How long a wait is acceptable at a doctor's office?

[Edwin Santos]

My appointment for a consult with a new doctor was for 11:15. I showed up at 11:05 knowing I would need to do some paperwork. Finished the paperwork in about five minutes so now it's 11:10.

At 12:15, after inquiring and being told the doctor is still with other patients, I walked out. No communication up to this point such as "the doctor will be xx minutes, sorry for the inconvenience". Nothing.

My position - on time is great. 15 minutes is probably to be expected. 45 minutes is pushing it.

But I feel an hour's delay (with no end in sight) is downright unreasonable and inconsiderate of the patient's time.
Am I the one being unreasonable here?

Unfortunately, I don't have a relationship with this doctor because it was my first visit. So I just don't know if the delay was unusual or typical.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Is this doctor a surgeon or a specialist that might have to respond to an true medical emergency over a scheduled patient visit? Sometimes there are really important reasons for a doctor's delay even if they are just a general or family practitioner. Say somebody shows up for a scheduled appointment and has an infection that might require immediate treatment. For reasons of patient privacy laws (HIPPA) staff are severely limited in what they can say other than "The doctor is with another patient right now." They can't say "she or he is lancing a boil right now or cleaning a wound." Beyond that there is a tremendous shortage of doctor's nation wide.

[Mike Henderson]

The problem is whether you really need to see that doctor or whether you can make another appointment or go to another doctor.

What I use to do after waiting a reasonable time is I'd go to the desk and tell them that we need to make another appointment because I can't wait any longer. That usually caused them to get me into an exam room immediately. If they would leave me in the exam room, I'd walk out.

The doctors dislike having any dead space in their appointments because that's time when they're not earning anything. So the front desk overbooks and expects that people will wait.

I understand that things happen and sometimes the doctor is delayed. If that happens, the front desk has to get proactive and keep people informed and maybe reschedule some of the appointments - not just leave people waiting and wondering.

If you can walk (you don't really need to see that doctor immediately) that's the best thing to do. And then go to another doctor who has more consideration for their patients.

Mike

[Dave Anderson NH]

I was sent to a very fine orthopedic specialist many year ago. After an hour wait we were told the doctor had to take care of an emergency but was trying to catch up. At the 2 hour point I went and told the people I couldn't wait any longer and was leaving. I would expect a refund check for my copay to be mailed to me. They hustled me right into an exam room. After another 20 minutes and no doctor I told them I had to leave since guests were coming from VA. I left, got a refund check a week later, and called my primary care doc for anther referral to another specialist who saw me on time. Things happen, but physicians also have to realize patients are paying customers and they are just a vendor who can be replaced. Disregard for the customer is inexcusable in any field of endeavor.

[George Bokros]

Years ago we had an appointment with a dermatologist for my son. We had a 7:30 pm appointment. We arrived at 7:10. The office was packed, not a seat available and people were even waiting in the hall. I asked several of the others waiting and found out they all had appointments for 7:30. We waited never went back.

[Charlie Knauer]

I have been a frequent flier lately to various doctors. My Oncologist referred me to an Urologist to remove my right kidney. The day before surgery I had to take laxatives and drink magnesium nitrate to clean out. Also no eating after midnight. My surgery was to be at 3:30pm.
At 11:30 on the day of surgery he calls me and wants to change it for two days later. No this is not ok I told them. I did not get taken into O.R until 6pm. My wife took vacation to be with me, waiting two days would have wasted her time. Today I had a 10am appt. for follow up and was not seen until 11. I think this guys wait times are unreasonable and have told him so. He blows it off. Hopefully I only have a few more visits to his office.

[Mel Fulks]

We have a local hospital that has a pharmacy. Huge place with lots of seats. You sign in and wait for them to call you.
After a long wait they sometimes call you for more info. Most think they will be getting their medicine and are grumpy about waiting longer. I have vowed to never go there again ,but the Docs there kinda push the place to patients. Few
years ago a couple was put through the hospital's sick little joke. The man complained loudly. A security guard ,with no
warning picked the guy up and slammed him to the floor. Head first and he died right there. The guard is in prison,and I
sincerely hope it's one with poor medical care. I can't say what an acceptable wait would be, some might have been killed
earlier.

[Jim Koepke]

Many years ago my medical provider, and still my current provider, was very bad about being able to get an appointment in a timely manner. Often if you were sick they wouldn't be able to fit you in for three weeks or more. For many people it was easier to just go to the ER to be seen. There was usually only an hour wait or less to be seen in the ER. The ER would always be full of people with minor conditions because no one could get an appointment less than three or more in the future. If you had something serious, you might be worse by then. If you had a bad flu you might be over it by then.

Finally the management seemed to take notice of the problem and set out to rectify the situation. One of the things they did was to raise the copay on ER visits. They also hired more doctors so appointments would only be a few days out at most. Currently if my regular doctor is booked a second doctor or qualified nurse is usually available. We seldom are in the waiting area more than a few minutes. Once in the exam room the wait is also short. So it is possible for a medical center to be managed efficiently if the management wants it to be done.

Scheduling multiple people for the same appointment time is not efficient nor is it thoughtful management. Making people wait an hour without any explanation is rude.

