Have you noticed doctors are not what they used to be? I have.
My complaints with the medical system are numerous. I’m sure I’m not the only one. From insurance companies to incompetent doctors and inefficient management of the health system, problem areas are many.
Have you been to an ER lately? It’s a mess. Have you noticed some doctors can’t live without Googling medication interactions (I’m not talking about complicated things here but is Amoxicillin from the Penicillin family or not…you’d think a doctor would know this).
Of course, there are so many complex issues in the health organization of any country that criticism is easy without knowing details. But at the end of the day, some of the blame for the problems in the medical system is on individuals. We can’t blame everything on larger than life entities.
As patients, we need to be more aware of our choices and make sure we use efficient services and complain about problems. If we keep quiet, the status quo will continue and health professionals will take advantage of us (the majority of the times it is unintentional).
For example, we have to always follow up on test results. Doctors are supposed to call when results are abnormal but you don’t want to fall through the cracks! Other times, we have to be aware of the tests doctors prescribe and question their necessity, side effects and the way things work!
We have to DEMAND a high level of service from practitioners and be prepared to take our business else where when they don’t comply! The medical industry is a service industry. Just as a mechanic or retail sales person works to keep your business, doctors should understand the competition is fierce and their clientele is educated!
When I work with a doctor, I refuse to continue my relationship if he doesn’t go the extra mile. There’s a famous Iranian doctor (I won’t name) in LA. This dude’s roopoosh is DIRTY. He has sweat marks around his neck. Excuse me but if a doctor doesn’t take care of keeping his clothes clean, I don’t want him any where near me. And he always asks “shoma chi fekr mikonid”! What do I look like a doctor??? And who is he the milk man? It’s one thing to ask for opinions and consult with one’s patient. It’s another thing to give the choice of several problems and ask the patient to pick one! Another Iranian doctor in the Valley once looked me straight in the eye’s and told me: “lotfan ziad soal nakonid man mariz ziad daram emrooz”. Excuse me? Are you talking to me? Me? I waited 3 weeks to see you and you have too many patients to answer my questions? Well patientat bokhoran too saret, I’m outta here.
What’s up with doctors who are too cheap to validate parking stubs? Or doctors who keep rude receptionists?
I’ve noticed a new policy going around and it really annoys me. It started with doctors and now even my hair dresser is charging for a missed appointment. Are you kidding me? I am one of those people who misses appointments maybe 5 or 6 times a year (not all at the same facility or for the same reason). I don’t do it on purpose but life happens. I’m sure that sign wouldn’t be up if I was the only one.
I’m busy. My schedule is unpredictable and my financial means are not as unlimited as these doctors’! If I miss an appointment, I expect a call to reschedule. Not a 50$ deduction from my pocket book.
I realize that missing appointments is disrespectful, annoying, and inconvenient. Not to mention it costs the doctor money and it’s bad for patients who could have used my spot. But life is life! Part of a business is to accept that money will leak from time to time. And to stop the leak by financially punishing loyal clients is just bad service. There’s also a human element here, people get stuck in traffic. They have to drive long distances. They get into accidents. They get held up at work. So many last minute things can happen and we just don’t get the time to call and cancel or we just forget.
I missed a hair appointment on Friday and I got a call from a 17 a rude year old chewing bubblegum. She said “next time” I’m at the salon, they’ll charge me an extra 35$ for the missed appointment. I respectfully apologized and called Babak (real name – screw him I’m not guarding his identity). I asked him what’s up with the charge, I only missed one appointment and that was over 6 months ago, I’ve been there many times since then and spend a lot of money (you know what a cut and style costs these days? God forbid you ask for a head massage or for the flat iron, I’m glad I don’t have blond envy because highlights don’t come cheap). He said it was the salon’s policy. Well, do you think I’m going there again? For 35$, they are losing at least 50$ a month from me and that doesn’t count nails! I’ve told every friend of mine and the lovely ladies at work (this salon is a chain). I’m sure it’s a threat and I won’t get charged but I hate the attitude!
So to any doctors out there, believe me, there are as many of you as there are of us! If you want to charge money for missed appointments, boogh bezan boro kenar. Are you seriously expecting me to believe you were bleeding money 10 years ago when these policies weren’t around? Good service starts with respect for your clients’ pocket book. And the first step is to stop taking so much money from us. From health insurance at work, pharmacy expenses, optometrists, dentists and so on…the medical industry has been robbing patients for many decades now. The first step to correct this is for individual doctors to take that fee sign off and replace it with:”
Dear patients,
Missed appointments are costly to the clinic and inconvenient for other patients. Please help us keep our costs down and provide better service to other patients. Please cancel appointments you cannot keep. We appreciate your help and will strive to continue with our high level of service. We value you.
Thank you,
The Staff
How about email reminders? It’s not 1950 anymore, why aren’t doctors using email to remind patients of upcoming appointments? I kid you not, one of my doctor’s calls 3 WEEKS ahead of time to remind me of an upcoming appointment. Not the week before, not the night before, 3 weeks before.
Why don’t doctors have incentives to keep patients in line? Patients who never miss appointments could get free movie tickets! 20 Bucks at the local theatre cannot be more expensive than missed appointments. But of course, that’s never going to happen because now the flood gates have been opened and doctors are cashing in 50 bucks at a time…
One time, I got to an appointment 10 minutes late. There was no one else waiting. The receptionist told me I lost my appointment and would have to reschedule. I moved heaven and earth to get there and all I could do was turn around and look at the empty room and ask her: “who’s seeing the doctor after me, there’s no way to schedule me between these patients?” I guess it was funny because I heard a couple of people giggling in there. You know, back “there”, god knows who hides “there” or what they do “there”. This doctor was new and was accepting new patients; he heard me and motioned me inside. But COME ON. I’m convinced a lot of these receptionists love the power trip.
Now, 99% of the time, I’m on time with a smile on my face and at least one joke to crack. But I so totally cannot stand those few that need to wake up and smell the 21st century. Please people, demand more for the bucks going out of your taxes and pay checks.
