yes this is a rant.
8:45 doctors appt with a renowned orthopedic surgeon. I know I need shoulder surgery, I met with my local orthopedist, went through the PT, cortisone shots, exercises etc. no change, only worsened over time, and now that I know what's next and went through the stupid medical insurance checklists I went to meet with the big dog.
he does a lot of the local colleges knees and shoulders as well as some overflow pros and he operated on my left shoulder in 2011.
9:30 rolls around I ask the receptionist, my appt was at 8:45 right? she says yes sheepishly, but the doctor is running way behind. you're not even next she says, there are two or three still ahead of you. I look at her like I want to rip her head off, but it's not her fault. I sit back down and read BBI on my phone.
9:55, an hour and 10 min after my appt was scheduled I get called in.
a nurse of some type fills out some form asking questions about my pain level and how long has this been hurting, and am I allergic to anything.
25 min later a "fellow" to the doctor I had an appt with comes in looks at my x-rays, examines me, asks some questions and says what he thinks (what I already knew) and then says he'll go talk to the dr and then come back.
11am now (2 hours and 15 min post appt time) the doctor comes in, says my x-rays showed much worse than he expected, need to start thinking about a surgery date, have to check the MRI box so get that scheduled with reception and did I want a cortisone shot for temporary relief.
no "sorry for the wait", no "wow I didn't realize your appt was for 8:45" or anything.
just strolls in like he's the king of the planet.
what other industries can get away with this?
I'll go to him and I'll be pissed off about the wait, but he's the best so you put up with it. but I don't have to like it.
I know in my job even if I was the best on the planet I could not get away with being unprofessional.
/rant
They have to round their hospital patients in the early
Morning possibly
They have to round their hospital patients in the early
Morning possibly
I know, but he's the best. It's like Yogi Berra said nobody goes there anymore because it's too crowded.
I get that on one hand, you want them to take their time with each patient and not fly through them for the sake of getting them all done ASAP.. I also get that they're not going to book fewer appointments because it means less money for them. But it's still majorly inconvenient when what should be a 25-30 minute appointment takes well over an hour and there's zero remorse on their end as if it's something we're just supposed to deal with and "too bad".
While not to this level, I've seen many officers, usually Colonels and Genera/Flag Officers, who don't seem to give a shit about other people's time now that they've climbed to the upper echelons of their services.
These people are busy, and even if you have an appointment you realize that it might have to wait should they be delayed in getting to you. The same is true for holding out for the medical specialist of your choice.
Not a perfect analogy but it's all I got.
Likely that's why he's at the top of his field. You want him cutting short your surgery if there's a complication because he had an 8:45 he can't be late to?
Just trying to help you see your issue from another perspective, not saying you're necessarily wrong. An apology would have been nice, I agree.
then after a few years, i was outside his office waiting for a prescription when i overheard him consoling another parents whose kid had a serious cognitive functioning issue.
they were asking a ton of questions, and seeking alot of information about a serious disorder that their kids would never recover from.
when I went in, the doc realized i probably heard a little.
he said he schedules everyone at 15 min, some take 10, and others like the couple before me take 90 min.
kept everything in perspective, I am sure he isn't intentionally screwing you. maybe something life involved with another patient came up.
He works on two body parts. Shoulders and knees. That's literally it.
He operated on my other shoulder. I know him. he was never this late before, but he's always late.
He just over-books. Some professionalism and courtesy would be nice.
-----Dr. High & Mighty
I know an MD and this is a synopsis of 3 stories she told me about her day yesterday
-one of her patients was sick and had been emailing her all week about his inability to eat or drink... and how had nieces/nephews living in his house and that he had thoughts of harming them. Fortunately my wife was able to get him to come in and get checked out/admitted
-she spent another hour on the phone with a social worker and the local police department tracking down a patient who was discharged against medical advice all because it had been 48hrs since the discharge and she wanted to make sure he was ok
-another patient was supposed to get a feeding tube delivered but the purchasing Dept f'ed up the order and delivery so she spent an hour apologizing to the patient and figuring out a plan so this guy could get the nutrients his body needs.
This was just yesterday and this wasn't even the patients she was supposed to see that day. But needless to say this put her behind in seeing patients and the work she was really supposed to do that day.
I have countless of stories like this. Maybe your doctor is a dick but don't put all MDs in that category
maybe the thread title is poorly worded, but I didn't have much room.
and as I said my doctor is a sports medicine orthopedist, he's not in an ER, not saving lives, and not talking to family members.
