My dad went through the same thing when he was going to the doctor for a checkup last week and Dad made the appointment the week before and he went on Tuesday for nothing and all Dad did was wait in the waiting room when he got there and Dad was NEVER seen and there was about 50 patients with various illnesses who were first and Dad was put at the bottom of the list. My mom tried to get Dad in there faster because she had called after Dad went and they also told her that they were short on doctors and were not seeing patients until after Christmas and told my mom to make Dad's appointment after the holidays and when my father got home and told us what happened we couldn't believe our eyes what they had told Dad. What I think doctor's offices and medical clinics should do is to have one line and one room for illnesses the second line for serious illnesses and the third line would be for shots and checkups. Because I mainly think why seeing doctors has changed today is because the doctors are constantly adding new patients and the new patients get a first chance at everything. But what if you are very injured or have a child with a broken leg or arm or your child gets a bad fever and you have to be told to wait four or five hours to see the doctor? I think if they had doctors that did house calls you could see a doctor much easily in your home without having to wait a long time. But what are people going to do if they need serious surgery and the doctors and surgeons can't schedule surgeries or people need casts for their broken arms or legs?
This is a very complex issue with many layers. What you’ve described is sort of the idea behind an ER. But doctor’s offices are not ERs; they’re not set up that way.
I remember when I was little (in the 60s) having a doctor come to the house to see me when I was sick. (My mother always told the story afterward that our German Shepherd wasn’t happy about it when he came near me.) But even then it was sort of rare to happen. Today, practitioners are allotted 20 minutes (yes, 20 minutes) to see each patient, treat them, and document everything in the electronic medical record, in order to keep up with patient flow. Which, of course, is a nearly impossible task. (This is one reason why they get behind, and why they’ve also become unhappy because they often have to complete their documentation by staying late or doing work at home each night, so many just leave to go to something else more professionally satisfying.) It doesn’t help that people come in with multiple related medical issues today and want to talk about other problems (or chat, in general) while there, etc. This is just one example. (One of my closest friends is an NP in this type of practice.)
Just in the past day I was taking to two different friends about these same issues. One said the doctor her son was seeing actually said something completely shocking and rude to them as he was leaving the practice. (And they are very nice and reasonable people.) And the other said her daughter was in bad pain and needed a root canal. She showed up at the endodontist for her scheduled appt, taking the day off from work and all, but when she arrived they told her they’d “given her appt away” because she hadn’t “confirmed” that she was coming via a text they’d sent out!
So she had to reschedule. Wth!
The last time I was at the dentist I had a conversation with him about my cleanings. He mentioned I’d missed one. I‘d had shingles post-Covid. (I’d called the office to tell them and it was their choice to have me cancel.) I’d made several attempts to reschedule via the texting system they have in place, but they never got me in. Feeling “accused” a bit, I showed the dentist the text thread, and he was shocked, and a little angry with his staff about it, saying those cleanings are basically what keep them afloat, so super important to their practice.
I think there’s a lot that most of us don’t understand that go into how these practices operate and how exceedingly complex and regulated they have become. I’ve worked in hospitals for the past forty years and things have changed a great deal, and there are rules, policies and regulations that we all have to follow when dealing with things. We don’t always like them, either, but it’s how it is. I’m not sure it will get better. I mean, some things may. But others will become more regulated.
Count your blessings if you belong to a good medical practice and are relatively happy with your care! It’s rough out there!
