# Waiting rooms



## TheYanChamp (Mar 6, 2009)

What's with the Drs waiting rooms these days?

You book weeks in advance. Are told to show up 15 mins before your appointment. Have to wait 30mins to get into the little room and then another 15 just to fill your script!


Is this the new tactics to battle the opioid epidemic? 

Sent from my H3223 using Tapatalk


----------



## brucew (Dec 30, 2017)

No competition.


----------



## johnnyshaka (Nov 2, 2014)

My favorite is when I'm booked as the first appointment and I've already been in the waiting room for 30 minutes and the doctor finally arrives with a smile and a good morning. Then I'm the third name called. SMH.


----------



## GuitarPix (Jan 11, 2007)

I saw an article about a doctor who realized this who waiting to see the doctor is just the culture and he streamlined his office so that doesn’t happen. Pity more doctors don’t see things in a business manner. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## Ship of fools (Nov 17, 2007)

It is actually very simple there is a very large lack of Doctors to go around from family practice to specialties and of course we are getting way older these days so more moans and groans for the Dr to check and also scripts are not as simple as they use to be now if work off a program that lists all drugs ( if you saw just how many drugs are available in different doses and also those with additives like magnesium and so forth ) I just had 4 different medications needed to be refilled by the time he found them on his program 5 minutes went by and then he had to check to make sure it was the right dosage so more time.
But at the same time be great full that you live here if not for the sake of being born in some third world country you may never get to see a doctor or get treated in a hospital I met a guy a while back who broke his legs both and the shaman in the village had set the bones but he didn't do it right so when he arrived here they had to remove 8cm of bone in each leg and then set his legs now he has to wear braces forever ( cost per brace is roughly $5000 each he does not have private coverage ).
I myself think we got it great here.
oh and every province lately seems to be keeping as much money out of Dr's offices as possible so their margin is not like it use to be my late mothers dr saw on average over 45 people/day so just saying


----------



## Wardo (Feb 5, 2010)

There's a vet near me does gunshot wounds no questions and no waiting; free enterprise baby !


----------



## TheYanChamp (Mar 6, 2009)

Hope you all read that in your best Seinfeld voice! I have to say it's better than a decade or two ago in this province when you couldn't even find a family Dr. 

My daughters pedo is very good. No line up's and he's the one that greets you in the lobby. He's a specialist and only by referal so probably helps as he knows to book more time to document properly. What a difference though. 

My family doctor is brutal as he also works the walk in clinic so you can be waiting up to an hour just to get in the prep room. I've tried taking the morning off to see him and ends up ruining the day.



Sent from my H3223 using Tapatalk


----------



## KapnKrunch (Jul 13, 2016)




----------



## bw66 (Dec 17, 2009)

If I have an appointment, I am face to face with my doctor within minutes of my scheduled time. Some are better than others.


----------



## Bubb (Jan 16, 2008)

Wardo said:


> There's a vet near me does gunshot wounds no questions and no waiting; free enterprise baby !


Name ? Number ?
you know...for a friend.


----------



## Hammerhands (Dec 19, 2016)

I think my doctor owns part of the parkade attached to the clinic.


----------



## mawmow (Nov 14, 2017)

I could write pages to complain... but lack of energy to do so...
I am now used to read books while wishing not to catch other's viruses....


----------



## Steadfastly (Nov 14, 2008)

I had a doctor I really liked in Brampton, ON. No matter what time of day you made the appointment, you waited at least an extra 1/2 hour and if you went 1/2 late, it didn't matter. Many times I waited 45-60 minutes and then another 10 or so in the examining room. I found it frustrating but he was patient with everyone and took more time with them than any other doctor I have had or know of.


----------



## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

As I have learned many times over, when you make something _look_ easy, people assume that it_ is_ easy. That is no less true of medicine than it is of any other profession/occupation.

None of us knows how many patients our respective family doctors, or walk-in clinic doctors, have. We do not know how much paperwork they have to complete between patients so that they can bill the province accurately for all the services they provide and add to the database of how often a given health issue is occurring in the population. We do not know the state or clarity/familiarity of any notes taken by any other doctor who may have seen you in past. We do not know how inarticulate or complicated the patient before us may have been in describing the reason for their visit, or whether they needed someone to assist them, translate for them, or explain things to the patient on behalf of the doctor. We don't know how simple or easy the doctor's instructions may be for the patient to understand. There's a lot of things we don't know.

Sometimes I get seen quickly, and sometimes I have to wait. The important thing is that I get seen. If there is any concern about waiting, it is that waiting rooms can be as germ-infested as hotel TV-remotes, and nobody comes out to wipe things down with disinfectant, because they're too busy answering the phone, booking appointments, talking to incoming patients, and completing forms.