My solution would be to send the doctor a note letting them know their's isn't the only time that is important and include a bill for my time spent waiting. After all, time spent in their waiting room is keeping me from earning the money that is needed to pay their bill.

jtk

[Larry Frank]

Some doctors offices are just poorly run and they do not care. Others try to be on time and apologize for being late. At a minimum, they should let you know about how long you will wait. I have some doctors who are normally very good but once in a long while they get behind. I can deal with that.

It is kind of like some people who are always late to everything.

[Paul F Franklin]

I've been to appointments where I am told when I arrive that the provider had an emergency and is running late, and given the opportunity to reschedule or wait. I think that's a professional way to handle those types of situations. Even better would be a phone call. When I encounter a practice where longs waits are common, I vote with my feet and make sure the provider knows why I am changing. Fortunately I live in an area where there seem to be medical practices of all kinds on almost every corner (don't get me started about what that does to health care costs).

On the other hand, my wife is a midwife who primarily teaches but sees patients several times a month at a couple of local clinics. It is not unusual for half of her scheduled patients to be no-shows, or last minute cancellations. It is clinic policy not to overbook, so when a patient doesn't show, my wife is left with stretches of time with no patients to see. So I can understand why some practices choose to overbook, taking the risk that all the patients will show on a given day and people will have to wait. Sort of like the airline system.

[Jim Becker]

We have been fortunate that our primary care practice has been reasonably efficient and "in general", any waits are acceptable because we know they do take the time with patients/clients to fully discuss things without pressure to finish up. We know that because that's how they treat us, too. They are also staffed well with doctors as well as PAs and CNPs as well as quite a few nurses and other staff. Most specialists have been good with our time, but our older daughter's dermatologist recently was so backed up it was nearly an hour wait beyond her appointment time. Had it gone on any longer, we would have had to leave because my daughter had to go to work. To top it off, it was a 5 minute visit with the doctor after all that.

[Frederick Skelly]

I dont think you are being unreasonable Edwin. Your time is money. You are the customer. A doctor isnt (usually) doing you a favor seeing you - he's being paid for his time. Specialists can be different but there's a limit there too IMO,
Fred

[Bruce Wrenn]

Both of our primary care doctors are very good about scheduling. Even have signs in office, that if it's more than 15 minutes past your appointment, step to the window and let them know. Today had to go to urologist for a follow up visit. When we got there not only wasn't doctor there, but building was completely demolished. After a couple of phone calls, found out they had moved two buildings down. Somebody dropped the ball on telling me that they would be moving, when I was there three weeks ago. Made appointment on time, but still had to wait an hour. Appt was to go over ultrasound results, which showed I had a 7 MM stone if left kidney, and 9MM stone in right kidney. CAT scan only a month earlier showed neither, so we knew ultrasound was wrong. Even though ultrasound was totally wrong, I'm expected to pay my co payment for ultrasound. Two years ago, had pneumonia, and needed to have surgery to drain and scrape lung sack. Surgery was scheduled for 4:30 PM, but surgeon had problems on another surgery at another hospital that was on the other side of town. He gets to my hospital at 8:30PM and does surgery. Sunday morning, I'm scheduled to go home. On Saturday doctor comes by and says she will be by EARLY on Sunday to get out of there. A little after 1:30 PM she gets there. She had been in emergency room with her child till 8:00 that morning, so she was late, which is forgiven. What really "frosts me" when they call and tell you to only bring insurance card and photo ID for a procedure. Then when you get there they inform you that you have a co pay due before services are to be rendered. So which one are they going to use, my insurance card, or my photo ID to process the copay, as they said to only bring insurance card and photo ID? As part of a recent procedure in hospital, I picked up a staph infection. Read Medicare rules on staph infections. They don't pay for them, period! But doctor's office still wants me to pay co payment for second visit which wouldn't have been necessary if I hadn't picked up staff infection. Doctor is employed by hospital group, FYI.

[Walter Plummer]

The game here in Virginia is they have the nurse bring you in and take all your vitals, ask what you are here for, put you in an exam room and then tell you the doctor will be "right in". Never been quicker than 15 minutes but they count it as on time.

[Stan Calow]

Most of the private practices around here have been bought up by corporations. Doctors are told how many patients to see in a given amount of time, and how long they can spend with any patient based on the reason for the visit. All tracked and computerized so that the docs get reprimanded if they don't produce. Last doc I saw complained bitterly how he can't do the medical care he wants because the management and insurance companies dictate everything.

[Mike Henderson]

A lot of the older doctors around here complain about being forced to electronic medical records. What it really does is force the doctors into group practices because the cost of electronic records can be shared across the whole practice. These older doctors just don't want to join a group - they want to keep working as a sole practitioner and doing things the way they always have done it.

But electronic medical records are valuable. If you go to an ER that shares medical records with your doctor, the ER people can see your history and the results of any tests or imaging you may have had. And when you go home, your primary care can see what was done in the ER. This also works for specialists doctors you might see who share medical records with your primary doc.

If a doc sells his/her practice to a corporation and becomes an employee they should not be surprised that they lose the autonomy they had earlier. If they join a group of doctors, they only have to answer to the other doctors in the group.

