Recently I scheduled two medical appointments an hour apart, the second one about a 15-minute drive from the first. I’m a gambler, what can I say?
I got to the first one early, but I was stuck in the waiting room for 45 minutes. That’s standard, or at least unsurprising, in my experience. There was no apology, nor was there one expected. Once I got called, the checkup only took 10 minutes, something like the max in the world of corporate medicine, but I was clearly going to be late for the second. I raced to the next doctor, wildly driving 35 in a 30! But I figured if my wait time was even a fraction of the first, the universe would not come asunder.
I was wrong. My car phone buzzed precisely at the hour of my second appointment. Expecting a scolding, I shouted, “I’m on my way! Almost there!” And then I lied: “Traffic!”
A few minutes later, I found myself at doctor number two’s inner sanctum, stripped naked for a skin cancer check, but otherwise none the worse for wear. The delicate web of time had been stretched perhaps, but not torn.
Why is it that patients are expected to be on time, and can expect a humiliating lecture if they fail to do so, but if the doctor keeps them waiting, no explanation (much less an apology) is forthcoming?
Doctors take an oath to do no harm, but by placing their own time and schedules above that of their patients, they are failing to live up to this promise. And it’s not just about wasting a patient’s time. When the message is that a patient’s time is not as important as their own, patients may be too intimidated to speak up about their health needs.
Furthermore, the short shrift given to patients is a symptom of a larger problem within the medical profession — the commodification of healthcare. Call it “money-care.” With medical practices increasingly being bought up by corporations, doctors today are pressured to see more patients, bill more procedures, conduct more testing, and do whatever it takes generate more revenue. Where is the patient in all this? Piggy banks, plump with insurance dollars, to be turned upside down and shaken.
What can be done? Join a concierge practice for several thousand dollars a year? This does put the patient in the driver’s seat. You become the doctor’s boss, and, with it, the boss of her time. But most of us don’t have that option.
In an ideal world, doctors would recognize the power dynamic that exists between themselves and their patients, and act with due fairness and civility toward us. In simple terms, they could alter their scheduling practices, such as by building in more time for appointments or being more flexible with scheduling.
In fairness we patients have some work to do, too. We value our doctors, and we ought to let them know that — including understanding the occasional need for a physician to attend to an emergency. (I think most of us would not begrudge such a delay.) Realize, too, that doctors are having a rough go of it in the speed-dating world of modern medicine. We must acknowledge that they are more than just service providers, but rather partners in our health and well-being.
So, let’s give our doctors some respect, and demand some in return. In that way, we can work toward a culture that prioritizes patient care over profit, and that values the time and needs of both doctors and patients equally.
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Comments
Emergencies happen in doctor’s offices. If I schedule an appointment in the morning, I pan to be there for at least couple of hours. I use the time to catch up on emails etc. I believe that everyone is doing the best they can.
Everyone wants low or no co-pay, so this is the system you get.
The more fiscally socialized our health system becomes the worse it will continue to get.
You get what you pay for. Socialized medicine means long waits.
I once waited in the examination room for nearly an hour before I stuck my head out and asked the nurse if I was actually going to see the doctor. She apologized profusely and explained a patient two rooms down had suffered a heart attack while in the room, and they all had been dealing with that. I shut up and happily waited my turn to see the doctor who put patient care first.
I was two minutes late attending a dentists appointment, the dentist refused to see me for being late!. When I protested she saw me, I discovered she did not have the new dentures that were to be fitted that day, so decided to take another mould to give herself something to do! I left the premises and are no longer with that practice.
So true. My cardiologist runs about one hour or later behind in appointment punctuality.
Good article and true. The Medicare Annual Wellness is a joke. One is asked name and birthdate 5 times , check weight, blood pressure, ask for list of medications , them the phisician or the PA (in most appointments ) will record on the computer for 5 to 7 minutes, and set up for next check up.
We only have one choice,the local hospital controls most of the health care in the county.
One of the ways I’ve solved this problem is seeing the nurse practitioner instead of the doctor. She’s usually friendlier and equally knowledgeable. Always triple-checking the same office is (still) covered by my insurance from the time before. I never assume as to not get a surprise large bill because they were now ‘out of network’ and didn’t tell me.