How long have you had to wait at a Dr's office for a Dr. to see you?

[eilen]

My friend had a 4 hour wait last week to see her specialist.

[ThomWV]

1. I waited 4 hours once and then found out the fucking Doctor was on vacation

No shit. After waiting 4 hours and getting the run around every time I asked what in hell was going on they paged the asshole and found out he was out of town on vacation down in the fucking islands. I was so god damned mad I could have killed if I did't have a bunch of broken bones at the time.

[Thickasabrick]

24. OMG - that's horrible. I wait one hour max then walk out without a word.

[Tracer]

2. Well .... once I waited 3 hours, but ----

--- I was told right away that he had been called away to an emergency. I hung around rather than reschedule.

My regular doctor is so fast that I don't even have time to read the magazines in the waiting room. And he doesn't skimp on face time either. He spent over two hours with me on my first appointment.

[atreides1]

3. Not Long

I usually call for an appointment, and the longest I remember waiting is 20 minutes.

Now the emergency room is a whole different thing.

[Xithras]

4. Generally about an hour every time. Worst was 3 hours.

Beats going to the ER though...I once waited 18 hours to be seen in an emergency room after a car accident. I'd have left, but the little pieces of glass stuck into my chest and cheek REALLY needed to be removed.

[RoyGBiv]

5. Cardiologist ...

I got there at 1pm, along with about 10 other people all of whom had the same appointment time, and I got somewhere after 6pm. The actual time spent with the doctor was about 30 minutes.

So, four, almost five hours.

Sucked.

I actually fell asleep in the waiting room, which is why I'm not certain of the times.

[Mojorabbit]

6. My husband is family practice

I can't tell you how many times a week someone comes in after making an appt for a rash or something and then happens to mention they are having chest pain, etc. After an ekg showing they are having a heart attack, an ambulance has to be called and everything backs up due to having to tend to the emergency. Some offices double book though and that is a bad practice which can cause long waits.

[NJCher]

30. hey mojorabbit

This is OT, but did you know there are studies done of doctor's wives? Yes, much of the "excuse" research has come from studies of them.

I learned this when I did my Master's thesis.

Doctor's wives are the best excuse-makers out there!

I wish I could remember why but right now it eludes me.

Cher

[Mojorabbit]

33. But were they nurses?

As a retired nurse, I never had a very high opinion of physicians. I think I have only met two or three I could stand and I married one of them. LOL

ON edit and seriously, I can see where this would be true. Most doctors have fairly big egos and there is an occupational hazard of affairs which break up a lot of marriages. They are not home at regular hours and on call on weekends and to make a marriage work in that atmosphere much would need to be excused(not talking affairs here). When I was young I excused a lot. As I got older, not so much. We don't associate socially much with other physicians. I don't have much in common with the wives. I live in a whole nother world. It works.

[NJCher]

37. oh, that's interesting!

My thesis work was on "account-giving behavior," AKA excuses.

Wish I'd had your insight back when I was working on my thesis. What you stated never occurred to me.


Cher

[ejpoeta]

7. i have never waited that long!!

i think i waited an hour before. usually they take us back and THEN we sit in a room for an hour. at least it feels like that when i have a small child to entertain with no toys and no nothing!! but never 4 hours!

[TahitiNut]

8. When I have an appointment and have to wait an hour, I leave -- and tell them to call me.

I make it VERY clear that they COULD call and inform me they're running behind. It NEVER happens a second time, since I let them know they'll get a bill for my time if it does. Them's THEIR rules ... and they'd damned well better live by them.

[emilyg]

13. I do that, too.

1/2 hour is acceptable to me.

[TahitiNut]

15. Yup.

:fistbump:

In forty years, I've rarely met with much objection to my stance. When I have, I've changed doctor/dentist immediately.

The key to 'respect' is its mutuality.

[greendog]

9. 5 minutes at the most.

I always try to get an early appointment. That seems to help.

A few years ago I went to a walk-in clinic up in British Columbia to get some prescriptions re-written so I could get my meds on the cheap. My behind never touched the waiting room chair. I was in and out of there in less than 15 minutes. :)

[MountainLaurel]

10. About 2 hours

Anything more than 30 minutes, and I'm usually out of there. This was a special circumstance, because I was going in for a procedure (colonoscopy) and had been fasting for 2 days, had gone through the preparation process, etc. And there was no way in hell I was going to reschedule and have to go through all of that again.

