly Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tigra 0 #11 October 1, 2009 I prefer honesty. What I really hate is when they toss you in an exam room, have you strip down and wait. Like when they put you in there, they aren't "late" anymore? Hell, they even do that at the nail salon though. Put you in the pedicure chair and leave you there soaking your feet for an eternity! For me (no kids) the one that bothers me most is my vet's office. I live about 3 minutes away. Why can't they just call me to let me know they are behind schedule? I really don't need to sit in the waiting room and then an exam room stressing my cats out for over an hour. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ladydyver 0 #12 October 1, 2009 i have been seeing the same doc for 30 years...he is always behind so i try to schedule for the first appt of the day or the one right when they come back from lunch. some of it is that they end up getting a patient that has some crisis (physical/emotional) it is rude to make the patient wait..... but i have been on both sides of the fence where i have waited 30 min for the patient to show up and they never do or they call and say....can i still come in? and this has nothing to do with the doc i married...he never keeps me waiting - DPH # 2 "I am not sure what you are suppose to do with that, but I don't think it is suppose to flop around like that." ~Skootz~ I have a strong regard for the rules.......doc! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Brains 2 #13 October 1, 2009 Quote I only go to the doc every few years. I go to the ER more often and they usually take me back quickly and at least stop the bleeding give me pain meds and reset the bone(s). Sorry divot, it was just easier to edit your post than to write it all out again for my situation Never look down on someone, unless they are going down on you. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lauraliscious 0 #14 October 1, 2009 Sounds to me like you need to find a new vet!!! I have NEVER had to wait longer than 5 minutes at my vet. We are in and out of there so fast, my dog even likes going there! Human doctors, OTOH, always seem to keep me waiting. Enemiga Rodriguez, PMS #369, OrFun #25, Team Dirty Sanchez #116, Pelt Head #29, Muff #4091 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pontiacgtp00 0 #15 October 1, 2009 It's all because they want you to sit in the waiting room with other sick people for as long as possible, read the soiled old magazines and hopefully you'll catch some kind of infection...that way you have to come back a few days later for another appointment! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MikeJD 0 #16 October 1, 2009 If it's a general practitioner rather than a specialist surgery, then I blame a lot of the patients. Seriously. Maybe things are different in the US, but in the UK it amazes me how many people insist on seeing their GP at the first sign of a sniffle, clogging up waiting rooms and trading viruses with every other hypochondriac in the area. This is probably the downside of 'free' health care! Geez, take the day off work, swallow a couple of aspirin and go to bed (not you, Deedy! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cheach 0 #17 October 1, 2009 At emergent care places...I get it. At places where you make an appointment, it bothers me. I had an 3:00 appointment for my orthopaedic surgeon...they got me back in the room about 250. Then I sat there until almost 345. The entire time I could here him talking to the guy in the next room about howhe understands how it will be tough not golfing for a few months. That bothered me!I woke up next to a blowup doll Ash....so what do you think? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tigra 0 #18 October 1, 2009 Quote Sounds to me like you need to find a new vet!!! I have NEVER had to wait longer than 5 minutes at my vet. We are in and out of there so fast, my dog even likes going there! Human doctors, OTOH, always seem to keep me waiting. Nope- she's a great vet who takes a little extra time with her patients and their humans. She works limited hours, and a lot of people specifically request her so the office tends to over schedule her on the days she works. I don't mind waiting for her but since I live so close and cats get stressed so easily, I just wish they would call and let me know to come a little later. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wildcard451 0 #19 October 1, 2009 I'll do my best to break it down here, as it is fairly complicated. I assure you that your doc is not making you wait just because they feel like it. To think that is quite frankly silly. What you need to remember, as one professional coach told me during residency training - "You know, out of all the professions I deal with, doctors are the only ones that have to open a door 40 times a day and have no idea what is waiting for them on the other side". Often, when I was doing primary care, we had patients who want 5-6 problems addressed during each office visit, which is only scheduled for 15 minutes. That is time to handle 1-2 max. However, if we tell you to reschedule to cover the other problems, well then we are assholes that are ignoring you and just trying to make more money by making another visit. You must also remember that our entire job is dealing with the sick people of the world. I am currently working in Urgent care, no scheduled appointments at all. People still yell at me for running behind and making them wait - it doesn't matter that I am calling the ambulance and dealing with an acute chest pain, or it took me an hour to sew up the wound from a guy dropping a chainsaw on his thigh before I got to the little sinus infection. Bottom line - espescially in primary care. 1) There are not enough of us to take care of every single patient, so we are overbooked. 