"Womens Imaging" at MetroWest Wellness Center
My doctor's office makes an appointment for me for a bone density exam, technically a Bone Mineral Densitometry. The appointment is for 1:00PM. I could hear the person on the other end; they said "One." I arrive dutifully early at 12:50 and check in. My first hint that something was wrong was when they said: "OK, have a seat and fill out this paperwork and they'll take you in registration as soon as they're done with all the others in front of you." I whirled around and asked: "Are you running behind today?" to which she replied "No, just everybody comes in at once." Well, I was 10 minutes early, so OK, I'll wait. 40 minutes later, after seeing many people come in and get registered ahead of me, I go back to the front desk and ask: "What time is my appointment?" "1:20" "Do you normally have people com e in early for an appointment?" "Yes, we ask them to come in half an hour before to do the registration." Well, I've been a "customer" of their medical franchise before, so I'm in their computer system, and I've also had several MRIs there before. (Each time they ran a little behind, but never like this.) The registration process takes minutes, like 3, perhaps 5 tops if you're in the system. Even one couple in front of me who couldn't speak English (and the registrar couldn't speak Portuguese) took about 15. So now they are requiring a photo ID for service. This is new, and I had run into it about a month ago when going to another of their facilities (actually their hospital) to have some blood drawn. So I give them my insurance card and my photo ID. They hand me back a 4 page legal document and say: "Do you have a healthcare proxy" looking for me to sign the paper. I know what this paper says: It says that I have to pay them if my insurance is declined about 12 different ways, gives them the right to distribute my health info in any way they want 3 different ways, says that I have "patient rights" (one of which i guess is to be really really patient with them), that I've been advised of the above, and that I've been asked about a healthcare proxy. I say: "Don't you have that info (remember, she only asked me if I had a healthcare proxy) in the computer already?" (I did, and it's in the computer... I know because I did the last time and the time before that, yet they keep asking me, and keep making note of it in the computer.) "Well, I haven't looked you up yet, I just ask everyone." I knew that. I could hear every question and every answer from every single person before me, talking to ALL 3 of the registrars. Some privacy. More standard questions, address, employment, phone number, insurance carrier and subscriber, then: "What's your mother's first name?" Huh? First name? Yet another request for personal info above and beyond the maiden name they already have? "No thanks, I'm not going to answer that" "Have you had a cigarette in the last 12 months?" "Why do you need that?" I ask innocently. Remember, I've heard this 20 times already. "It's just one of the things I need to ask," she (sort of) lies. I've heard the others tell people that a "Federal Survey" is being done to determine how many people are smoking. How dare they grab my personal information for this purpose without my explicit consent? (I haven't signed that legal document yet, perhaps it's in there... but who the heck could possibly read and comprehend a document of that length in under an hour? Never mind that a lawyer really needs to be present to interpret it and give context for such a thing.) "I'm not going to answer that, either" (No, I haven't touched a tobacco product in 10 years, but I'm really steeeeemed right now). Then she hands me back the legal document and this time says" This explains your patient's rights. Sign it here" I say: "It says more than that, doesn't it? I mean it's binding me into being responsible for payment for this test if my insurance doesn't pay, and it's allowing you to give out my medical information and other things, doesn't it?" She nods. "So why would you say that?" I take it and scan it for 12 seconds more than anyone else does, and sign it and give it back to her. I signed the same form a month ago to have a tube of blood drawn. Then she hands me a form and says: "This authorizes us to do the procedure." It does, but it also waives their liability for anything going wrong, and also something else, like that I had been given HIPPA info or something. I shake my head and sign it. She gets up with my insurance card and license in her hand and I say "I don't want you to take a photo copy of my license" and she says "OK" and returns it, then proceeds to take a photo copy of my insurance card. Look, I'm here to get a %@#@$% x-ray of my arm. Take the %$^#$% picture, will ya? I don't want to participate in a federal survey, I don't need your advice on a healthcare proxy, or on smoking, or give you my life's history in order you take a picture of my arm. I have already filled out the questionnaire for the radiologist with all of the pertinent info for a bone density measurement. She returns and directs me back into the chairs to wait some more. So after the registration I wait some more. 20 minutes more. Finally the radiologist comes out to get me. She brings me back to the BMD room, I take off my shoes so my height can be measured. I sit down and she enters my pertinent info into the computer, she positions my arm and I'm done, about 4 or 5 minutes, and I'm sent out a back door right into the building's lobby rather than through the reception area. 5 minutes, plus 5 minutes. 