[tularetom]

11. 6 hours in the emergency room when I sawed off my finger tip

It was Memorial day and there were shooting victims, drowning victims and a guy whose gas barbecue blew up in his face.

They did triage and decided they couldn't save the fingertip so they left me to sit there while they dealt with all these other people.

[uppityperson]

12. I worked in a surgeon's office once and he drove me nuts.

We were supposed to schedule people starting at a certain time. 90% of the time he'd be over an hour late, saying "tell them I had an emergency in surgery" when reality was he was sleeping in. Sometimes he would be late due to emergency in surgery, but not often. 10% of the time he'd be on time, blow in and be angry if we didn't have someone prepped, in gown in room, waiting for him.

Of course, he was God, but it was difficult.

[eilen]

21. My friend worked for a pediatrician and

the Dr would tell her to start scheduling patients at 9 but would never come in until 10. She'd ask why not start scheduling at 10? The Dr said "they can wait." Seriously. Even when some parents brought a young girl in who had had an allergic reaction at school (big rash and lots of drama--parents newly divorced). The Dr made them wait a lonng time and she was just back in her office -- not seeing any patients yet.

She had no respect for her patients.

[uppityperson]

23. Have you heard the story about the people waiting in line at the Pearly Gates?

Long line, finally some guy gets tired of waiting and storms up to whomever it is who checks people into heaven. "I'm a very important person and need to get into heaven now!" he exclaimed. St Michael (?) told him that may have been so on Earth, but now everyone is the same and get back into line. He fumes back to his place, impatiently tapping his foot.

Suddenly some old guy in scrubs walks up past everyone waiting in line, waves at St Michael and breezes through the Gates. The "vip" storms up, complaining away "how could you let him go in first, I'm a Republican, blah blah blah". St Michael simply replies "That was God, he thinks he's a doctor."

That said, most of the docs I've worked for have been decent people, though most, also, with a tendency to not fret over people having to wait when they get behind. And most ended up getting behind because a simple visit for a bp check then turns into diabetes education, infected toe, how about a PAP since you haven't had one in 15 yrs and you are here now and won't be back for another 15 yrs.

[niyad]

14. haven't seen a dr in 35 years--but wouldn't wait more than 30 minutes--then I would bill

said dr for my time.

friends have told me that their dr, whom they actually like, keeps them waiting for at least an hour.

[old mark]

16. I had an appointment for 9, and had to take vacation time from work

from 7:30 . Doctor did not show up till nearly 11AM, and seemed loaded. We think he was taking some kind of speed or coke from the way he acted.
This is the doctor who for several years told me I had carpal tunnel syndrome when all along I had blocked coronary arteries.

He is no longer my doctor, but he is still somebodies doctor....


mark

[Evoman]

17. Usually wait about 20 minutes for my doctor.

Longest I waited for her was an hour and a half (I think there was an emergency with some asthmatic kid).

[ipfilter]

18. I used to see a general practitioner who

would always schedule an appointment for 3PM. After a few visits I realized everyone was scheduled for 3PM and it was first come first served after that. It was common to sit in the waiting area for two hours and then sit in the exam room for another hour. Every time I went the pharmaceutical suits were escorted back one after another while the patients waited. I don't go to him anymore.

[Berry Cool]

19. For a specialist, it can be bad.

I had one I used to make appointments to see at 11:30 a.m. on a weekday. I didn't make them because I wanted or expected to see her at 11:30 a.m. In fact, I couldn't, because I had to be at work. But I made them, and then came in after work and waited, because that was how long it took her to work through her daily appointments. If I booked her for 11:30, I could come in after 5 and maybe see her by 7 (assuming there was only one person left ahead of me). She'd take me about 7, and I'd get out about 9 pm. I kid you not.

She was great, too. Never rushed through a single patient appointment like she was in a hurry. Always took her time and gave you a thorough going-over.

[Raine]

20. My father (80+ yrs. old) waited 2 hours in the examining

room then got suspicious and discovered that everyone had left and gone to lunch!:argh: He never went back to that doctor again and sadly after that it was almost impossible to get him to any doctor.

[Vinca]

22. The only time I got stuck waiting a long time was years ago.

It was an ob/gyn and a new citizen decided to come into the world so I cut him some slack.