Mike

[Edwin Santos]

I dont think you are being unreasonable Edwin. Your time is money. You are the customer. A doctor isnt (usually) doing you a favor seeing you - he's being paid for his time. Specialists can be different but there's a limit there too IMO,
Fred

Fred,
Thank you, I think you paraphrased exactly how I felt. In fact, I kept thinking about the golden rule and how I would never be late or keep a customer waiting for me in my business. If I did, they would have every right to be disenchanted. At the very least, if I had an unforeseen problem, I would call my customer right away and communicate, not just leave them waiting for me. I understand that delays can happen, but there is always a way to be courteous and professional when they do. In other words, demonstrate to the other person that the inconvenience to them matters and that their time is no less valuable than yours.

One of the many failings of the health care system is that the patient is just not treated with the respect of a customer, by the medical providers or the insurance companies. It is one of very few industries where the customer is forced to conform to the convenience of the vendors who would not have an income but for the patient(s). It's as though every patient is disposable because there are so many. Could you imagine Marriott running their hotels like that, or a good restaurant making patrons wait for an hour when they show up for their reservation on time?

I know I'm ranting a bit, but I just think people deserve better, especially those that are really sick. The only satisfied people I ever meet are those that have found a one-off exceptional physician office. I've never met anyone who felt that the industry at large puts the patient first. Even in political circles, I've never heard a politician or candidate argue the system is great just the way it is. That really says something.

Sorry, but even if a person is a highly educated, licensed professional, the golden rule still applies IMO.

[James Pallas]

Edwin, your wait was too long without an explainations. I have to see my regular doc every 90 days. If there is going to be additional wait time the staff tells me. It averages about 15 minutes in the waiting room and 10 in the exam with a nurse taking vitals. My cardio doc is about the same. I always look at the number of seats in the waiting room when going to a specialist. If it's a single doc and they have 30 chairs in the waiting room your in for a long wait. I waited 1 1/2 hours at one specialist and walked out. They actually sent me a bill. I didn't call his office about it I called the hospital he worked out of and complained it was handled immediately. Medical care has gotten to the point of operating like a retail business, run as many as you can thru and collect. If you get the wrong stuff in the bag, tough luck. The lawyers like it tho, easy pay out to sue doctors and hospitals. Oh and the VA 3 to 4 hours and maybe not that day. I hope that gets better. That's after waiting 3 months to get an appointment. Rant over.
Jim

[glenn bradley]

Speaking as the son of a doctor who used to travel the country lecturing on practice management I can only say that the percentage of well-run offices is the minority. Doctors practice medicine not office management. If a doctor lets their wife or niece or an unqualified professional act as their office manager (and the doctor is not often qualified to determine if one is qualified) you have a poorly run practice. If it is a larger operation, the doctor has even less control over how the patients are treated other than when they are directly interacting with them.

You are correct in that a doctor (or a medical center) is just like a plumber or an application developer; they provide a service. You choose the level of quality and service you want to pay for. "Managed" health care is a confusing term. It means that YOU manage your care. Us older folks grew up with house calls and doctors in their own office buildings. We also used to pay less for coffee. That was then, this is now. Get involved, take action, DO NOT go back to a medical professional you were not satisfied with. Just like at the woodworking stores, let your wallet speak for you.

*** rant off *** :D

[Mike Cutler]

I think you waited a reasonable time period.
I get that doctors can get more engaged in one case due to circumstances, but an hour is more than that. An hour is a symptom of poor appointment management.
I've also seen how some patients can really burn a doctors time up being overly needy, which affects the scheduling.That's another side of the coin.

[Frederick Skelly]

FWIW, I recently went to my doctor and he asked me go go online (dont recall just where) and rate them. He said insurance companies were starting to look at patient ratings as a factor in doctor contracts.

(But I have heard second hand that in some practices, the initial stack of papers to sign says just the opposite - that you agree you will NOT post online ratings.)

[Jim Becker]

The game here in Virginia is they have the nurse bring you in and take all your vitals, ask what you are here for, put you in an exam room and then tell you the doctor will be "right in". Never been quicker than 15 minutes but they count it as on time.
That's how our primary care practice works, but the "most" I've ever waited was about 10 minutes between the initial setup stuff by the nurse and when my PA comes in to chat about whatever I'm there for.

OP, I forgot to mention in my previous post that you are not being unreasonable in your concern about having to wait for so long...especially if it's always a repeat performance. Yes, sometimes "stuff happens", but if the behavior is consistent, then it's a problem in their system and practice processes.

[Robert Engel]

As a medical professional (not humans) who sees patients daily I do have knowledge of what can happen, and yes, backups can occur, but often its simply office mismanagement, ie too many appointments/too close together. But in a corporate owned practice, the office may have no control over the appointment policies. In most corporate practices in my profession, Drs are subject to periodic "production reviews".

You haven't seen anything yet if/when we go to government healthcare.

My SIL in Canada told me its 3 months out to get a dermatologist appt. She asked what if she had a very bad rash & couldn't wait that long? They told her go to the ER.

There is a movie I highly recommend everyone watch called "Escape Fire - The fight save healthcare (http://www.escapefiremovie.com/)". It will really open your eyes to the reality of medicine.

[Mike Null]

We have been very lucky in this regard. Our PCP is always on time or early. The dentist, the same. Our pain doctor is busy but generally 15 minutes has been our worst experience. The ophthalmologist can keep us waiting up to 30 minutes but is usually faster.

