Related Posts
My brain can't compute watching FP1 at 8:00 p.m.
What is average year on year hike in Adobe?
Additional Posts in Women In Consulting
New to Fishbowl?
Download the Fishbowl app to
unlock all discussions on Fishbowl.
unlock all discussions on Fishbowl.
They already know theyâre running behind schedule, and it is oftentimes out of their control. Late patients, same day appointments for illnesses, EMR documentation, a medical emergency, a 20 minute appointment turning into 60 minutes because the patient didnât mention health problems while make the appointment - it only takes a few of these things to throw a doctorâs schedule off.
Would you rather your doctor spend time with you to comprehensively go over your concerns, or be rushed out the door after your allotted 15 minutes on their calendar even if you are sick?
Like the airlines, they have schedules that are not designed to expect some of these issues so one small thing sets everything off. Not that it is entirely their fallout - the way reimbursement is they need to see a lot of patients. This is why I like the One Medical model. I pay 150-200 per year and then the rest is reimbursed like usual. And I get on time appointments and many other services because the practice has a bit more breathing room.
I would prefer a late doctor who took the time to have the right patient conversation and prioritise emergencies rather than one who was always on time.
I canât think of any cases that me being delayed in my consulting work was threatening to someoneâs health or life....
It really is efficiency issues 90% of the time, not tending to critical patients
It helps those of us in physician productivity consulting so, yes đ. But seriously, yes. It is very rude and they need to hear it
Um no offense but in general I feel like a doctors work is usually more important than ours just saying
Depends on the type of doctor! Plus the point is everybody has their schedules and is busy.. if you are late, just inform the patient so that the patient can plan their day as well
Iâd say something, but Iâd probably come at t through a series of questions. âWhat days/times are best if I want to avoid delays?â âIf I call, would the front desk give me a heads up that you are running behind?â âIf I have to cancel because of delays, do you have appointment times for those situations?â And if you donât like the answers or the response, switch docs if it is a pattern. It may be well beyond the doctorâs control and if that is the case, they may be transparent about hacks/workarounds for scheduling and appointment demands that perpetuate this issue
Go ahead. Won't make a difference.i recommend holding your tongue if you want to go back to same doctor. Usually the better doctors are more in demand which means either longer wait times in the office or way long wait times to schedule an appointment...or both.
This is literally my biggest pet peeve. I hateeeeee when doctors do that. Schedule more time for each patient if your always running behind đ€Šââïž
Agree that saying âyouâre running lateâ isnât going to be productive... they know and usually it is due to some earlier patient needing a lot more time. Increasing time per patient from even 15 to 20 min means they see 25% fewer patients which is a major cut to their earnings (especially after paying for support staff, rent, insurance, and other fixed costs), and even then queuing theory says they will likely still run late with some regularity.
Doctors have been happy to tell me when Iâm less likely to run into waits, but Wednesdays at 1:30pm may not be super conducive to work schedule. The other ways around this issue are multi-doctor practices where you see whoever is available (which cuts down dramatically on wait time while allowing the doctors to maintain high utilization), or concierge practices where you pay an annual retainer, and in return they cap their patients at say, 500 instead of a more typical 2000 load and budget something like an hour per appointment rather than 10-15 minutes.
This is the main reason I try to schedule appointments so I can be the first patient of the day. Super annoying. I wish there was a system so the provider has to bear the cost if they're over 30 minutes late.
But yes, definitely make a complaint. Lots of practices have surveys - maybe you could fill out one of those.
Did she at least apologize? Itâs ok to do but not very nice and probably wonât add value to your relationship with the doctor overall. Remember, doctors usually have several patients at a time they need to see too; you both are probably working hard and trying to manage work hours. How would you feel if a client did this to you?
I did this once - After a doctor called me in for an appointment to discuss test results, came in late, and didn't even glance at my chart before coming in - just walked in and said "What can I do for you, what prescription do you need".
Told him it was unprofessional & rude. Got a "Well I never" and a lecture on ungrateful patients who don't properly appreciate being graced with his presence. On my way out, heard him ranting at a poor nurse about how awful I was and how brilliant he was.
So my point is.... I mean, go ahead, but if they've got that inconsiderate God complex, it probably won't make a dent.
Thank you for your comments and suggestions! I almost walked out but the assistant came by and said that he'll come over shortly. So I waited like 50 mins in total for a 5 mins discussion with him! Don't think I'll return to him (this has happened to me with the same doc multiple times) and I'll use the links you all shared in future đ
Are you able to provide feedback to the office? It maybe helpful for them to know why they lost your business.
Sorry you had to wait that long for such little actual help.
I go to One Medical and they have a lateness policy so they are never more than 2-3 min late seeing you.
I loooove One Medical. The virtual doctor is so helpful when Iâm on the road
No. I can't afford to and will not wait excessively. So I book first appointment of the day, or I take the day off and schedule all my medical appointments for that day. I let the scheduler know when I'm booking the appointments that I am tightly scheduled and if there is going to be more than 30 minutes delay they need to call me so we can reschedule.
My time matters. Full respect that the doctors' time matters, but a general practitioner isn't unexpectedly resuscitating folks on a regular basis and chronic overscheduling / lateness is disrespectful and rude.
I once saw my Obgyn holiday substitute during a regular pregnancy check up and he was 2 hours plus late. Literally most of these appointments my regular doc just says youâre still doing fine keep doing what youâre doing, so I just rescheduled it, politely saying sorry but I need to go. The next time I saw him (the holiday sub) I preempted him and said sorry I had to reschedule (rather passive aggressive but hey it worked) and he just apologised. I know most of the time itâs out of their control but I also canât sit around all day, so we both did what we had to, no offense taken.
So entitled
Forreal haha damn
I spent 3 hours at an orthopedist once (x-ray + consult), and felt like I was stuck with him for the duration of my issue. For the next time, though, I brought my laptop and went through email offline in the waiting room. It was never that long after that, and I felt productive regardless. Echo getting the first appointment of the dayâor the first one after the lunch break.
My parents are both doctors & have wait times of ~1hr almost all the time. I told them it was crazy & they explained that they frequently have very sick patients just show up (or sometimes call for same-day appts). They allocate a certain amount of space in their schedule for emergencies, but they canât leave too many spaces open Bc they have to see a certain # of patients per day, otherwise they lose a % of their compensation from the hospital that owns their practice. If they have few emergencies that day, they donât meet their minimums. They end up seeing patients 3 days per week, 8am-9pm to keep up with the backlog/emergency cases, and stay at the office another 2 hrs + all of the following day filling out EMR/charts. The system is so inefficient, but itâs been made that way by all of the government healthcare changes
1) usually it is out of their control
2) their time and work is much more valuable than hours, think you can afford to wait
Duh