10 minutes that I really needed to be there. I was there for 70. Why don't they value my time? Why do they treat us this way? I can't really "yell" at the registrar or the receptionist, they aren't the people responsible for this abomination, but there's nobody of "import" around to complain to. It's getting to be like the DMV no accountability. I want some of my money back for the poor customer service. I'd demand it in a restaurant, or in any other place where I'd expect to be treated properly. There's only one way to start to correct these problems, we have to stop being sheeple and demand some of our money back for poor service. I'm going to write a letter to the manager of the facility and demand $50 back. I'm going to tell them to "mind their own business" and to tell the truth to people when they are registering them. I am going to tell them to have respect for my time, and be honest if they are running behind schedule. If they don't send me my money back, I will let them know that I am going to tell my insurance company that they should demand some money back on my behalf, due to the incredibly poor service rendered and the lies spoken. I hope they'll realize that it will be better to settle with me for $50 than to deal with the amount of paperwork that will be generated on my behalf. But the real motive is to get them to look at how they are treating their "customers", and if my letter causes just a single department meeting about it, then I'll have done my job. If 100 of you do the same, maybe it will be enough so that a single inconvenience is removed. Who knows, maybe we can start a trend. Demand (some of) your money back from medical facilities that treat you poorly! And I'm going to send them a link to this webpage. |
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| I agree with you Ron. I spent an hour and a half at the doctor the other day so she could change my prescription from one brand to the other. I was shocked and amaized when she actually waived my copay with out me even asking. At my other doctor I normally pay first, but at least this one is set up like you are actually paying for a service rendered, not that I was happy with the service. |
| I don't blame you for being mad, Ron. The medical establishment doesn't even try to keep to their scheduled times. I can understand in cases where you're seeing a surgeon or an OB, where they may have been called in for an unscheduled procedure or a procedure takes longer than expected. But for a scheduled service there is no excuse for keeping a client waiting.
I've dropped several doctors for keeping me waiting more than an hour for an appointment. One was an eye doctor - I saw the assistant who did the preliminary tests, then was taken to a second waiting room to wait for the doctor. I watched the doctors stop and chat, get some coffee, and generally take their sweet time between clients. After 75 minutes in that room I walked out. At some point later in the day they called me - they were mad at ME for walking out without telling them! No one was sure what to do with my file. LOL, they didn't ever need that file again. |
| That's how it is every time we go to the doctor, any kind. It's really not fair, but what can you do? |
when I went to the Dr's yesterday, My appointment was for 4:00, I got in to see him at 4:45 finally, when I came out, I need to some forms for the lab and for my mammogram the the Bi^&#Y receptionist he has had left for the day.  I have been very vocal to my doctor about how my time is just as precious as his is and how much I dislike the B*&^% that works at the desk. (He use to have such a nice one but she retired, I told him to offer Ruby more money and bring her back). She has done this to me twice now. The first time my appoointment was for 11:20. I was there at 11:10 (the old secretaryknew when I was there during business hoursm she would take me first and then the seniors after me), I didn't get in to see the Dr until 11:55, he gave me my prescription and said he wanted to see me in 3 weeks. The ^itch was standing at her desk when he's sayimng this to me. I asked her to book me in and she says to me "It 12:02 and I'm on my lunch, you'll have to call me later"  My Dr just looked at me and I said to him "We will talk about this later" He said "I know".
I'm sorry, If I said that to a client, I would be fired. Come back 2 minutes after 1 if you leave 2 minutes late. Give me a break. I was livid. First of all She shouldn't be leaving for lunch until the last patient has been seen and left, secondly - Do you have to be a total cow? I'm still pissed off can you tell? |
| I guess maybe I don't understand the frustration as much because my doc is great that way. (I understand it, I just don't have to deal with it.)
