why give a person a 2 o clock apt then make them sit in the room for a hour when all you need is a referal. i was so pissed i opened the door saw him sitting at a computer i slammed the door and he came right in. it took me only 2 min to talk to him and he was just a asshole was a nice word for him. this is my primary dr. he didn't even understand what i ment that i needed a referal again cause my insurance only gave me until last of october. so i had to tell the front office that i already had the surgery i just needed the aftercare follow ups. what a idiot dr. he cares more about the money then the patients.:laugh::mad::biggrin::mad::w00t::mad::mad::hurray::mad::w00t::mad::lol2::mad::tt2::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:

i feel for ya!! really i do...been going round and round with my drs lately also.your miltary right? would they not let you leave a mssg with your pcm and tell them you need more referral to continue seeing your surgeon? or do you have to go off post for your pcm? at this moment i dislike all military drs lol.

I went for my 6th PCP visit which was required for my surgery to get approved and I was 15 minutes late so the receptionist didn't want to see me. She asked the doctor and the doctor said it was OK. When I went to get weighed by the nurse I told her what happened and asked what is the difference if I am 15 minutes late ... they always keep me in the stupid room for at least 45 minutes everytime. I don't know how they figure their time is more valuable than mine.

I went for my 6th PCP visit which was required for my surgery to get approved and I was 15 minutes late so the receptionist didn't want to see me. She asked the doctor and the doctor said it was OK. When I went to get weighed by the nurse I told her what happened and asked what is the difference if I am 15 minutes late ... they always keep me in the stupid room for at least 45 minutes everytime. I don't know how they figure their time is more valuable than mine.

they've done that to me also and i make the excuse that i got stopped at the gate because they are doing 100% ID ck. what are they going to do call and see lol? i hate sitting there waiting for them and then if you go to the desk and remind them they act like it's an inconvience for them to go and ck...

I know you're very, very frustrated with your postop course right now, so please take what I am about to say with the kindness with which it is intended. I am not criticizing, but making a gentle suggestion.

Your mindset has been quite negative. And while that is understandable, to an extent, during bandster hell, there's something to be said for letting some of the things in life, over which we have no control, roll off our backs.

The banded life involves a fair amount of aftercare. There will be lots of doctor's office waits. This is something you signed up for; it's just part of the deal.

It would be nice if the office staff were more efficient. It would be nice if there weren't communication snafus.

And I'm sure that you were really pleasant in the office, and are just venting here, because it's irritating.

But you have a choice to make, vis-a-vis what irritates you--and how much. An hour in a doctor's office is a PITA---I don't know about you, though, but it also can be a time to just sit and relax and ...whatever. I read four magazines in a surgery center today. The wait was longer than the surgical procedure I had done!

But I don't often get the opportunity to sit still and read four magazines! There's usually something else vying for my attention. But there I was, with my phone turned off (so no students texting me, neither of my kids calling or texting..no one asking me for anything), able to read magazines.

It was almost pleasant.

The unavoidable stuff that we can't change is just that---stuff we have no control over. Try not to let it color your life negatively. It's just not worth it.

I am in agreement with Betsy. I hate taking off work to have a Dr appt and always have to drive 30minutes across Dallas traffic. BUT.. once I have escaped the office, the cell, the pager and, people standing infront of my desk, I am content. Especially if I have time to take a deep breath before getting called in.

Getting out of the office and rushing to an appointment is the worst. Once I get there I have no problem waiting.

I always bring a book.

I know you've been a little upset lately <3

Don't worry, things will get better. Whenever I'm in a situation like that I always just say, "I've gotta be quick because I have to pick my mum up from the hospital" :sneaky:

My mum is always in and out of hospital and the ladies at the front desk know that, so it always seems to work out.

When I went for a referal my doctor told me that lap banding meant they cut open your bowel and they did one big incition...It was obvious she didn't know what she was talking about...I think she got lap banding mixed up with gastric bypass and stomach mixed up with bowel...I was holding back laughter.

In the end, they're just humans.

If having time to read, uninterrupted, in a doctor's office is acceptable to or pleasant for you- that is fine. But you can also do that voluntarily at a park or mall or library.

However -

Time is money to the doctor and as a patient your time is valuable too. Doctors overbook all the time. They schedule 2 or 3 people for the same time slot. Would your doctor sit and read a magazine and wait for you to show up? Use that opportunity to catch up on his medical journals? Why should your time be any less valuable?

To make someone wait an hour for a referral is a reflection on a poorly run office. That is something that should be brought to the attention of the office manager and the doctor. And in my opinion, that is something you have control over.

Edited October 28, 201015 yr by Cleo's Mom

Ever wonder why what the doctors do is called "practice?" You'd think after all that schooling, they'd be experts at it... :sneaky:

I have a Kindle reader on my cell phone. I actually appreciate the waiting time, so I can catch up on some reading.

Dave

I think my time is less valuable than my doctor's time. After all, I don't have hundreds

of people trying to make an appointment with me. I'm an attorney and I probably earn the same amount per hour, if not more, than my doctor. That being said - I need his specialized knowledge and assistance so I will wait as long as necessary for something I need. Perhaps he was reading up on some medical journals for critical patient's care. Doctors have to triage patient's needs and thank goodness for that.

Patience was never one of my virtues but, with age comes ... hmmm ... reality, I guess. There are things that are out of my control. Is it better to relax and get through it? Yes, I think it is. It is easy? Often, no.

