By Frances H. Bryce, January 30, 2020 — A visit to my doctor began at 9:10 AM with a bus to my first exchange on Walnut Street and then to 30th St. Station to Chestnut Hill by train, my last option that I took was a bus on G’town Ave. in C.H. to C.H. Tower where I saw my provider appointment at 11:00 AM.
I checked in, paid my co-pay, [found] a seat, and waited to be called. Approximately 15 min [later] my blood pressure and weight were taken by an assistant. [Then I was] ushered to the examination room and waited approximately 30 min for a second-year med student who asked many questions [such as] why I was there, and recorded such. Then she informed me that my provider would be in very soon, which was not very or soon. She was a wonderful young lady, which I am sure will be an excellent doctor. I relayed to her that I would prefer to stay in the waiting room and not in an isolated examination room until the doctor was ready to see me. She said that she would relate this to the doctor.
The doctor and the med student appeared. I again recanted the information I had told the med student earlier.
My left knee was the major complaint I had and we agreed that an X-Ray would be the prudent thing to do, for both knees. I asked about the possibility of getting the X-Ray done before I left rather than another scheduled visit. I registered in the proper requested dept. [After going to ] Radiology and a short wait, I got prepped for the knees to be X-rayed only to learn that the scan was for one knee, not the one requested and diagnosed.
This, of course, set into motion [the plan to] X-ray one and then try to contact the Dr. to get the requested change. Now, everyone is at lunch, so she X-rayed the one on the request form and I returned to the area waiting room until she (the radiologist) got a corrected order. Some 30-40 min later, finally [the] correction was made.
Now, I again set out to return home. My experience was useful to remember to challenge what is written and what should have been the instruction from one set of directions to what should have been on the referral.