I have had strong words with our former pain doctor who kept us waiting for 45 minutes or more and he advised me to find another doctor. My wife was the one with the pain or I would have taken him up on it in a flash.

Waiting an hour or more is inexcusable.

[Dave Anderson NH]

James Pallas

As a volunteer at the Manchester NH VA Medical Center I would tell you to document and then complain. If the problem was in urgent care then you are at the mercy of the quantity of patients ahead of you since the workload is unpredictable. If it was a scheduled appointment then complain in person or via email to the Patient Advocate. Manchester had serious problems 4 years ago. The Director, Asst Director, Chief of Staff , and the Nursing head were all canned. We are now rated in the top ten in the country for wait times, employee morale has improved, and most importantly patients are seen as customers and are satisfied. It was all a question of leadership. Monthly "town meetings" are held for veterans and staff and no topic is taboo. I was at one yesterday afternoon.

[James Pallas]

James Pallas

As a volunteer at the Manchester NH VA Medical Center I would tell you to document and then complain. If the problem was in urgent care then you are at the mercy of the quantity of patients ahead of you since the workload is unpredictable. If it was a scheduled appointment then complain in person or via email to the Patient Advocate. Manchester had serious problems 4 years ago. The Director, Asst Director, Chief of Staff , and the Nursing head were all canned. We are now rated in the top ten in the country for wait times, employee morale has improved, and most importantly patients are seen as customers and are satisfied. It was all a question of leadership. Monthly "town meetings" are held for veterans and staff and o topic is taboo. I was at one yesterday afternoon.
I'm well aware that things are getting better. Some places better than others. I'm grateful that things are better where you are. Thank you for volunteering it is a great service on your part.
Jim

[Jim Koepke]

FWIW, I recently went to my doctor and he asked me go go online (dont recall just where) and rate them. He said insurance companies were starting to look at patient ratings as a factor in doctor contracts.

My healthcare provider has "satisfaction surveys" after almost every visit. They arrive via email and can be answered or ignored.

Another point of interest that came to mind is they are a "not for profit" healthcare provider.

My recollection is the healthcare market took a turn for the worse when "for profit" entities became involved.

jtk

[Darcy Warner]

None, I don't go.

[Roger Feeley]

years ago, I saw a specialist who was chronically late. In retrospect, why I put up with him as long as I did is a mystery. I certainly wouldn't today.
The final straw for me was one appointment.

Appt was for 1PM. His receptionist (his wife and a dreadful person) told me to start calling in at 2PM and she would tell me when to show up.
I showed up at 4PM and didn't see the doctor till 9PM.

This was a urologist and the culture was almost comical. The chairs in his waiting room were hard wood. So you had all these guys (me included) with enlarged prostates trying to get comfortable.
One guy studied Masonic stuff in the waiting room. he told me that this was the only place he studied and he was approaching some higher degree because of all the time he put in.
Another guy's wife would drop him off and then go to a movie across the road. After the movie, she would call. Have you seen the doctor? No. So she would see another movie.

After the 9PM fiasco, I had a talk with my GP. He was aghast. He talked with other patients of his that went to the same urologist and moved them all to another one.

So, my first appointment with the new guy. I get there and right away it's an upgrade.
-- The staff was nice
-- The chairs were heavenly soft
-- The doctor saw me just 10 minutes after the appt time and they apologized all over the place

All this is to make two points:
1. Don't assume that you have to take their crap. Walking out is fine. Compaining is fine. Talking to your family physician is even better. In other words, don't be like me.
2. It can be much better.

All that said, my family physician was always late. I forgave him be cause he liked to actually talk with his patients. I knew that and tried to score appointments early in the day. But he really valued interaction with his patients and sometimes it took extra time to figure out what was really wrong. I was one of his very first patients when he got his license and I was one of his last patients before he retired. A good doctor and a good man (still).

[Perry Hilbert Jr]

I once waited gladly 2 hours to see a doctor. I did not have medical insurance at the time. The doctor had an office that was open 6 days a week, closed Mondays. open from noon until he saw the last patient. He did not accept insurance and charged $20 a visit. For many of us in the community, he was a Godsend. It was first come first serve. Any other office in the area would have wanted $150.00

[Frederick Skelly]

I once waited gladly 2 hours to see a doctor. I did not have medical insurance at the time. The doctor had an office that was open 6 days a week, closed Mondays. open from noon until he saw the last patient. He did not accept insurance and charged $20 a visit. For many of us in the community, he was a Godsend. It was first come first serve. Any other office in the area would have wanted $150.00

Man, that's a dedicated human being. How long ago was that Perry - 30 years maybe?

[Mike Henderson]

My healthcare provider has "satisfaction surveys" after almost every visit. They arrive via email and can be answered or ignored.

Another point of interest that came to mind is they are a "not for profit" healthcare provider.

My recollection is the healthcare market took a turn for the worse when "for profit" entities became involved.

jtk

Doctors, whether a sole practice, a group practice, or a corporation, are all "for profit". Some of the specialities make a lot of money. Radiologists used to be the most highly compensated (over $500K/year per doctor average) with orthopaedic surgeons a very close second. This is their take home, not the amount they charge and then have to pay their staff and rent from.

Some dermatologists and plastic surgeons can make very big bucks, but not all of them do.

Primary care used to be one of the worse compensated.