2 stories.

A few years ago I had been feeling poorly for days. Ultimately, I couldn't get out of bed to get dressed for work. I called my docs office and they gave me an appointment for the next morning. The morning of the appointment I could barely get out of bed. I managed to get dressed because I knew that I had to get to the docs office. I left home in time to get to my appointment but, getting from the garage to the office (which was a 4 minute walk normally) took me about 15-20 minutes. I had to stop 2 or 3 times to sit down. I was very weak. After waiting for the elevator and finally getting in to the office they told me that I was too late. They said that I would have to reschedule because the doctor had to stay on schedule and I was too late to get in by TWO MINUTES. I was so sick I could barely talk. But I managed to tell the guy at the desk that I was much too sick to leave and could the doc PLEASE see me. He went back to see the doc and he agreed to see me. My doc took one look at me and said "you look awful". I explained my symptoms, he took a quick blood test and I had to be hospitalized immediately. I spent the next 5 days in the hospital. I was severely dehydrated, my blood sugar was 917 and I was fast on my way to diabetic ketoacidosis. At that time I did not know I was diabetic. I was immediately put on an IV for dehydration and my friend that was at the hospital with me had to respond to the questions they asked because by then, I was confused and incoherent. My doc is one that doesn't like to make his patients wait so, if you are late, you must reschedule so that others are not left waiting. But ... sometimes it's necessary. People had to wait while the doc took me in and people had to wait while the doc arranged for me to get into the hospital. I am very grateful to the people that waited while the doctor treated me.

My 2nd story was a frustrating experience. I went for a fill one afternoon. I left work at 11:30 a.m. for a 12:15 p.m. fill appointment. My surgeon does all my fills himself. I had not reached restriction and was anxious to get this fill. As it goes with surgeons I had been sent home in the past without a fill because my doc was in surgery. On this day, they kept telling me he was "on his way." After two hours I was debating whether I should stay or just leave and reschedule. I had my iPod with me and the couches in his office are EXTREMELY comfortable, so I stayed. He arrived an hour later. I waited THREE hours for my doc! That's a loooooonnnng time to be patient. Fortunately, I had taken the remainder of the day off from work. Was it the end of the world waiting 3 hours? No. Would I ever want to do it again? No. After that experience I call his office before I leave work to make sure he is already there or nearby.

It's not too much to ask that a doc respect your time. But, sometimes it's just not possible.

Hang in there folks. As we lose weight our health gets better and better and soon we will only see a doc for our yearly physical!

~F

Cleo's Mom, I get that it's inconsiderate of doctors to overbook. And yes, telling the doctor sometimes results in change. As an RN, I will tell you that it more often results in a platitude, and then an eyeroll behind the back. Overbooking is a sad consequence of managed care.

But what good comes from growing irritated? This is a poster who's currently irritated by everything. Blowing things out of proportion is unnecessary when, with subtle shifts in thinking, she might find herself in a much better place, emotionally. She needs to be in a better place emotionally.

Would a "There, there, you poor thing" have been more suitable?

The reality is that doctors overbook. In most cases, that will not change.

She has a choice: to go off the rails each time it happens (and when you've signed on for banding, and your insurance requires a referral, it will happen quite a bit), or she can accept it for what it is, and find ways to make it less taxing.

I personally opt for the latter. Life's too short to be pissed off all the time.

I think my time is less valuable than my doctor's time. After all, I don't have hundreds

of people trying to make an appointment with me. I'm an attorney and I probably earn the same amount per hour, if not more, than my doctor. That being said - I need his specialized knowledge and assistance so I will wait as long as necessary for something I need. Perhaps he was reading up on some medical journals for critical patient's care. Doctors have to triage patient's needs and thank goodness for that.

Patients who make appointments in advance are not in need of triage care. If they are, they should be going to the ER.

And I don't think office hours with scheduled patient's appointments is the appropriate time to read medical journals. That should be done on the doctor's own time before or after all appointments.

I've read some of the OP's other posts. It seems like she is having a hard time with the band, her PCOS and is reaching out for some help. Some might consider that a negative mindset. So what? Not everyone is a glass half-full type of person and never will be.

Some positive suggestions would be helpful. Like call the doctor's office in advance to find out how far behind he is. Or find out if it is even necessary to see the doctor to get the referral. Perhaps they can issue one based on your last visit. It never hurts to ask.

Also, if the OP is truly depressed perhaps she can discuss that with her surgeon or PCP and can get help for that.

In addition, when making your selection for a WLS surgeon, it is best to choose one who ONLY does WLS and is not a general surgeon, too. General surgeons have many emergencies that bariatric surgeons generally do not. So, waiting time would be more predictable.

Edited October 28, 201015 yr by Cleo's Mom

My WLS has a sign "Please tell us if you've been waiting more than 20 minutes". I have made use of that sign in the past. Usually when I am there for the doctor. I once waited 2 hours to see my orthopedist and even got a parking ticket! Very aggrevated! I have never in my life got a parking ticket. I am a corporate recruiter and I have been stood up or been made to wait more often by Hiring Managers than I have my doctors. Though admittedly some of them are making more than my doctors. I LOVE it when they are traveling to China or India and see me online at midnight my time and instant message me to say "I see you're working I have time to talk now". Great. So excited about that!