Quit my doctor
denison2
member
I've been going to her for 3 years (this is my 1st baby) and I don't know whether it was pregnant *** me that came out or what, but I got fed up today and quit my OB. Tell me if this is standard in other places but I wait on hold 20-25 minutes to reach a scheduler, 25+ minutes to reach a nurse on the phone, 30-45 minutes to see the lab or the nurse in the office and 45-60+ minutes to see the doctor. After my scheduled appt time. I've never waited less than these ranges, ever. Ever. Finally today I had to "run in and drop off" a pee sample and waited 30 minutes to be let in to pee at the lab. With a UTI.
I was done. I've already put down a $500 deposit on the delivery (is this typical?) and I'm gonna have to get it back. Sigh.
A coworker recommended another doctor who doesn't make her wait and I called and they (shock!) picked up the phone! AND I didn't go on hold! And they immediately scheduled me for my preferred day. Then I found out she is a member of my running group and I was super happy.
Hopefully baby and I live happily ever after with this decision. And I get my $500 back.
Thanks for reading my whine!
Baby #2 due 8/17/17
Re: Quit my doctor
::MyBlog::
That's crazy! i've never waiting more than a minute to make an appointment or talk to the nurse. I had to wait a few times when I was there to see the doctor, but I was always told he was running late.
I think I would be going to a new doctor too.
In my experiences, no, those wait times at those stages are NOT normal. I only once ever experienced one of those wait times, and that was when I had my first initial visit with my primary care physician. Waited about 15 minutes after appt time to get called back, then another hour in the exam room. Since then, nothing of that sort. Though, I did experience a 45-minute wait in the exam room to see my ENT doctor after I had a lymph node surgically removed. They explained that it was because I was a "squeeze-in" (can't remember what they actually called it), that had had already had someone else scheduled for that slot but they worked me in to have my post-op follow-up in a timely fashion.
Just had my second visit with my OB yesterday. Waited approximately 5 minutes after my scheduled time to get called back, then about 10 more minutes after that in the exam room before the doctor came in (mainly because I had to use the restroom and get undressed). Overall, didn't consider that excessive at all.
In a perfect world, there would be little to no wait times. You have a 1:35pm appointment? You get called back at 1:35, get your vitals measured, then the doc gives you a few minutes to get undressed if necessary. Scheduling is really not that difficult so, barring major catastrophe with one appointment, there should be little to no overlap causing a doctor to make his patient wait more than 10 minutes in the exam room. Especially when some offices have signs that state you may have to reschedule your appointment if you are more than 15 minutes late. If I have to take time out of my day to be on time, so should they.
I am a nurse manager, and I manage a physician practice as part of my duties. OP, the wait times for phone calls and to see a nurse are definitely unacceptable!
But I think that we have to remember that in obstetrics, staying perfectly on time is not realistic. OB/GYN practices notoriously run behind. There could be a patient getting bad news, they're unable to find a heart beat, someone is unexpectantly diagnosed with preeclampsia, etc. Not every OB patient ends up being a straightforward 15 minute appointment. And unless you go to a large group practice where one OB is on call each day for all births, OB's also have births to attend, and births definitely don't go by a schedule!
You might want to expect a 30-45 minute wait beyond your appt time so that you are not disappointed when you aren't taken back right on time. You can also call ahead to see if they are running behind to see if you can come in a bit later. But that doesn't mean something might not come up in the meantime!
Started fertility treatments 11/2010
Ovarian dysfunction, LPD, male factor
6 failed medicated IUI's
Pregnant 5/2011 - Miscarriage at 6 weeks due to triploidy
Decided to adopt - 6/2012
SURPRISE! Pregnant without intervention - 7/2012
Sweet Baby James Born 3/2013
Decided to be "One and Done"
....OR NOT.
Pregnant 12/2018 despite birth control pills
Here we go again...
Due 8/26/19!
This, 10000%. It's not a hair appointment.
This. The wait times for the scheduler and the nurse are not acceptable, but if your OB is the only one in the office, you may find that you have to wait. Every time though? That sounds like this doctor is overbooked.
I would definitely find a doctor that you are comfortable with as you will be seeing them a LOT and they will be with you throughout your delivery. Good Luck with your new OB! I hope that you find that this is "the one" because no one needs that stress throughout their pregnancy!