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Opinion : What’s Up With The Waiting Times Doc?

Written by
March 27, 2012
Be Healthy, Be Organized
15 Comments

Are you sick of having to wait for WAY TOO LONG at the doctors? Me too.

I just don’t get it. I am always on time for my appointment, most of the time I’m early and I have three children to get in and out of the car. Still, I manage to do what they ask and get there on time. Some doctors cancel your appointment or push you back in the queue if you’re late. Fair enough. But what isn’t cool is that the one thing I am certain of is having to sit for sometimes over an hour waiting. Even when I ring in advance to see how far behind they’re running – I still wait. I’m all for thorough appointments and not being rushed when talking about the health of my family, but seriously if it happens every time then there’s obviously a scheduling problem. They cram too many patients into one day. Something’s got to change. It drives me crazy.

Here’s seven things I’d rather be doing than waiting at the doctors:

1) Do my washing. Yep, that’s right. I’d rather be doing cleaning around the house than sitting on those uncomfortable chairs thinking about the stuff at home I could be doing.

2) Pushing my kids on the swing and that’s saying something. I dislike swing pushing. With three children there’s often at least one screaming for a turn and two others demanding to be pushed higher and higher. It makes my arms hurt and my brain numb with boredom.

Swinging - when will it end? Photo: http://www.skysaddleswings.com/

3) Doing a spin class. Yep, those super hard classes where your legs burn, sweat pours out of everywhere and you tell yourself “you’ll never be able to walk again”.

4) Go to Bunnings with my husband and pick out wood for a fence, buys nails and fight over plant choices for the garden. I’m sure I’m not alone when I say there’s always some sort of heated discussion when choosing plants. Always.

5) Do the food shopping with my children after school. You know that time of the day when the supermarket is full of tired kids and grumpy parents. There’s a tantrum happening somewhere and then there’s the chatty checkout operators who insist on asking you all about your day. All you want to say is: “Please don’t talk to me, this is possibly the only quiet five minutes of my day. I’m sure you’re super lovely and I know exactly what it’s like scanning groceries, but please don’t make me talk”.

6) Baking 50 cup cakes for the school fundraiser. I am not a baker, unlike others I know. And for this reason alone, it could end up that I need to bake double to get 50 that taste and look edible. The whole idea of it makes me squirm, but not as much as waiting does.

My cup cakes never look this good. Photo: http://glorioustreats.blogspot.com.au

7) And lastly, I’d much rather be in the doctor’s room talking to a doctor in my allocated appointment time, rather than sitting in a crowded surgery with sick people coughing on everyone and my children going feral. Yes, that’s exactly what I’d rather be doing.

Do you have to wait a long time at your doctor’s? Does it make you grumpy? 

What would you rather be doing instead of waiting?

Have a fab day,
Bianca xx

Main Photo: Dutch By Design

  • Jessica T

    4 Hours at an eye clinic at the hospital!! And on top of that they charge you an arm and a leg in parking fee’s at the hospital.

    • http://www.justbaustralia.com.au/ Bianca @ JustB

      Aren’t those parking fees horrendous?! xxB

  • Reannonhope

    Just yesterday I was waiting at my doctors !!! The centre opens at 8am, my appointment was for 9.15am. I rock up at 9.05am to be told she is running a half hour behind time only to end up waiting AN HOUR & 15 MINUTES!!!

    My doctor is all kinds of awesome but how does this happen so early in the day? I think what is also frustrating is that I can barely get in to see her as it is. Sometimes I have to wait a month just to get an appointment & then she’s late & charges me a fortune….at least they have heaps of magazines :)

    • http://www.justbaustralia.com.au/ Bianca @ JustB

      I do that too – book appointments early in the day in the hope the lag want be too long, but it still is every time! And yes, if there’s good magazines it fab, as long as you don’t have kids pulling at your arm asking for food!! xx

  • http://twitter.com/kellyexeter Kelly Exeter

    What I don’t understand is that I live 5 minutes away from my doctor’s surgery. So I ring before I leave home to see how many people are waiting in front of me. What I want to know is how I still manage to wait for 45 mins when I get there knowing there is only one person to go in ahead of me … :(

    • http://www.justbaustralia.com.au/ Bianca @ JustB

      Crazy!! Maybe a smart person will set up a good coffee machine and pedicure/neck massage service!! Bxx

  • Piquant Jewellery

    As someone who has worked as a medical secretary (and who also hates waiting) … to be honest this kind of attitude annoys me a little… You say they cram too many patients into one day – but I’m sure you wouldn’t like it if you couldn’t get an appointment!…  

    It only takes one patient that needs a little more attention/time to set the whole day off slow… and as a Medical Secretary the most HATED question I got was when patients rang me (up to an hour before) to see if they doc was running on time!!!!!…. anything can happen between when you ring and when you arrive!… 

    On the other hand – I always try and tell patients when they arrive how many patients are in front of them – so they can go get a coffee/fresh air/whatever! : )

    Personally what I LOATHE is when I ring (on route to doc) and say that I am running late and the secretary says “Well please be quick or you might miss you appt.” I will wait happily for the doc so I expect the doc to, in the event that I am late, see the next patient and slot me in after.  It’s not that hard.  I know.