Exactly, even if he was just laughing as he looked over the patient list and said "lol, some of those poor assholes will be sitting in that waiting room for over an hour given the fact we have 8 people booked at 8:45 and one of me" - which I don't believe was the case, a simple "sorry you had to wait" from any of the staff would have at least made me feel like they give a shit.
what exactly is the purpose of setting an appointment if the doctor is going to see you hours later?????
maybe the thread title is poorly worded, but I didn't have much room.
and as I said my doctor is a sports medicine orthopedist, he's not in an ER, not saving lives, and not talking to family members.
Understood ... didn't mean to attack, just showing the otherside.
what exactly is the purpose of setting an appointment if the doctor is going to see you hours later?????
Specialists do operate, maybe an operation before took longer then expected. Maybe he was rounding at the hospital in the morning and a trauma case came in and they asked him to help out.
Maybe he's a jerk and tried to squeeze in 18 holes ...
I once had a court date in the Bronx, on a pro bono matter (!), for 10 am. At 1pm they told us that the judge was in Manhattan all morning for training because she was switching courts, and would be in by 2:30. She arrived at 3:30.
yes, your appt was at 8:45, the doctor is running late.
I just wonder what they'd say if I showed up at 11 for my 8:45 am appt.
Specialists do operate, maybe an operation before took longer then expected. Maybe he was rounding at the hospital in the morning and a trauma case came in and they asked him to help out.
Maybe he's a jerk and tried to squeeze in 18 holes ...
maybe the nurse lost the frikken file and just let me and pj sit out there like no bodies until we reminded them we were in the office
Quote:
Specialists do operate, maybe an operation before took longer then expected. Maybe he was rounding at the hospital in the morning and a trauma case came in and they asked him to help out.
Maybe he's a jerk and tried to squeeze in 18 holes ...
maybe the nurse lost the frikken file and just let me and pj sit out there like no bodies until we reminded them we were in the office
that's actually what I thought happened, but then I asked her, and when she said "you're not even next, there are two people ahead of you" I figured that wasn't the case.
and for the record, there were other people in the waiting room who were wondering WTF was going on.
and the funny thing is once I got in to see the doctor I felt like beetlejuice finally getting his number called and almost all the anger seaped out of my body.
until I got home and reflected on it. LOL.
I want to say two months? And my follow up to review the MRI is in 6 weeks.
he's booking surgeries into December.
That same doctor has canceled appointments on me, same day, no less than 3 times.
I get that shit happens, but that's a bi-directional issue.
yes, your appt was at 8:45, the doctor is running late.
I just wonder what they'd say if I showed up at 11 for my 8:45 am appt.
You are lucky you dont have an afternoon appt
Of course, I only go to UCLA Medical so there's that...
But if he is that good, then he is ultra busy. If he wasn't even in yet, he was either at a complex surgery or an emergency surgery. I doubt he was fucking off somewhere.
You are right not many occupations can get away with that kind of delay.
At least you got to see him. Sounds like he has somebody screening the patients and only really sees the bad ones personally.
I saw him first for a shoulder surgery around 10 years ago. There were similar long wait times for him. When I was in with him, he'd frequently be interrupted by his nurses, telling him so-and-so is on the line -- always some weird name, presumably code for athletes, so no one like me will overhear "Peyton Manning is on line 3" or whatever.
I went back recently for a knee issue. He's changed up his practice so he doesn't do initial evaluations. A lower-level doctor does that. Wait times are much better. So I wait less time, but I don't see the Pro From Dover. I think that's fair.
I've since asked for a 10am appointment and show up at 9:55.
Genius has a policy.
Link - ( New Window )
Just trying to help you see your issue from another perspective, not saying you're necessarily wrong. An apology would have been nice, I agree.
A reduction in the fee would be nice. 10% off for every 15 minutes late.
No, it's the inefficiencies of a healthcace system completely controlled by the government.
Either way, its the patients who continue to show up who allow him to get away with it.
and I don't go to the doctor very often.
Anyway, glad I'm not alone, and the fact he pushed a cortisone shot on me that I didn't want and it left my shoulder and upper arm feeling like I had a charlie horse all day didn't help.
Plus the day has been shitty overall.
normally I'm not a big whiner.
thanks Matt, I'm in the Boston area and this guy is well regarded up here, and I've used him before for the same surgery on my other shoulder.
Sure, maybe an emergency comes up here and there, but not every fucking time I see him. And that goes for everyone else comparing with me in the waiting room. Patients get fucked over as usual.
What's the difference between God and an MD?
God doesn't think he's a doctor.