Doctor visits

dlkksk8fan · Jan 11, 2005

Last night my mom and I got into a heated argument over how long one should wait for a doctors appointment. She told me that she waits 3-4 hours to get in to see her doctor and that is with an appointment. I told her anything over an hour wait is unacceptable and her doctor is a jerk to make her wait. I'm talking about a 74 yr old lady that is not in very good shape. She said that her doctor is so good that people are willing to wait to see him. I said he is just double scheduling to make more money and could care less about his patients time. I wondered how he would like it if his patients made him wait 3 hours to show up for their appointments. Anyway I still think waiting 3-4 hours for a scheduled appointment is not acceptable and have never in my life waiting that long to see any doctor good or bad.

So how many of you would wait that long to see a doctor?

bronxgirl · Jan 11, 2005

I'd ask is that the routine amount of time she waits, or was it a one time only. Sometimes a patient has an emergency,requiring more of the doctors time.
Also if this doctor is the sort who spends a lot of time with each patient, they can end up running behind. If your mother is getting a lot of attention from this doc, maybe, that's not such a bad thing after all.

dlkksk8fan · Jan 11, 2005

That's the routine amount of time she waits. I understand if the doctor has an emergency but to wait that long with each visit is just too much, especially for my mom who is not that healthy. If the doctor gets that far behind, the office should call and let his patients know so they can come in later and not have to sit in the office all that time.

backspin · Jan 11, 2005

I've made it a habit to call the office about 1/2 hour before my appt. to see if they're on schedule. I don't think all offices would do this, but mine does tell me if they're behind, and then I come in later than my appointment time.

I look at it as: my time is valuable; so they need to respect that.

Suzy · Jan 13, 2005

I start getting angry around 45 minutes. My mother, too, on the other hand, waits 3-4 hours to see her doctor. When I ask why, she says the waiting room is filled with her type -- Medicaid elderly people -- and says he must schedule them all at the same time or whatever. Not looking forward to old age that's for sure.

Piel · Jan 13, 2005

If it is a specialist that I have waited a long time to get an appointment with then I will wait. For routine stuff no way. I feel like my time is just as valuble as my doctors and think it is very rude and unproffesional of the office staff to keep a room full of people waiting for hours. I am very lucky to have the nicest doctor who has the nicest staff in the world. They call all of their patients if there is going to be an excessive wait (which they consider over 30 minutes). This doctor is a very busy vascular surgeon who has lots of emergencys but manages his time very well. They will also work you in at the drop of a hat. I broke a tooth off at 7:00 on a Saturday evening once, my dentist was out of town, I called my doc at home and he met me at the ER to order a pain shot and give me a prescription to take care of it until my dentist returned on Monday and never charged me. During Christmas and nurse's week I have lunch catered in to thank his office staff for making my life so much easier.

JonnyCoop · Jan 13, 2005

Suzy said:
I start getting angry around 45 minutes. My mother, too, on the other hand, waits 3-4 hours to see her doctor. When I ask why, she says the waiting room is filled with her type -- Medicaid elderly people -- and says he must schedule them all at the same time or whatever. Not looking forward to old age that's for sure.

This is true. I went to the eye doctor with my grandmother one time and the whole visit took about 2 1/2 hours, most of that waiting. Is your mother on Medicaid or Medical, dlkk?? If so, then I have the feeling that this is pretty much standard procedure, especially in California. It's wrong and it's rude, but it's pretty much the system we're stuck with....

Ladskater · Jan 14, 2005

dlkksk8fan said:
Last night my mom and I got into a heated argument over how long one should wait for a doctors appointment. She told me that she waits 3-4 hours to get in to see her doctor and that is with an appointment. I told her anything over an hour wait is unacceptable and her doctor is a jerk to make her wait. I'm talking about a 74 yr old lady that is not in very good shape. She said that her doctor is so good that people are willing to wait to see him. I said he is just double scheduling to make more money and could care less about his patients time. I wondered how he would like it if his patients made him wait 3 hours to show up for their appointments. Anyway I still think waiting 3-4 hours for a scheduled appointment is not acceptable and have never in my life waiting that long to see any doctor good or bad.

So how many of you would wait that long to see a doctor?

I have waited up to two hours for my GP and up to three hours in emergency (only if you are bleeding, do they attend you promptly!!). However, I would not wait 3-4 hours to see a dr. no matter how great he/she is. I would find another dr. who does not schedule so many patients. We have a real shortage of drs. and nurses here in British Columbia; it's getting real tough to find a good dr. I wish your mother the best in finding a good gp.

dlkksk8fan · Jan 14, 2005

s your mother on Medicaid or Medical, dlkk??

I want to say yes she has Medical but now I'm not sure. :scratch:
My mom tells me how excellent her doctor(s) are ,but if you could see her she is physically a mess. She has had about 5 surgeries in about 7yrs and in my opinion that many surgeries are crazy! She is worse off then she was before all her surgeries, but she still says her doctor is great!

Piel · Jan 14, 2005

Medicare is the federal program for senior citizens and those who are retired due to disability. Premiums are deducted from the retiree's social security benefits. Medicaid is a state run program for those with low income.

dlkksk8fan, could you talk your mother into getting a second opinion?

dlkksk8fan · Jan 14, 2005

could you talk your mother into getting a second opinion?

That's a big fat NO! I tried suggesting that when she was having her surgeries done, but she doesn't listen to me. All well, I love her anyway.

Piel · Jan 14, 2005

dlkksk8fan said:
she doesn't listen to me

Welcome to the daughters club!

show 42 · Jan 17, 2005

dlk.........I used to have to wait hours with my three year old to see our ear, nose, and throat specialist. He often was called to the hospital on emergencies, which backed up his appointment. If the appointment is for me, I'll go to the front desk to see if he or she is running behind. If they are, I make sure I am signed in and run errands and then come back. If I'm sick, I'll just stick it out.

I left the gal who does my hair for this reason. No matter when I booked an appointment, she was always a half an hour behind.........no way to run a business..........42

Doctor visits

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