I had an appointment on Monday for 1:45, I went a bit early, at 1:30, I handed them my health card, they swiped it, I sat down to wait. I only waited maybe 7 or 8 minutes. Went in to see him, he sent me for xrays, which are in the same building. I went to xray, gave them my health card, they swiped it and asked me to wait. I waited in there less than 5 minutes, they took a bunch of xrays, and asked me to walk them back over to my doc myself LOL So I did, talked to him for a few more minutes and went home. I was home by 2:10 pm I think. |
| My sister went to a doc a few years ago for a pap smear. She waited awhile in the waiting room, then in the exam room. They handed her the "mini" sheet, told her to strip from the waist down and the doc would be right in.
She waited about an hour. Got pi$$ed, got dressed and opened the door. A nurse standing in the hall asked her if she could help her. She say "Yeah, dah dah dah about the appointment and she's tired of waiting on the doctor." The nurse replies, "Honey, Dr. ?? and his staff have left for the day." 
The other doctor in the office was nice enough to take care of her so she wouldn't have to go back. Talk about duds................. She didn't hesitate to tell them what she thought about it later. |
| I'm feeling your pain Ron. Things like that seem normal to me nowadays. |
| It is a shame that this has become the norm of medical offices in this country. It is entirely up to us to do something about it.
Ron wrote: Demand (some of) your money back from medical facilities that treat you poorly!
I helped my sister write a letter to the anesthesiologist who gave her an epidural during her son's birth. He tried twice, unsuccessfully, to give her an epidural. After the 2nd time, she told him to just forget it!! He tried one last time and was finally successful. He was in the room well over an hour doing a procedure that should have only taken a few minutes. When the bill came, the charges after the insurance company had paid were still quite high. She didn't feel like she should have to pay "full price" for such obviously inadequte service. So, we wrote a letter to them asking them to waive the rest of their fee and settle for what the insurance had paid in light of the circumstances. She recieved a letter back a week later accepting those terms. She owed them nothing more. |
| Being a "Medical Professional" myself I feel the need to put at least a small plug in for the Dr. One thing people need to do is to be very clear when making an appointment the reason they need to see the Dr. One thing that happens here all the time is a person call, makes an appointment to see the Dr because of something minor like a "sore throat". The appointment clerk books a standard 15 min quick visit in the Dr's already full schedule. Then the patient arrives and in addition to the sore throat they mention their back pain, shoulder pain, the funny rash on their butt and oh by the way I think I've been having a chest pain.
The visit which should have been a siple diagnostic vist for why your throat hurts turns into a hour long investigation of multiple complaints that the patient never mentioned when making the appointment. I know it's sometimes hard to explain to the stranger on the phone why you need to see the Dr but if you tell them you have a sore toe and it's really your entire body that hurts all the patients after you are going to be waiting. On the other hand, we do have Dr's here that are chronically late. They book patients starting at 8:00 and then come strolling in at 9:00, EVERY DAY If they are starting the day an hour behind can you imagine how long the patients later in the day have to wait. I never understand WHY they are allowed to do that. Or why people continue to come see them. I will for give a Dr for being late, even VERY late, occassionally but if it happens everytime I make an appointment then it time to find another Dr. |
Quote: They book patients starting at 8:00 and then come strolling in at 9:00, EVERY DAY
I brought my little girl in for her Preschool check up. Instead of having to make 3 trips (To town for appt., back to other town were we live to babysitters, then back to Town for work). I set up an appt. at our small town local clinic. I made the appiontment for 8:15 and got there at 8 because we have never gone there. I got all of my paperwork done in about 5 mins and 2 mins later the nurse took us back for the initial check over. We sat in the exam room for about half an hour and then the nurse caming in to inform us that the Dr. wasn't even there yet!!!! 
So they had us come back out and wait in the waiting area. He strolled in at about 9 and did my daughters check up in about 5 mins. (rushing through the entire thing I might add ) and gave her a sucker and sent us on our way! |
JakobandBrandonsmom wrote: That's how it is every time we go to the doctor, any kind. It's really not fair, but what can you do?