2) With sick people, come emergencies, and no matter how much you want to be seen on time, the guy seizing down the hall takes priority 3) We're not trying to screw you over, but rather make a trade off between keeping a schedule, and giving each patient the treatment and time they need. (just the other day I had a lady for sinus congestion - but noticed that she checked "heavy" alcohol use in our system. She broke down, confessing her alcohol abuse because she wanted help, and getting her set up and treated took and extra 20 minutes, and it was worth every second of it to me) - Also, don't get mad at your office if they have a no tolerance policy on late visits. If you show up late, and still demand to be seen, then that there wrecks the entire appointment book for the rest of the day, and we are constantly trying to fight our way back to being on time. //and this did not even get into the economics of the number pf pts you need ot see per hour to even make back your overhead based on avg insurance/medicare/medicaid re-imbursements. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
turtlespeed 212 #20 October 1, 2009 Hi DD - Relatives of yours?I'm not usually into the whole 3-way thing, but you got me a little excited with that. - Skymama BTR #1 / OTB^5 Official #2 / Hellfish #408 / VSCR #108/Tortuga/Orfun Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BillyVance 34 #21 October 1, 2009 Quote I prefer honesty. What I really hate is when they toss you in an exam room, have you strip down and wait. Like when they put you in there, they aren't "late" anymore? Yeah and you're sitting there bored out of your mind and get the pager phone out and start texting or something and you see the sign on the door that says "please turn phones off". If they are going to make me wait, I'll do as I damn well pleased with my phone. "Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
d_squared431 0 #22 October 1, 2009 Okay, Let me break it down to you like this....No office will run on time but it should be pretty damn close to it if there are no walkins(office is appt only) I know what it is like to work a 12hr shift 8-8 and actually leave at 12am-1am because the front office staff did not turn away patients. When you take on more patients than what you can see in an hour then you have an issues.The front office/back office staff is supposed to be informing patients on approx time they will be waiting and continuing to check on those patients in the rooms. This is how you make the patients happy even when they have to wait. Communication. I have worked in very busy family practices/urgent cares for the better part of 9-10yrs. If the staff is not communicating with the providers and vice versa you run into your 12hr shifts being 15+hrs. The front receptionist must know and consult with the mgr/doctor about cutting off patients(not accepting new walkins). It is all about keeping the providers on a schedule and having the office run smoothly. In my opinion the providers on busy days have it easy because it is the front /back office staff that works their asses off with diagnostic test/pissy patients/cleaning up/setting up/stat referrals/and transfers. All the doctors/providers do are see the patients sign off of items and we do all the hard work...Okay, let me have it now... TPM Sister#130ONTIG#1 I love vodka.I love vodka cause it rhymes with Tuaca~LisaH You having a clean thought is like billyvance having a clean post.iluvtofly Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wildcard451 0 #23 October 1, 2009 Quote Okay, Let me break it down to you like this....No office will run on time but it should be pretty damn close to it if there are no walkins(office is appt only) I know what it is like to work a 12hr shift 8-8 and actually leave at 12am-1am because the front office staff did not turn away patients. When you take on more patients than what you can see in an hour then you have an issues.The front office/back office staff is supposed to be informing patients on approx time they will be waiting and continuing to check on those patients in the rooms. This is how you make the patients happy even when they have to wait. Communication. I have worked in very busy family practices/urgent cares for the better part of 9-10yrs. If the staff is not communicating with the providers and vice versa you run into your 12hr shifts being 15+hrs. The front receptionist must know and consult with the mgr/doctor about cutting off patients(not accepting new walkins). It is all about keeping the providers on a schedule and having the office run smoothly. In my opinion the providers on busy days have it easy because it is the front /back office staff that works their asses off with diagnostic test/pissy patients/cleaning up/setting up/stat referrals/and transfers. All the doctors/providers do are see the patients sign off of items and we do all the hard work...Okay, let me have it now... Most of it, you're right. But that still doesn't mean that we can keep every single patient to the minute. Shit happens. If the front office is still accepting patients when we are slammed and overbooked, then they'll hear it from me first. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shah269 0 #24 October 1, 2009 Com in, check in, if they look like they are up to their eyes in sick people ask if I can go and do some stuff and be back in a half an hour or so. I know it's easier said then done especially with kids.Life through good thoughts, good words, and good deeds is necessary to ensure happiness and to keep chaos at bay. The only thing that falls from the sky is birdshit and fools! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billeisele 122 #25 October 1, 2009 waiting is a pain, especially with a room full of sick folks I'll call my MD before the appt and ask if they are on schedule. If they say 1 hour then I tell them that I will arrive at 11 AM for my 10 AM appt and just wait for their reply. It is always an interesting conversation but almost always get agreement that it is OK.Give one city to the thugs so they can all live together. I vote for Chicago where they have strict gun laws. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