Doctors in a successful group practice in a large city do quite well, in general, no matter what their speciality. The problem they all face is that they're selling time and many get tired of working the long hours.

Mike

[But don't cry for the primary care doctors - they've figured out how to increase their income. It's called a "Concierge practice". The doctor limits his/her practice to a relatively small group of people - let's say 400. Those people pay the doctor a flat fee each year for the privilege of being able to see the doctor. That could be $2,000 per person per year. That gives the doctor $800,000 in additional income over and above the insurance and Medicare payment s/he receives for providing service.

For this fee, the patient is guaranteed to be able to see the doctor either the same day or the next day when they call for an appointment. And no waiting in the waiting room. The doctor can spend more time with the patient and does not have to work the number of hours to make the same amount of money as in a non-concierge practice.

Of course, this only works in fairly wealthy urban environments.]

[Larry Frank]

Thank God for my doctors.....

[Matt Day]

I don't want to say to much, but you all should also consider the doctors side of things. They have Hospital Admin breathing down their neck to see more and more patients, have a more and more difficult time getting things approved by insurance, and have to deal with multiple NO SHOWS on a daily basis. I emphasize no shows because doctors need to double book appointments because so many people don’t show up for their appointment - that means a gap in their productivity or sometimes getting delayed. They have to roll the dice every day with their schedule. Not to mention the lack of respect for the profession by some patients.

But yes, of course, front office staff should be keeping patients up to speed. And don’t hesitate to ask if the doctor is running behind, instead of sit there and fume about it.

The system isn’t easy for anyone these days.

[Jim Koepke]

have to deal with multiple NO SHOWS on a daily basis. I emphasize no shows because doctors need to double book appointments because so many people don’t show up for their appointment

Maybe this is different in various states. In both California and in Washington doctors routinely bill "NO SHOWS" for their appointment if it isn't canceled 24 hours in advance. It is made clear on the appointment slip they give every patient and is usually posted in the office in plain sight.

It must be effective. A few times my doctor or dentist's office has called saying there has been a cancelation and wanted to see if an earlier appointment would be to my liking.

jtk

[Art Mann]

Once upon a time I was taken to the emergency room at Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga due to crushing my ankle in a motorcycle wreck. They gave me morphine on the ride over, which did next to nothing for the pain. When I got there, they gave me Fentanyl, which is an extremely effective but short lived pain reliever. They got my ankle stabilized but said I couldn't have any more pain killer until I was transferred to a room on one of the upper floors. I lay there in the emergency room for a couple of hours while they claimed to be "finding" a room for me. The pain got really serious but nobody did anything. Finally, I started yelling and demanded my cell phone. A nurse walked in, handed me my phone, and asked who I needed to call. I told her I was calling 911 to get an ambulance to come in and take me to some place where I could get treatment. As I started dialing, they somehow managed to break the log jam and get me quickly transferred to a room so I could get some kind of pain killer. My point is that emergency rooms and hospitals in general can be just as sloppy and inconsiderate as doctors when it comes to medical care.

[Matt Day]

Maybe this is different in various states. In both California and in Washington doctors routinely bill "NO SHOWS" for their appointment if it isn't canceled 24 hours in advance. It is made clear on the appointment slip they give every patient and is usually posted in the office in plain sight.
jtk

Yes, regionally dependent.

In some areas with 2 or more competing hospital systems, it’s all about patient retention. They’d never give a reason for a patient to leave, instead they make it harder on the docs to keep on time and on schedule by double booking.

[Jim Becker]

'No Show' notices and charges are pretty routine around here, particularly with specialists. Primary care is often capitated by insurance plans, so "no show" fees seem to be less evident there. The practice gets paid a set fee simply because you chose them to be your primary care practice and they are only "out" the co-pay when you don't arrive for your appointment. I'm in no way saying that being a no-show is appropriate behavior...it's not..of course.

[Roger Feeley]

There's a physician in rural Kansas that had an office visit charge that was keyed to the first class stamp. 100 times the price of the stamp. He didn't accept insurance.

[Brian Elfert]

The only time I can remember having to wait well over an hour for my family doctor was a time when a patient should have gone to ER and the doctor had to call 911 and have them taken out on a stretcher. It put the doctor way behind on his schedule. I had a late afternoon appointment and needed lab work. They kept the lab open just for me. The entire place was empty by the time I was done.

I needed the care and wasn't about to reschedule as long as the doctor could still see me.

[Jim Koepke]

The only time I can remember having to wait well over an hour for my family doctor was a time when a patient should have gone to ER and the doctor had to call 911 and have them taken out on a stretcher. It put the doctor way behind on his schedule. I had a late afternoon appointment and needed lab work. They kept the lab open just for me. The entire place was empty by the time I was done.

I needed the care and wasn't about to reschedule as long as the doctor could still see me.

This sounds like an out of the ordinary occurrence. It also sounds like you knew there was a problem and steps were taken to accommodate your needs.

jtk

[John K Jordan]

I once waited an hour and a half for the ortho guy to cut the cast off my young son's arm. Finally I went to the desk and told them to forget it, I was going to take him home and cut it off myself. They got him back immediately and the cast was off in about 2 minutes.

My longest wait was maybe 3 hours. I occupied the time by computing the square root of 15 in my head, one digit at a time. I got to 3.872983346. Decades later I can't get it out of my head. So far it hasn't been useful for anything except to get people to quit bragging about their mental capabilities. :) I can barely compute the square root of 16 these days!

