Patient rights and doctor issues? Any dr's or nurses around?!
Question: Hi. For the 3 weeks I have been having issues with my current doctor's office. Whenever I call to leave a message for the nurse (because she never answers the phone- it goes straight to voicemail), it takes at least 4 days for a returned call, even though the message says it should only take 2 days at most. Other times when she calls me, she will says she is going to call me back and 2 days later I still haven't heard from her so, I ended up calling back and being the annoying patient. I have major back issues and am scheduled to see an orthopedist as of last THursday (after hours of waiting on hold for the nurse and numerous messages) and am still waiting for a returned phone call from that Thursday!!! So, do I have any rights? Can I complain to anyone? Is this typical of dr's offices? What would you do?
Answers: Hi. For the 3 weeks I have been having issues with my current doctor's office. Whenever I call to leave a message for the nurse (because she never answers the phone- it goes straight to voicemail), it takes at least 4 days for a returned call, even though the message says it should only take 2 days at most. Other times when she calls me, she will says she is going to call me back and 2 days later I still haven't heard from her so, I ended up calling back and being the annoying patient. I have major back issues and am scheduled to see an orthopedist as of last THursday (after hours of waiting on hold for the nurse and numerous messages) and am still waiting for a returned phone call from that Thursday!!! So, do I have any rights? Can I complain to anyone? Is this typical of dr's offices? What would you do?
Complaining to them over the phone wont do much. you will have to go in and demand to speak to someone. We have had that problem many times with our Dr when they started taking on more patients then they can handle, so we would walk right in and complain until we were taken care of. (it did help that my husband would go in to complain while he was on duty with the city Police) Whenever we call now, they are right on top of things for us.
You can also start interviewing new Dr.s
Although I am a nurse, I do not work in a Dr.'s office...I think that if you feel that you are not being treated in the way that you need, it is time to complain or look elsewhere.
You certainly have a right to voice your complaints to the office manager and the doctor. I don't think it's unreasonable to have a call returned in a decent amount of time, in fact I would think two days is pushing it. I also think that when she tells you she will call you back, she should at least mention a time frame and then stick to it, rather than leave you hanging. The fact you aren't getting your answers in a decent time frame suggests either the office is overwhelmed, or that it is not run very efficiently. Neither scenario is good for you as a patient. If they can't hire sufficient staff to meet their patient's needs, or efficiently use the staff they have, and you can't get a response when you raise the issue, then I'd say it's time to go looking for a new doctor. I'd also make it a point to inform the old one why you are making the change. I wouldn't say it was typical of doctor offices that are well run, but unfortuntely it is typical of one that is not. At this rate, you are not getting the care you deserve, and I think it is time you moved to a different doctor.