Why do clinics bother with appointment times?

dreamdaisy

I strolled in to rheumatology today for my usual meth date, Wednesdays at 8.45am. The clinic starts at 8.40, on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, so the fact that the regulars turn up every week on the same day and usually the same time (we are all creatures of habit) shouldn't really come as a huge shock. Apparently it does. The 8.40 lady (who works in the hospital) was already there. Then the 8.50 lady wandered in, followed by the 8.55 lady and the 9.00 man, and the rest. No nurse. No nurse anywhere. She deigned to wander in at 9.06am, a mere 26 minutes after her first client was due to be done. How very kind of her to bother at all, I thought.

The clinic keeps meticulous records of how many appointments the patients apparently b***er up by not arriving or not cancelling or whatever, but I wonder how many does the hospital muck up due to lazy staff? No doubt the nurse who began the stabbings (not at 9.07 as one would expect but at 9.13) would spend the rest of the day moaning that she was overworked and couldn't catch up. Here's a hint darling: START ON TIME YOU USELESS LAZY *****. That feels better. DD

dorcas

Oh you have your diabolical head on today!!!
you did make me laugh DD even if you didn't mean to. you have such a great way with words :!:

did you give the nurse the 'evil eye' or a lashing with your tongue when it was your turn for the meth........or did you sit grim and silent (she was the one bearing the needle after all )

there is a solution DD....do the jabs yourself at home it ain't difficult... or, you could get a 'loved' and 'trusted' one to jab you. :? :shock:
if I was nearer I'd stick the needle in you no bother.

Iris xx (who is now hiding behind a chair)

dreamdaisy

For some reason, despite doing my own enbrel and humira, I am not allowed to do my own. My hospital brews the infernal stuff on a Monday and insists we all troop in on these three days. I know there are some who cannot tolerate the idea of doing their own jabs but it ain't rocket science, and those who are willing would ease the strain on the department, I'm sure. No, they prefer to have us dance to their tune, no matter how inconvenient that is to them. Obviously this nurse had better things to do today than turn up for work on time - would that be tolerated in the private sector? Of course not - the NHS is too bloated for its own good and staff are able to get away with things like this. My consultant has done it too - I had the first 9.00am appointment and in she strolls at 9.15. When I saw her privately, 9am appointment, she was there, good and ready.

Sometimes the NHS is superb, and I have always had good emergency treatment from the rheumatology staff, but what happened today is so provoking, so irritating, and so un-necessary. If there's a problem, tell the patients. 'We're sorry but Nurse****** is going to be late because . . . . . , so we'll start the clinic at . . . . . .' would help everyone. It's not difficult to be rude. It's equally easy to be polite. DD

marion1952

Well said DD..

You would have been proud of me some weeks ago when I went to the Podiatry Dept at my local hospital and found there was a one hour waiting time (having been told I would be the first in, so wouldn't have to wait).. there were 2 podiatrists sitting on the reception desk chatting to the receptionist ... and when I challenged them I was told there were 5 podiatrists but only 3 'chairs' so that's why the 2 podiatrists had nothing to do!!!

After about 20 minutes I said I couldn't wait (it was true - my daughter had taken me and she needed to get back home) and I walked out... uttering words to the effect that 'this department needs to be re-organised.... I've worked in the NHS too and I know poor organisation when I see it' ... (oh cringe, cringe)..

Marion x

joyful164

I know it is exasperating for hospital staff to turn up late of appts.
there could be numerable reasons, e.g. an emergency training session, maybe your nurse had a very late emergency the night before.
At our hospital, the Rheumatology have their own ward where they treat people on an emergency basis. I was told that if at any time the pain was too much for me, I was just to call and I could be taken in to have my pain relief by intravenous methods. This would be normal if someone wason their own.
This could happen at any time, day or night.
If a consultant is late for any reason, it could be that they also had a late emergency.
GP's can be called out from a surgery. We have to be a patient patient at times like this. Maybe one of these days, that emergency might by yourself.

Joy

frogmorton

dreamdaisy wrote:

I strolled in to rheumatology today for my usual meth date, Wednesdays at 8.45am. The clinic starts at 8.40, on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, so the fact that the regulars turn up every week on the same day and usually the same time (we are all creatures of habit) shouldn't really come as a huge shock. Apparently it does. The 8.40 lady (who works in the hospital) was already there. Then the 8.50 lady wandered in, followed by the 8.55 lady and the 9.00 man, and the rest. No nurse. No nurse anywhere. She deigned to wander in at 9.06am, a mere 26 minutes after her first client was due to be done. How very kind of her to bother at all, I thought.

The clinic keeps meticulous records of how many appointments the patients apparently b***er up by not arriving or not cancelling or whatever, but I wonder how many does the hospital muck up due to lazy staff? No doubt the nurse who began the stabbings (not at 9.07 as one would expect but at 9.13) would spend the rest of the day moaning that she was overworked and couldn't catch up. Here's a hint darling: START ON TIME YOU USELESS LAZY *****. That feels better. DD

Classic DD

Excellent stuff

Keep it up - if you dont fight - you give in

Love

Toni xx

marion1952

Hi Joyful

Sometimes my Rheumy is running 75 minutes late in her clinic, but I don't mind as she is so thorough and takes such care and spends a lot of time with all her patients ...

What drives me mad (and I worked in the NHS for many, many years ) is sloppiness, staff casually strolling in late, lack of communication and being made to feel that I'm in the wrong when I turn up for my appointment and am told that someone hasn't entered me on the computer system and therefore I'll have to go away and come back another day (that happened yesterday, again at the same podiatry clinic).

Anyway, that's my grump for the day over and done with!

Marion

dreamdaisy

I appreciate your point joyful but it's not as though this clinic comes as a complete surprise to them. Week in, week out, 52 weeks a year for three days every week they run a meth clinic. If you are supposed to start work at 8.40 you start work at 8.40, not when you eventually turn up, wander about, chat to colleagues, make a coffee and then think oh, hang on, I'm here for a reason. Perhaps she did have a bad start to the day - of course, she's all on her own with that one 'cos none of the patients do. Perhaps her bus was late because the driver woke up and thought oh, my shift starts soon, never mind, I'll have a bath, read the paper and do a bit of breakfast - the commuters won't mind waiting for me. Perhaps her car broke down and she had to wait for the AA man (who was thinking along similar lines to the bus driver) etc etc etc.

The NHS is crawling with managers but no-one checked that the clinic hadn't started, no-one noticed that the waiting room was filling, quite rapidly, with people who weren't going to be seen - and who had managed to get in on time despite some tremendous difficulties with moving. It's the UTTER DISDAIN (if not contempt) from some staff that one faces from time to time as a patient that gets me riled (in case you hadn't guessed!). DD

speedalong

DD, how utterly infuriating and totally unnecessary.

My ortho clinic is always the same ... they give out numerous appointments to see the same ortho AT THE SAME TIME - well unless he has a split personality - he can only see one patient at a time. You nearly always arrive, book in, say shall I go for an x-ray (because your referral say "XOA,") will be told no, consultant hasn't requested one. Then queue to see the ortho, who DOES want x rays - so queue again for the x ray, return to the clinic, queue again to see the ortho ...

My friend has had real issues with her recent visit to A&E

and S's neuro clinic is always running several hours behind!!

The organisation/management is a nightmare ....

Now look what you've done - you set me off!!

Speedy