Also, these days I take a Kindle and don't really care how long I have to wait.

JKJ

[Bruce Wrenn]

Sometimes, no shows aren't the patient's fault. Case in example. Last week had a follow up with urologist for my ultrasound on kidneys. I get there in plenty of time, but not only isn't doctor there, but neither is the building. It had been demolished and was being loaded on dump trucks. Seems doctor's office forgot to tell several patients, myself included, that they would be relocating. Called and found new location, and made my appointment on time, but still had to wait almost an hour. Oh yeah, ultrasound showed I had two LARGE stones, one in each kidney, which neither CAT scan nor xrays had shown two weeks earlier. Surgeon didn't find them when I had surgery two months ago either, cause they aren't there. Ultrasound reader got it wrong, but I still get to pay for ultrasound test.

[Perry Hilbert Jr]

Dr Tranh, a Vietnamese refugee was one of the nicest people you could meet. His office was right along Rt 50 in Falls Church VA. Right in the middle of the hectic Northern VA suburbs of Washington DC. His wife was his secretary and nurse. The basement of his office was all shelves with files. (before computerized records.) The Washington Post did write up about him once. I figure he saw perhaps 8 to 12 patients per hour. and probably averaged 9 or 10 hours a day. He did not do any procedures like stitches he normally avoided vaccines except for the flu shots, etc. I figured he had a good little operation going there and served a niche of folks who other wise would not have care. In the newspaper article about him, he said it was in part, his way of giving back to his new country. I know he was still there in 1999.

[Yonak Hawkins]

We wouldn't put up with an employee who is always 10 or 15 minutes late or a dinner companion who is always that late. Why do we put up with doctors who don't see us at the appointed time ? That's rude and selfish. On the other hand, if I'm 10 minutes late, either they want to reschedule or it's still another 10 or 15 minutes.

[John K Jordan]

We wouldn't put up with an employee who is always 10 or 15 minutes late or a dinner companion who is always that late. Why do we put up with doctors who don't see us at the appointed time ? That's rude and selfish. On the other hand, if I'm 10 minutes late, either they want to reschedule or it's still another 10 or 15 minutes.

Perhaps this was already mentioned. In my experience doctors, dentists, and such tend to get further behind as day progresses. I like to see my family physician the first thing in the morning when I almost never have to wait. Those who make appointments schedule them at specific times but if some go over it pushes everyone else back unless another appt goes under time. When I have to go later in the day I don't mind waiting if he is behind because when I do see him, I have his undivided attention - he will take as long as I need to talk and answer questions, unlike some doctors, I never feel like he is rushing, trying to hurry me out the door, check me off the list. Zounds, this makes me feel like he truly cares! I've been seeing this same doctor for nearly 40 years and he is always like this.

[Doug Garson]

We wouldn't put up with an employee who is always 10 or 15 minutes late or a dinner companion who is always that late. Why do we put up with doctors who don't see us at the appointed time ? That's rude and selfish. On the other hand, if I'm 10 minutes late, either they want to reschedule or it's still another 10 or 15 minutes.
That's kind of an apples and bananas comparison. An employer showing up late for work is totally different from a doctor getting behind schedule because he or she spends more time with the patients ahead of you. You can criticize them for poor management of the office time by overbooking patients but if they booked fewer appointments per day you would probably have to wait longer to get an appointment. Depending on your reason for seeing the doctor a longer wait to get an appointment of a few days may be worse than a longer wait of an hour or two in the waiting room.

[Lee Schierer]

In my younger years, right after we moved to our present location we started going to a family doctor that was recommended by some friends. After 10 years of the four family members (2 young children, my wife and I, we came to the conclusion that the the Doctor was just not organized. Every appointment no matter the time of day resulted in at least an hour wait in the office. The final straw was that I needed a quick physical (weight, heart rate and blood pressure and a doctor signature) for a new life insurance policy. I called, explained what was needed and made an appointment. It was during the work week so I had to take time away form work. I arrived a little early and an hour passed. I asked when I would get to see the doctor, they said in a few minutes, I waited 15-20 minutes and asked again, and received an explanation that the doctor didn't want to rush any patient so it was difficult to judge how many people he could see in a day. The waiting room had at least a dozen people in front of me when I arrived and some were still waiting. I had no choice but to stay, a hour and a half after my second inquiry I finally saw the doctor and after he did the checks and signed, I asked why after more than 15 years experience why he overbooked so much that I had to wait 2-1/2 hours to see him. He blamed it on cancellations and needing to spend uncertain amounts of time with each patient. I told him that if he couldn't figure out his daily schedule better than that that he had major problems. I told him it would be the last time he saw me or any of may family and left. Our new doctor was jsut as busy, but wit times were 15-20 minutes at most.

[Yonak Hawkins]

That's kind of an apples and bananas comparison. An employer showing up late for work is totally different from a doctor getting behind schedule because he or she spends more time with the patients ahead of you.

I tend to disagree, Doug. Why does my doctor believe his time is more valuable than mine ?

Someone should write some software so his receptionist can send me a text if he's behind schedule and give me a good time when he will be available to see me. That way I could take off work at the right time and miss as little work as possible.

