Friday, February 25, 2011

other side

OTHER SIDE
have gone to the other side
no have not had a religious experience
have not become a buddist, moslem, hindu, or changed my
religious perspective
have not changed my political perspective
have not had a near death experience

have gone to the other side
am now a patient

a new world on this side
especially like to be seen as a patient when they dont know
im a physician

so this is what it is like

have been a practicing family physician for 30 years and have
rarely had to see a physician for care
probably why i have been so healthy all these years
(was a joke)

so this is what its like to sit in a waiting room and wait to be seen
i have enjoyed it as i like to watch and observe people in the office
and even at the airport or mall

i especially enjoy watching the kids in the waiting room
they can sure be busy
my waiting room must have been a real busy one as i saw a lot of
kids in my practice over the years
so thats why the waiting room was such a mess at the end of the day

it is interesting to watch the whole process now from the other side
from calling in and making an appointment, checking in on arrival,
sitting and waiting in the waiting room, checking into the exam room
by the nurse, then to observing the doctor as he does what i use to do

these are some observations

that some phone music while waiting sucks
that whoever answers the phone needs to be a pleasant person
that a friendly unrushed check in person is so important as they
   are the first impression of the office
that am glad i have insurance and a flex card to cover uncovered
   items
that would not like to stand and have to discuss financial stuff at the
   check in window where everyone can hear about how broke a
   person may be
that a comfortable clean waiting room is important
that feed back if the doctor or provider is running late is important
that walls need to be insulated-can hear phone conversations with
   patients about things i dont want to know about
that  the bathrooms need to be put where you cant hear some one
   flush or ...
that physicians need to make the use of technology we/i use
   everyday to make it easier to get appointments, get refills, get
   lab results, ask questions,etc
that doesnt hipaa laws cover phone conversations that can be
   overheard
that patients not have to walk around with urine cups in their hands
that follow up on labs and xrays via phone call, mail is important
   why not use texting/email like we all do
that those dam insurance companies and what they cover and how
   much they pay before hand is impossible to figure out
that a friendly person is fun to deal with
that a grumpy person makes the visit a bad one
that at the end it is nice to have a compassionate unrushed
   physician taking care of your health

overall though
my experiences have been good
now could do some consulting on what clinics could do to make
this side a more pleasant experience

the organicgreen doctor

12 comments:

  1. Oh please, can I give you my doctor's number so that you can do a consult at his office. I love my doctor. He has been my doctor for over 15 years. He delivered lucy and has helped and guided us through all sorts of stuff. He is really great and he fits our family. However, the battalian of women who run the office are awful. They are mean and hateful and rude. I feel like I need to gear up for battle any time I need something (and I am no shrinking violet). They have reduced me to tears on more than one occasion over the years. They see people at their most vulnurable, when they (and I mean we) are sick or scaired or sad, and they have no empathy AT ALL. And my lovely doctor will sometimes tell me something in the exam room , like "Oh , just bring that camp form by. It won't take a minute to fill that out and sign it." But he fails to mention this to the battallion and they look at me as if I have offered to poop on their desks when I show up with my camp form for my daughter (or need a copy of immunizations, or to pick up a prescrition.)I just try not to get sick.

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  2. Dr. Nash,

    We flat loved your office... any of the worries or concerns you've observed, we never encountered.

    We always enjoyed the experience and the ducks and crayons w/coloring books were always a great way to calm the little ones.

    Class act, my friend... you were always a class act for us. Will be hard finding a replacement.

    shawn

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  3. How the people in your office took care of us was second only to to your care. Pat and the Deb were perfect compliments to your laid back, no hurry, genuine care for us while helping repair the damage we had done to our bodies or what illness we happened upon. You are missed more than you may ever know. Yes, there may be other doctors but there is only ONE Dr. Nash. Oh, I also loved playing with that little wire thing where you moved the little colored balls from one side to the other.

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  4. I wish the phone person at ARC at the hospital would just answer the phone when you call for an appointment.Maybe you can critque them..
    jcr

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  5. I have been on the other side for thirteen months and counting. You and your staff can't be replaced. Naomi is an angel.

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  6. Yeah. Totally missing my old ARC team. Did not realize how good we had it. The clinic consultation idea is GRAND. Small things can make the difference between a patient feeling like they are being taken care of and feeling like just another chart. I know we don't exactly see eye to eye on this but all of what you mentioned is part of the reason we choose a homebirth with a midwife for our babies. Nearly all of the CRAP is avoided (unless you have to transfer to the hospital and in that case they put you through enough crap in 24 hours to make up for the lost time!). And you are treated like a real person FIRST and the midwife gets to know you and your family--but I always felt that way about our family being taken care of by you and the crew at ARC so thank you!

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  7. angie
    feel better now
    always tried to be sensitive to all of that
    my wife she was bad waiting to the last minute
    to get things done so felt like i understood
    where the patient was coming from
    i just did it
    sometimes the doctor doesnt know or if in a large organization has now control over the rules
    we were in a small enough satellite clinic that
    we could bend the rules some
    maybe your doctor and his staff needs to read this blog and its comments
    togd

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  8. rn
    those toys were for kids and not adults
    hope no one ever caught you
    they were fun to play with
    did it myself some
    thanks for the comments
    togd

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  9. jcr
    know i hate those recordings too and the menu
    but in busy times they help route calls
    where i worked there on monday they had at least
    6 people just answering calls first thing in the
    morning and still could not keep up
    togd

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  10. wendy
    that is why midwifes do so well is they provide
    that personal touch that people want
    later in my career i realized that knowing your patient and their family,listening,and feeling some compassion for their situations were more important than what ever medical treatments were given
    tell kids hi
    thanks for the comment
    togd

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