Send the doctor a bill for YOUR time and go to another doctor. I have a friend who's grandfather did this. I don't think he received any money but it makes me laugh just thinking about it. I'm one who makes a huge stink in the office if a doctor is running 20 minutes over. That front office will see me pop in and out of the little room they stick me in regardless of what clothes I have or don't have on. I have learned to take the first morning appointment and to call beforehand. If the doctor isn't there, I'm out of there and I'll make a huge stink on the way out to all the people in the waitng area. I also tell the doctor that I'm not happy and he can determine whether to correct the problem with himself or with his staff. I get REALLY ticked when I've scheduled time off for work and the doctor is wasting my time. I have asked them to waive the copay. The one thing I do wonder about my vet is why on two occassions vet was 20 minutes late first thing in the morning. Now one time I can understand, but twice??? |
Stacy wrote: JakobandBrandonsmom wrote: That's how it is every time we go to the doctor, any kind. It's really not fair, but what can you do? Send the doctor a bill for YOUR time and go to another doctor. I have a friend who's grandfather did this. I don't think he received any money but it makes me laugh just thinking about it. I'm one who makes a huge stink in the office if a doctor is running 20 minutes over. That front office will see me pop in and out of the little room they stick me in regardless of what clothes I have or don't have on. I have learned to take the first morning appointment and to call beforehand. If the doctor isn't there, I'm out of there and I'll make a huge stink on the way out to all the people in the waitng area. I also tell the doctor that I'm not happy and he can determine whether to correct the problem with himself or with his staff. I get REALLY ticked when I've scheduled time off for work and the doctor is wasting my time. I have asked them to waive the copay. The one thing I do wonder about my vet is why on two occassions vet was 20 minutes late first thing in the morning. Now one time I can understand, but twice??? You have a point there. The only doctor we visit regularly is the boys pediatrician though. Jason and I almost never get sick, and when we do, it's usually something OTC meds can take care of. The boys both run extremely high temps when they get sick (104-106 range), so I always take them to the pedi just in case. I know now it's just them and not dangerous - know the whole routine of alternating tylenol and motrin every couple of hours until it drops down, but I still get scared seeing the numbers go up that high. The thing is...I will wait because he is an awesome doctors. I couldn't imagine sending them to another. He saved both of their lives at birth, and Brandon nearly passed away a few times and they saved him every time. We were with Brandon on Christmas day when he was in NICU, and he spent all of Christmas at the hospital taking care of Brandon and away from his own family (young children included) because he went into renal failure Christmas morning on top of his being on a respirator, apnea & bradycardia, having a staph infection, and sepsis (Brandon was a preemie). He was so worried about Brandon, as we were of course. He knows their histories, and he is really terrific with them. It's irritating when they boys are acting out or crying in pain while we're waiting, but after what he did for my boys (and I know it's just his job but still...), the least I can do is wait.  He is the ONLY doctor around here we are completely devoted to.
Now dentist and ob/gyn appointments are terrible - I still haven't found any of those I like to visit after 5 years of living here because of similar things.  |
| I'm telling you, over here you might aswell turn up an hour late for your appt, as you'll still be waiting - yep good old NHS is free, but my god you could die before you get to see a Dr - lesson to be learn't always, always book the first appt if you can - I sympatthise with you Ron. |
JakobandBrandonsmom wrote: We were with Brandon on Christmas day when he was in NICU, and he spent all of Christmas at the hospital taking care of Brandon and away from his own family (young children included) because he went into renal failure Christmas morning on top of his being on a respirator, apnea & bradycardia, having a staph infection, and sepsis (Brandon was a preemie). He was so worried about Brandon, as we were of course.
That's awesome that you have such a devoted doctor, but I am NOT looking forward to that with my husband. I understand the nature of being a doctor and all, but I would definitely be upset and bummed if he missed Christmas with the fam...  |
| Steph, you get used to it....the first Christmas IS the hardest. Brian always seems to work Christmas day, whether regular shift or overtime....I happen to be lucky that his exwife and family have always treated me like their little sister. So, I usually go over there...I can spend time with the kids and Brian shows up for an hour or so.....then we celebrate Christmas on a day off....last year it was weird, it was 3 days after before we actually opened gifts..... |
As a nurse I always had to work Chirstmas, only getting about every 3rd one off. Then I got Divorced and had to share the kids on the holidays. You quickly learn that a holiday is just a day and when you celebrate it isn't as important as THAT you celebrate it!! 
oops, forgot to sign in Tasker's Mom |
Jason works a lot of Christmases too...almost every holiday actually. Either that or he's not even home because of deployments. Same with the boys birthdays - he's been home for one of each of their birthdays.  You do get used to it though. |
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