[Jim Koepke]

I tend to disagree, Doug. Why does my doctor believe his time is more valuable than mine ?

Someone should write some software so his receptionist can send me a text if he's behind schedule and give me a good time when he will be available to see me. That way I could take off work at the right time and miss as little work as possible.

Do doctors routinely give patients who have had to wait long times a note informing an employer the person didn't take extra time off to go shopping?

jtk

[James Pallas]

As is said "Times are a'changin". Soon we'll go to the doctor's office and never see the same doctor. The family doctor is becoming a thing of the past. It doesn't fit the business model. Taking the time to really know a patient is not important anymore. To pay the bills doctor's offices are forced to pack as many patients as possible through the door. If you have a good family doctor just hope he or she doesn't reach retirement age while you are still living. In most cases you probably spend more time at line at Walmart, or the car wash than you do at the doctor's office and more often too.
Jim

[Matt Day]

Yonak, why do you think a doctor believes his/her time is more valuable than yours? He is just a lot more in demand and has a lot more pressures on him/her to see more patients. It is not your doctors choice, it is the administration who runs the hospitals choice, and they are under the screws by insurance and trying to keep the lights on. If it was your doctor’s choice, I am quite sure he would love to see fewer patients and establish a relationship with each patient, and shoot the breeze for a few minutes each appointment. The choice is not up to the doctor.

You sound like you have a lot of anger and resentment about this. Relax.

[Yonak Hawkins]

Do doctors routinely give patients who have had to wait long times a note informing an employer the person didn't take extra time off to go shopping?

jtk

This isn't really apropos, as far as I'm concerned. I have work to do.


In most cases you probably spend more time at line at Walmart, or the car wash than you do at the doctor's office and more often too.
Jim

The difference here is, at the car wash and Wal-Mart, you go when you want. The doctor and you have an appointment at a specified time. He doesn't expect me to be late and I don't expect him to be late .. and, if he will be late, it would be nice if he were to let me know ahead of time so I can make plans. Why should doctors get a pass on good manners ?

The last time I visited my primary doctor, I didn't even have a chance to sit down before he came to the door and told me to come on in .. and I was early. I was in and out of there in 10 minutes.

[Mike Henderson]

Yonak, why do you think a doctor believes his/her time is more valuable than yours? He is just a lot more in demand and has a lot more pressures on him/her to see more patients. It is not your doctors choice, it is the administration who runs the hospitals choice, and they are under the screws by insurance and trying to keep the lights on. If it was your doctor’s choice, I am quite sure he would love to see fewer patients and establish a relationship with each patient, and shoot the breeze for a few minutes each appointment. The choice is not up to the doctor.

You sound like you have a lot of anger and resentment about this. Relax.

A doctor is selling time and they don't like any dead time. My wife worked as an office manager for several different practices. In each one, the doctors would get upset if they had dead time between patients because they weren't earning any money during that time. So the pressure was on the front office to overschedule in case they had a cancellation. The doctors like to have a backlog in the waiting room so that if they finished with a patient quickly they had another one ready to come in. Or if a patient cancelled, they had people waiting to fill that slot.

There's a financial incentive for the practice to have you wait - it's a buffer to make sure the doctor doesn't have any non-paying time.

So, yes, I think the doctor values his/her time over the time of the patient. Making people wait is all to the advantage of the doctor.

Mike

[Alex Zeller]

My doctor is great. If my appointment is at 2:30 then it's 2:30. No wait, no drama. Often his nurse will do the usual stuff while he's finishing up from the last patent but that's fine. I think the only time I waited was for blood test results. With my dentist I have realized that right after lunch is the best time to go. They get backed up and take a short lunch to get back on track so they aren't staying too late. Probably first thing in the morning would work too. My wife's ex eye doctor was a train wreck. No organizational skills what so ever. People would get their eyes dilated and be waiting so long they had to have them dilated again.

[Matt Day]

A doctor is selling time and they don't like any dead time. My wife worked as an office manager for several different practices. In each one, the doctors would get upset if they had dead time between patients because they weren't earning any money during that time. So the pressure was on the front office to overschedule in case they had a cancellation. The doctors like to have a backlog in the waiting room so that if they finished with a patient quickly they had another one ready to come in. Or if a patient cancelled, they had people waiting to fill that slot.

There's a financial incentive for the practice to have you wait - it's a buffer to make sure the doctor doesn't have any non-paying time.

So, yes, I think the doctor values his/her time over the time of the patient. Making people wait is all to the advantage of the doctor.

Mike

This sounds like a private practice model, in which yes, the doctor values their time a lot more because they are productivity based. Meaning the more patients they grind out the more they get paid - they call it “eat what you kill”. They also want to retain those patients or they “eat” less.

I didn’t know how upset people got going to the doctor. Gone are the days of respecting doctors, arriving early, and waiting patiently. It’s a vicious cycle really.

[Larry Frank]

Some doctors and their staff manage things well and are close to on time. Occasionally, they get way behind and it would be courteous to inform patients of the potential wait. Many doctors charge you if cancel within 24 hours.

Other doctors just do not seem to care how long patients wait. This is like some people who are always late and make everyone wait for them.

[Mike Henderson]

This sounds like a private practice model, in which yes, the doctor values their time a lot more because they are productivity based. Meaning the more patients they grind out the more they get paid - they call it “eat what you kill”. They also want to retain those patients or they “eat” less.