----------



## Granny Gremlin (Jun 3, 2016)

But to add to what was said by people above, yes we don't know how busy they are and some are better than others, but there are bad ones, i.e. those who intentionally overbook so that there is no chance of them not being able to max out their billing and hedge against no shows.


----------



## KapnKrunch (Jul 13, 2016)

When I was a kid the doctor made a house call because our dog got hit by a car.

On the other hand, My friend is a doctor and he has over 1500 patients. They hail him on the street like a celebrity. He and his wife are very choosy about where we go with them because he is always trying to avoid his patients. He also complains that half his effort goes into running the *business* of being a doctor. He was involved in a doctor's association, but became dismayed at the emphasis on money not medicine. He was not my doctor, but shared the same office. The magazines (addressed to the doctors) in the waiting room contain articles about investments, antiques, and vacations -- nothing about medicine.

Now I live in a small town and the doctors here are pretty much just regular guys. No house call for the dog though. 

EDIT: We have three doctors for about 2000 people. Patients come from larger towns because our service is better.


----------



## ronmac (Sep 22, 2006)

Musicians are much more worser.

How many times have you been to a show that started on time?

And they get to see everybody all at once!

Perhaps this is also a prescription problem?


----------



## cheezyridr (Jun 8, 2009)

this is one time where i can tell you what is happening here, because i actually know the real answer! woot! i'm so excited! hahahahaha

ok, so my last ex, she was a medical secretary. she handled scheduling for the doctors in the office where she worked, and handled ohip billing and other tasks. she was easily as busy as the doctors were, sometimes more so. when the scheduling is done, every call is assumed to take about x amount of time, depending on what the visit is for. there are about a gazillion reasons why that almost always goes right out the window. however, she is still expected to cram as many people into the schedule as possible, because some people will cancel, and some won't take as long as anticipated, and some patients are there for things that are just quick in-out things. many people still expect personal care from a man or woman who sees dozens and dozens of people for a wide variety of reasons, all day long, 5 days a week. and if you think about it, most of them do a pretty fair job of making you feel like you got personalized care, even though 99/100 times, his mind has left your situation before you have even checked out of the office, because it's necessary that they do so. those folks have school to pay for, the office, the staff, the exorbitant licensing fees, as well as the mercedes, big house, and other trappings of life that people want. the more product (that's you & me) that goes out the door, the better their paycheck looks at the end of the week.


----------



## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

cheezyridr said:


> this is one time where i can tell you what is happening here, because i actually know the real answer! woot! i'm so excited! hahahahaha
> 
> ok, so my last ex, she was a medical secretary. she handled scheduling for the doctors in the office where she worked, and handled ohip billing and other tasks. she was easily as busy as the doctors were, sometimes more so. when the scheduling is done, every call is assumed to take about x amount of time, depending on what the visit is for. there are about a gazillion reasons why that almost always goes right out the window. however, she is still expected to cram as many people into the schedule as possible, because some people will cancel, and some won't take as long as anticipated, and some patients are there for things that are just quick in-out things. many people still expect personal care from a man or woman who sees dozens and dozens of people for a wide variety of reasons, all day long, 5 days a week. and if you think about it, most of them do a pretty fair job of making you feel like you got personalized care, even though 99/100 times, his mind has left your situation before you have even checked out of the office, because it's necessary that they do so. those folks have school to pay for, the office, the staff, the exorbitant licensing fees, as well as the mercedes, big house, and other trappings of life that people want. the more product (that's you & me) that goes out the door, the better their paycheck looks at the end of the week.


Like I said, if you make things _look_ easy, people automatically assume they_ are_ easy.


----------



## Mooh (Mar 7, 2007)

Goderich: We used to have a doctor shortage but now there appears to be sufficient. I was orphaned a few times, one retired early, the next moved west, the next retired, and now I have one who shares her practice with a medical partner and I like them both. The waiting room is a large modern clinic style with a TV screen, good lighting, and reasonably comfortable seating. Things move pretty fast there. Last time I was at emerg, just before Christmas, I was seen by a nurse practitioner, but being emerg I waited for several hours with my hand wrapped in my shirt and my fingers twitching.

I rarely wait long in the medical clinic, 20 minutes would be an exception, and am never rushed. Then again, I'm older, have had problems in spite of generally looking after myself, and the docs seem to like me so we chat a bit. 

London: The cancer clinic was almost always on time, and never out of reach so I can always talk to them on the phone. I won't need them anymore as I got the all clear in February, but for 5+ years I felt like it was my personal clinic. My oncologist was amazing and I'm going to miss our talks, and you know, he saved my life. The wait time was usually quite short though once it was maybe an hour while several times it was running early. Regardless, the doc always had enough time for me.


----------



## Distortion (Sep 16, 2015)

I don't have a problem waiting a bit. Seems to be the norm. That's a good thing if you are really in need of a doctor you will wait and not waist the tax payers money with petty problems.


