Can't get an appointment

katylady2009

I am trying to get in at NNMC in Bethesda, but was told they will call me sometime in the next 9 working days.  Is this normal?  I called Walter Reed, but the only help they would give me was the number, with the answering machine, that says 9 days.  Does this sound crazy to anyone else?  When was everyone's first appointment?

Ilumine

First, this depends on what type of appt you are trying to get. There are Access Standards that apply; 1 day for urgent care, 7 days for routine care and 30 days for specialty care. If you cannot be seen within those times, TRICARE must provide you with an authorization to be seen by a civilian provider. So, if you cannot get through on the appointment line, contact the TRICARE Service Center first, to see what Bethesda's referral policy is. Demand the referral. If they do not help you, then contact the TRICARE Managed Care Support Contractor for your region. Again, demand the referral. ... ... ... Now, if this is about your maternity appt after you have already seen your PCM for a pregnancy confirmation, the rules are not the same. Even in the civilian world, your not seen until the 10-12 week mark.

katylady2009

Thanks for the info.  Guess I should have been more specific.  I am trying to my first appointment for this pregnancy.  According to them, my PCM won't even see me for a pregnancy confirmation.  Should I just make a sick call appointment to see my PCM, have them confirm the pregnancy, and make them do a referral?  What I have been given is a self-referral hotline number.  I appreciate the info you've given me.

emylos

That's sort of the same system they have here.  I had to just go to the check-in desk (we're at a tiny base) and tell them I needed a pregnancy test and they put in the lab order.  I went to the lab and had the blood draw done.  Never saw a doctor until after the pregnancy was confirmed & I was 10-12 weeks along.

Lissa832

I had a special circumstance, but here ay Quantico, I didn't need to have the pregnancy confirmed. If you get a BFP at home, you call OB and set up your prenatal orientation and first prenatal appt around 10 weeks. I have already been seen twice due to my previous pregnancy history, but that isn't the norm. At the majority of MTFs, you will not be seen until 10-12 weeks.

AF_EOD_wife

emylos:

That's sort of the same system they have here.  I had to just go to the check-in desk (we're at a tiny base) and tell them I needed a pregnancy test and they put in the lab order.  I went to the lab and had the blood draw done.  Never saw a doctor until after the pregnancy was confirmed & I was 10-12 weeks along.

I hate to threadjack but it says you're in Cambridgeshire; are you stationed in England? I am, and I'm always up for meeting new people! 

OP, I'm also pregnant and had to go to Family Practice to the "walk-in" hours and request a pregnancy test. Once it was confirmed a couple of hours later, a nurse gave me a call and set up my first OB appt, which is kind of like a cattle call where all the pregnant ladies are in a room and we get walked around the hospital. 

emylos

AF_EOD_wife:

emylos:

That's sort of the same system they have here.  I had to just go to the check-in desk (we're at a tiny base) and tell them I needed a pregnancy test and they put in the lab order.  I went to the lab and had the blood draw done.  Never saw a doctor until after the pregnancy was confirmed & I was 10-12 weeks along.

I hate to threadjack but it says you're in Cambridgeshire; are you stationed in England? I am, and I'm always up for meeting new people! 

 

Yes, we're stationed out at Alconbury.  Are you at lakenheath or mildenhall? 

NSL

I never went in for confirmation bloodwork for either of my pregnancies.  Both times that lab was taken care of when I went in for my first appointment around 10 weeks. 

AF_EOD_wife

emylos:

AF_EOD_wife:

emylos:

That's sort of the same system they have here.  I had to just go to the check-in desk (we're at a tiny base) and tell them I needed a pregnancy test and they put in the lab order.  I went to the lab and had the blood draw done.  Never saw a doctor until after the pregnancy was confirmed & I was 10-12 weeks along.

I hate to threadjack but it says you're in Cambridgeshire; are you stationed in England? I am, and I'm always up for meeting new people! 

 

Yes, we're stationed out at Alconbury.  Are you at lakenheath or mildenhall? 

Lakenheath.