I didn’t know how upset people got going to the doctor. Gone are the days of respecting doctors, arriving early, and waiting patiently. It’s a vicious cycle really.

My comment was definitely about private or group practice. And as for respecting doctors, respect goes both ways.

Mike

[But if the doctor is an employee, the pressure to have no dead time just shifts. Instead of the doctor wishing to have no dead time, it's the corporation which wants no dead time. They're paying the doctor and want the maximum productivity. And productivity is enhanced if there's a buffer of waiting patients so that there's no dead time. If people didn't complain, I'm convinced most practices - whether corporate, group or sole - would have people waiting an hour or more so that they didn't have any time where the doctor was not seeing patients. The financial incentive is to have people wait.]

[Jim Koepke]

Making people wait is all to the advantage of the doctor.

This can fall apart real fast. If everyone having an appointment with a particular doctor has to wait an hour, people will start coming in later. Either that or looking for a doctor who respects there patients time.

My health care provider encourages patients to drop in regularly to have their blood pressure checked. Even without an appointment it seldom takes longer than 15 minutes to be in an examination room with a nurse checking my blood pressure.

It is possible for a medical facility to run efficiently without long waits for primary care visits.

jtk

[Darcy Warner]

This thread just points out that most have no idea what it's like to not have that same paycheck week after week.

I bet no one took unpaid time off work to sit at the doctor.

[Yonak Hawkins]

I bet no one took unpaid time off work to sit at the doctor.

I do. Being a one-man shop, I lose money any time I'm not working there.

[Kevin Beitz]

I once waited an hour and a half at an ER with blood running out of my eye.
I got up and left. Now the only way I'll go to the doc is if I'm out cold and someone takes me.

[Matt Day]

You’re pissed about waiting 1.5hrs at the ER?! I’m going to guess it’s because of triage. Likely someone was in serious trouble - shot, heart attack, stroke, etc. That takes priority over a bloody eye.

If you go to a big hospital (not a private practice), the doctors have little to no control of their schedule. It’s about making money, for the hospital not the doctors.

I hope you guys aren’t the same patients who refuse to see a woman doctor, or Muslim doctor, or a gay doctor.

[Edwin Santos]

I once waited an hour and a half at an ER with blood running out of my eye.
I got up and left. Now the only way I'll go to the doc is if I'm out cold and someone takes me.

An ER is a very different situation than a scheduled appointment. I think you need to be reasonable and expect that an ER, urgent care, or walk-in clinic is going to be the luck of the draw in terms of wait time. This is not only because of their staffing, but also because every situation coming their way is unplanned and urgent. The patient before you might have come in for a dog bite, or a life threatening stroke so the range of issues that present can be really wide.

The original post had to do with a scheduled office appointment, a 1hr+ wait, and no communication from staff as to why or how much longer. In other words, a very different situation.

[Jim Koepke]

My wait in the dentist office this morning was 15 minutes. Kind of surprising since my arrival was 20 minutes early.

In other words they put me in the chair 5 minutes before my appointment.

In my opinion, if your doctor or dentist is constantly having patients wait more than a few minutes, it might be time to start shopping for a new care provider.

jtk

[Doug Garson]

In my experience dentists and doctors operate in different modes. Typically if I go to the dentist it's for a cleaning and checkup. A 1 hour appointment is a 1 hour appointment. I rarely wait at all at the dentist but one time I was 15 min late for a 1 hour appointment they simply gave me a 45 min treatment so as to not delay the next patient. If the checkup shows treatment is required they book an appointment and the length of the appointment is based on the procedure required. A doctor doesn't have that option, they don't know in advance what treatment if any will be required. I've never had a doctor say your appointments up, book another appointment to complete the exam or treatment.

[Brian Elfert]

I went to my family doctor once for a toenail issue. He ended up doing a minor surgical procedure to remove my entire nail so it would grow back properly. The amount of time he spent with me was certainly longer than my allotted time on the schedule.

Now, granted, I was taken to a procedure room by a nurse who injected my toe with a numbing agent. I am certain the doctor saw a patient or two while I was getting taken care of by the nurse before the doctor came to the procedure room to remove my toenail. (I didn't even know that a family doctor even did stuff like this.)

[Len Mullin]

Usually, if you go to the ER around here, you can normally expect a wait a minimum of about eight hours or more. Especially, if it's for a non emergency visit. It all depends on if it is an emergency or not, if not, they're trying to get people to make an appointment with their family doctor. So the one's that aren't an emergency, get to wait the longest. I have a great doctor, he calls for me to go in to see him, before he takes vacations or any amount of time off. He does this because of my meds, he is the only doctor in the area that can prescribe the meds I need. So before he takes any amount of time off, I get a call to go in. Plus, if you have an appointment time, that's the time you get to see him. And if you're kept waiting for any reason, he apologizes over and over again. He is a great doctor, and there's a lot of people who would love to have him as their doctor. But he refuses to take on any new clients, because he says that he already has enough to keep his schedule full. This is what more doctors should be like, but they're forced to take on so many clients that they can't keep running appointments on time. Plus, you have to wait for weeks to get in to see them, because they're so busy.

Len

[Tony Zona]

You said "around here." Where’s here?