How long will you wait for a dr. appointment?

[wdw4us]

On a slightly different note. I have had a bad time this week with a call back from my dr.. I have been having a lot of issues with my Blood Pressure and Arthritis in my neck. We need to change the meds for my neck. Normally I would call the Pharmacy and ask for a refill but they were to be changed so I went to the Drs on Tuesday for blood work and dropped of a chart of 2 weeks of Blood Pressure readings and ask that someone call me. On Tuedsay afternoon I called back and reminded them that I would be out of meds on Weds. Weds I called again, still no reply. Thursday I called again, still no reply, I called this morning and did manage to speak with a nurse who had my readings and would speak to the Dr. and call me back this afternoon. It is now 4:30 and I highly doubt I’ll get a call back.

Years ago I had the same issue when my mammogram came back inconclusive and had to be re-done. My mom passed away from Breast Cancer. Days and Days of no return calls on that issue, sent me in a panic. I thought that was an exception but the now I see it’s the norm. After 27 years, I’m going to get a new Dr. I’m a healthy person but don’t need to be in a panic should something serious happen. At 52 things start to “go” and I want someone who will at least return my phone calls.

denise

 

[HOGFAN]

I had an appointment time of 2:20 pm for my PCP and when I was still sitting in the waiting room at 5:00 pm I notified the receptionist that I would be sending a bill to them for any excess time over an hour. I finally saw the Dr. at 5:30 and I did bill them for 3 hours of my time.

Hope you find a PCP who is taking new patients.

Good luck collecting.
Our mammogram office almost always runs late. Why? Because we have to do so many to keep the doors open(low reimbursement) Its the same way with doctors offices.

If you dont want to wait, ask for the first appointment of the day, the last appt. before lunch, first after lunch, or the last of the day. Otherwise dont be surprised if you wait and dont schedule a different appt. within 2 hours.

 

[AKLRULZ]

Whoa. Some of those wait times are ridiculous. I've never waited more than maybe 20 minutes for a regular appointment - I'd definitely find a new care provider if I had to wait like that.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

20-30 minutes tops. Enough time for running late.

Over an hour? Time to find a new doc.

We love our practice..we hvae our PCP and then on different days docs are assigned to urgent care. They have scheduling down to an art and we never feel rushed so that they can meet their next appt.

 

[DVC Sadie]

Good luck collecting.
Our mammogram office almost always runs late. Why? Because we have to do so many to keep the doors open(low reimbursement) Its the same way with doctors offices.

If you dont want to wait, ask for the first appointment of the day, the last appt. before lunch, first after lunch, or the last of the day. Otherwise dont be surprised if you wait and dont schedule a different appt. within 2 hours.

Oh, I have already collected on a couple of office visits through the years. and I do try to make the appointments first thing in the am when available but sometimes it just isn't feasable.

 

[LisaNJ25]

Your better than me waiting that long. My 13yo had a dentist appt today at 1:30. The staff was just getting back form lunch so I figured they couldnt be behind. He was finally called in at 2:05 when I was about to go reschedule.

Than when we go in the dr was like, Im sorry we called you yesterday.to change it to 2, I had something to do (a lunch date from his conversion I heard).. that was bs because I got a call yesterday afternoon to confirm my appt. When I said they never called he said they talked to my husband..uhh nope.

I was annoyed because i rushed around to take ds out of school early and I had to get back to pick up dd.

 

[Honu]

15 minutes. It's written in my file that if they are running late they need to call me, and they do.

 

[Swimnoid]

I've seen bunches of docs over the past 8 years or so and the wait time has decreased a ton since then. I used to have to wait 30-60 minutes to get in finally to the exam room, sometimes more, at most doctors. Most of the offices now have responded to that as a major complaint and have really brought the wait time down. Now I am called usually within 10 minutes at the most. At one doc I can count on a 30 miute wait but thats only because they have to mix my injection and it takes that long. My old PCP had me wait forever in the waiting room and then forever MORE in the exam room! I could hear her out in the hall basically doing nothing. One time I had DD with me and they apparantley forgot we were in the exam room beause they all started getting ready to go out to lunch! That and a couple of more major snafus on her part had me hunting for a new PCP.