----------



## Bullet (Jan 24, 2019)

Downtown TO and I take my mother in law for seemingly dozens of DR appointments every month 
Generally big waiting rooms but I am pleased to say not too much waiting ....


----------



## Lola (Nov 16, 2014)

I love my doctor and he goes out of his way for our family. I will wait for as long as it takes in his office to see him. He’s pure gold. Doctors don’t get much better then him. Most of the specialists I have seen in the last couple of years are arrogant and very cold but not my GP. We have been with him for 35 years. I am so grateful to have him as my doctor!!


----------



## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

It’s the downside to subsidized healthcare. 
its cheap but not necessarily great.


----------



## SWLABR (Nov 7, 2017)

I had a dentist who had a Mississauga office, and a downtown Toronto office. The Mississauga office had loads and loads of free parking. It was also closer to my house. I couldn’t get in to that office to see to a sore tooth, but they offered a spot at the downtown one. I took it. 
I paid the customary $1000/hr parking rate, and made my way to the office nice and early. I was stepping out of the elevator, he was stepping in. I was not told this, but concluded he was heading to lunch. An hour later he strolls in. Half an hour later I’m finally in the chair. He never spoke a word of it. 

I found a new dentist.


----------



## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

SWLABR said:


> I had a dentist who had a Mississauga office, and a downtown Toronto office. The Mississauga office had loads and loads of free parking. It was also closer to my house. I couldn’t get in to that office to see to a sore tooth, but they offered a spot at the downtown one. I took it.
> I paid the customary $1000/hr parking rate, and made my way to the office nice and early. I was stepping out of the elevator, he was stepping in. I was not told this, but concluded he was heading to lunch. An hour later he strolls in. Half an hour later I’m finally in the chair. He never spoke a word of it.
> 
> I found a new dentist.


you were right to do that.
Theres a dentist on every corner of my town, FFS, and I get junk mail from them nearly every day. 
Talk about an over-saturated area of healthcare.
The government/schools should consider decimating the number of places in dentistry schools, in order to expand places in medical schools .

TBH, Im surprised your appt started with your dentist....I find most clinics have a hygenist do 40min of work and then the dentist pops in for the last 5, to poke around and give the official okie-dokie, and he just goes from room-to-room doing that.

no hate for dentists, but in such a highly competitive market, with very little differentiation between them, an experience like yours is bad business.


----------



## SWLABR (Nov 7, 2017)

I guess the appointment was 100% him cause I wasn't "due" for regular maintenance. I was there for something specific.


----------



## butterknucket (Feb 5, 2006)

Before my last doctor retired, it was several years of not even being able to get through on the phone to make an appointment. Many times it was easier just to walk in to the office to make an appointment.


----------



## Lola (Nov 16, 2014)

TheYanChamp said:


> What's with the Drs waiting rooms these days?
> 
> You book weeks in advance. Are told to show up 15 mins before your appointment. Have to wait 30mins to get into the little room and then another 15 just to fill your script!
> 
> ...


Big brother is watching with a magnifying glass. I get Botox for my migraines. The doctor that was administering them got his license yanked for over prescribing opioids. I did research on this doctor too and I found that this was his 3rd revocation of his license for the SAME thing. How did this slip through cracks 3 times.


----------



## Paul Running (Apr 12, 2020)

Maybe somebody should check his credentials...could be another Nathalie Bélanger scenario.


----------



## player99 (Sep 5, 2019)

I'm waiting now.

There's a sign that says

Skin tag removal $50
Cosmetic benign removal $50 per mole
Cyst removal $80 per cyst
Lipoma (<5cm) removal $80
Lipoma (5-10cm) removal $200 per removal

I'm old enough to resent anything health care that's not free.


----------



## cheezyridr (Jun 8, 2009)

this is an area where i have some inside baseball. my ex, that's what she does - doctor scheduling and ohip billing.

the reason your wait times are what they are is because _the person who schedules for your doctor is instructed to fill every single minute of the day_. each thing a person is supposed to be coming there for is allotted a certain amount of time. except often times, those patients exceed that amount of time. no time is allotted for people who still need to fill out paperwork, or want to ask about issues other than why they booked, unknown complications, etc. etc. also, you folks can admit it or not, alot of time, the doctor doesn't come in and start when he's supposed to. to their credit, they rarely leave on time either. lots of times, their lunch, if they take one, is eaten in snatches between patients. also, like all humans, they have more energy some days than others. sometimes, they even get sick and have health issues too, and that can slow them down too.


----------



## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

Most services do themselves a disservice by not communicating the operational contingencies that result in things taking as long as they do. Like I always say, the trouble with making things look easy is that people come to believe they ARE easy.


----------