    • http://www.justbaustralia.com.au/ Bianca @ JustB

      Thanks so much for you fabulous comment giving a different perspective. I suppose what I’m saying is if it happens every time then maybe there’s need to be something done. I believe doctors are overworked. Assistants put under so much pressure being on the frontline and patients needs growing. It is a tricky situation all round. 

      And I agree on the running late thing – it’s a two way street isn’t it!? Bxx

      • Piquant Jewellery – mara

        Yes!… I believe (having living in other countries) we have a good system – but still sooo much to be done/improved! …  sometimes when I visit the GP I wish I could shake (in a nice way! : ) ) the receptionists as they are not very helpful… I always found a smile and giving as much information always seemed to make the wait easier for the majority of people! : ) 

        p.s love the perspectives and nice community on Just B!

  • Rachkln

    Waiting for a really long time (especially with small children) is soooo frustrating!!! But as my husband is a doctor I would say don’t necessarily blame them. My husband works harder than anyone else I know. He starts early, finishes late and sometimes has to go back in after hours. Sometimes he comes home ravenous because he hasn’t had time to eat. I know this is just one example but it makes me a lot more tolerant of waiting rooms. :-)

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1599503946 Sylvia Davey

    i agree that doctors do seem to have too many patients in one day, unless you ring my doctor at 830am on the day you want an appointment you’re pretty much poop out of luck with getting an appointment, they refuse to book in advance for some reason, we only continue to go to them because they are the only ones near us that bulk bill still. more irritatingly i have had to wait 3 hours before for my appointment, we were there the requested 10 minutes early so why were they still 3 hours late, i get obsessive about my punctuality i have a mini meltdown if i think i am going to be running late for something, waiting 3 hours for an appointment with 2 toddlers is NOT fun!

    i’d rather be doing laundry or dishes – two chores i loathe to do!

  • Paginus

    How dare you complain about waiting in a medical environment. The patients the Doctor is seeing before you could have issues you could not imagine requiring complex interventions and the resultant discussions around these. 

    Now this said lets put the shoe on the obviously healthier foot and it is now you requiring discussions in relation to complex interventions and someone else is in the waiting room tapping their foot, looking at their watch – Would you like the Doctor to say I have people waiting and can’t explain your problem to you now?? 

    Personally I choose to attend a Doctor who does not make me of my now adult children feel I am participating in sausage factory medicine. I presume this is the service you require and strongly suggest you locate a sausage factory type medical clinic to suit your needs. 

  • Dibba

    I’m starting to feel like I’m in the minority here.  My doctor is ALWAYS and I mean ALWAYS late.  Everyone knows it and he will admit it himself.  I always turn up on time but I have had to wait for up to an hour on occasion before I actually get to see him.  I really couldn’t care less how long I have to wait and I wouldn’t even think of changing doctors.  I know why he is late – it’s because he gives a damn about each and every one of his patients.  He missed out on his dinner when he delivered one of my children, I know that I delayed him on his rounds before surgery hours when my PND kicked in immediately after the birth of my first and he was in my father’s palliative care room until nearly 11pm the night he died.
    I very much doubt that many doctors are deliberately late and if I have to wait longer because, for example, the doctor has had to spend extra time with someone he has just informed has a terminal illness then I will happily do so.

  • Tiffj1

    It would be difficult to tell how long an appointment will take. We all have different medical needs and without wasting half the day I guess Doctors cannot tell how long one will take so they are forced to aloocate an aproximate timeframs to all appontment spots.
    To be honest I do hate waiting because I always have so much to do but that said I also understand why we wait. A good example is a person who made an appointment just to get a new prescription for medication they have already been using for an ongoing issue may need a quick blood pressure check etc then write the script. This person will take maybe 10 minutes.
    The patient  with 3 different symptoms and unknown illness may not be a quick and easy appointment. I would rather a thorough DR who does everything they can to help me if that is me than one who is appointment and time focussed – I have seen both and the Drs who run overtime because they take their time to get a correct diagnosis are the ones I will visit every time.

  • Tiffj1

    I have found a bulk billing Drs office with some good Drs at my local shopping centre so my daughter and I go there. They frequently have wat times over an hour but are happy for you to go shopping in between as long as you check back every half hour or so. That works for me I tend not to sit in the waiting room longer than half an hour and get some shopping done in between (even when the wait can be 3 hours)