I am sick and tired of waiting for doctors. I find myself wasting so much time going to a doctor and sitting in his/her office for more than an hour before being seen. It’s obscene!
But I wait. I’m not sure why I wait. There are other doctors and specialists out there. I recently asked my community what they thought and here’s what they said:
How long is acceptable to wait at a Doctor’s office?
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Dale Mintz ?15 minutes
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Deborah Kirschenbaum Herman ?20 minute rule….for EVERYONE. After 20 minutes, nice note saying I will call you to reschedule. Only exception, OB-Gyn!
- Sharyl Rice I have had this discussion many times—if the Dr. is helping a patient who needs extra time, then when it is your turn, don’t you want the same attention….
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Helen Zagaro I have walked out many times from a Dr’s office, knowing my anxiety of waiting, they always schedule me , so the Dr can see me right away, in an emergency , you just have to wait.
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Marina McCreery ?15 minutes. having worked in medicine for many yrs. (depending on the practice) some offices/Dr.s want appts. booked every 15 mins. operating on the idea that there’ll often be “no shows” or last min. cancelations….and the Dr. doesn’t want his time idle even for 5 mins. If an MD office constantly “runs late” chances are that they overbook….not considerate of well being of all patients..
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Sharyl Rice Sometimes a routine visit turns into something much more….I have gotten much more patient and tolerant the past year and half of being on the medical merry go round..
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Hilary Topper Deborah, why do you make exceptions for ob-gyn?
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Mindy Hope Siegel How long have you been waiting?
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Donna Drake ?20 to 32 minutes if he is away on call with an emergency. At 45 minutes late with no logical answer being offered I would ask for a $20 cancellation fee to be paid to ME. 🙂
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Donna Drake Let me clarify that he or SHE
- Jan Kavares Lawless · I waited an hour and a 20 min Friday for an orthopedic for my son.
- Deborah Kirschenbaum Herman ?OB’s are delivering babies and therefore at the will of the uterus! When I aged out I switched to a non obstetric practice!
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Lisa Ritchie ?15 minutes. If it’s longer the nurse/receptionist/assistant should tell you. Emergencies can’t be scheduled, but as a patient I expect to be told so I can reschedule. MY time is money too. Should I send a bill to the Dr. for the waiting period?
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Courtney Chaffer Miller ?15 but I’ve waited 1.5 hours before
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Hilary Topper Do you think that if we all picked ourselves up and left after say 15 minutes, that things would change in medical practices?
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Deborah Kirschenbaum Herman Eventually.
- Amy Fishman Schwartzberg if the receptionist isn’t smart enough to let you know how long the wait will be then 15-20 is the max. I once waited 40 minutes in the waiting room, and another 20 in the patient room and I was fasting for bloodwork. I still had to have the exam and the bloodwork — almost fainted
- Hilary Topper That’s crazy Amy… I just wonder if things can change?
- Amy Fishman Schwartzberg I did say something to the doctor and she was surprised that they didn’t take me for my blood work so I could eat because they knew one of the doctors didn’t come in due to another emergency. I have since switched practices and haven’t waited more than 10 minutes total.
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Madeline Milstein Silverman Orthopedists seem to always be extended wait time. I try to make early morning appt whenever possible for all doctors.
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Vicki Heller Recently I told my dermatologist about how I had waited for one and a half hours without “comment” or apology from his staff. He said he would correct that. A few weeks later, when I returned-Same exact situation!-Seeing that the doctor would not be ready to see me until after a two hour wait, I left. The staff said “we will let them know.”-No one called. No one apologized! I think my time is worth something. Maybe a should “Charge the Doctor?!”
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Michelle Hyett Tauster I firmly believe that the doctors on Long Island are especially guilty of long waits. I used to use a local dermatologist in Long Beach and it was always a long wait. One time I flew Deena in for an appt and they kept us waiting and then said they didn’t have what they needed in that office. So…now I use doctors in the City and enjoy the day while I am at it
- Ann D Middleman I have fired doctors for keeping me waiting. There is NO excuse! I repeat–NO EXCUSE!
So there you have it, if we pull together and only wait 15 minutes to see a doctor, then maybe they will change their policy and we won’t have to wait.
What do you think?