[Leftist Agitator]

25. I don't know...

I haven't been to a doctor since I was on my parent's health insurance.

That was more than ten years ago.

[jpak]

26. When I lived in Canada - bleak and blasted land of socialist socialized medicine

I waited 2 minutes to see my doctor after calling around to find one that could see me during lunch hour.

I walked in, displayed my Health Canada card, sat down, stood up, splinter removed, wound dressed - in and out in 5 minutes.

No bill for visit or treatment.

I also had to see a cardiologist for a work related deployment physical - on very short notice. Got the call to get a physical on Monday PM - saw cardiologist Wednesday noon - no wait at hospital.

The stress test cost my US employer 1/3 the cost of the same test in the States.

Socialized medicine just sucks so bad.

[Solly Mack]

27. 1 hour , always

whatever time my appointment is scheduled I actually see the doctor 1 hour later....and this after being required to be there 15 minutes early in order to get the prelims out of the way before your appointment time.

[SmileyRose]

28. 10-20 minutes - Kaiser here does a great job not overbooking

Even when we had to do a walk in at Kaiser after hours immediate care the wait was under 30 minutes.

We've been fortunate to never have any non-life threatening emergencies that would cause a whole day wait in the ER while life threatening cases were given preference. We've had quite a few life threatening scares at my house and I've always felt bad for the poor souls with a bloody towel on a body part waiting all day.


All this said, pre-Kaiser we waited 9 weeks for the appointment and still had to fire a specialist because he insisted his people start scheduling appointments at 8 and god only knew when the doctor would decide to grace everyone with his magnificent presence. He may or may not have been a good orthopedic surgeon, we didn't hang around long enough to find out.

[rainbow4321]

29. 10 or 15 minutes at the most, usually.

Now ask the same question to the patients at the county outpatient clinic that I work at and you will get anywhere from 30 minutes (assuming you are the first appt. of the day and the doc shows up on time) to 2-3 hours (appt. later in the day).

Our facility has this way of making it look really good on paper..8 hour day, a doctor may have 8 appts on paper. That is JUST the scheduled appointments, the docs are also fully expected to take the "drop-ins"---as in they don't have an official appointment but they show up to be seen anyway for a problem that they are having.
So you are looking at about total 10-12 patient visits in what should be an 8 hour day--and again, all the hand written paperwork that goes with each visit because we are still in the caveman era and don't do computer charting.
Between the paperwork that goes along with each visit and any out of the ordinary problems that may need to be addressed during a visit, etc... the patient wait time stands no chance.
The powers that be are constantly on our asses for the time measured between patient check in time and check out time. Then fix the paperwork problem! Stop allowing the drop in appointments that we are not allowed to turn away...schedule LESS patients each day!
The solution that management give us?? "have the nurses stick their head in the rooms..alot...to remind the patients that they have not been forgotten about"..."have the nurses tell the doctors that they have patients waiting".
A doctor strolls in 2 hours later than when his first patient is scheduled: "tell the nurses to page the doctor if he is late (you know how OLD that gets when you have to do that EVERY day??? Know your schedule, dammit, if you are not going to be here til 10 am each day, stop scheduling patients at 8 am!!)

[goclark]

31. Here in Los Angeles it's averaging 45 min. to an hour

and it's getting harder and harder to get an appointment.

Generally 3 -4 weeks in my experience.

I think a lot of Dr.'s are retiring.

The insurance companies aren't paying them enough and the work load is horrible.

Also, our hospitals are closing left and right.

:cry:

[WillowTree]

32. 15 minutes at most, and that's only...

....if I've needed to make a last-minute appointment and they've worked me into their schedule.

Rarely more than 5 to 10 minutes. Both my primary group and my dermatologist, who I see regularly, are very good at proper scheduling.

[W_HAMILTON]

34. I just had to wait about 35 minutes.

AND I WAS THE ONLY PERSON IN THE OFFICE.

About 15 minutes for the nurse to call me, then another 20 minutes sitting in the doctor's office waiting for the doctor.

[W_HAMILTON]

36. Hey, someone gave me a heart!

If you're still watching, thank you whoever did it :)

[TK421]

35. The longest was maybe two hours, and that was for an oral surgeon

whos office was quite busy