Normal wait at the Doc

sigree

Sun, Jun 06 2021, 11:12 am

What is a normal wait at the doctors office? I am a first time mom but am extremely frustrated with the amount of time that I’ve been waiting, an average of 45 minutes. I get one of the first appointments of the day so that it is not backed up. Is this the standard and I’m unrealistic ? I have asked them to call me if they’re running more than twenty minutes late but to no avail.

Edit: I’m talking about a pediatrician

Last edited by sigree on Sun, Jun 06 2021, 12:15 pm; edited 1 time in total

lk1234

Sun, Jun 06 2021, 11:30 am

sigree wrote:

I am not a first time mom and I am extremely frustrated with the wait time as well. Average is 30 minutes lately - so frustrating. I do and would speak to the office manager whenever I have a chance to call. Tell them the frustration. However bear in mind this is normal for doctors.

sigree

Sun, Jun 06 2021, 11:33 am

lk1234 wrote:

Thanks for validating yikes. I work a high pressure job and all I ask is that they call to alert me if they’ll be running late. Why do we accept this lack of professionalism. Also, why is there no app that shows you the appointment time and the office can update it as patients are seen so you can see what time slots they’re up to. Any doctors here who know of a similar technology .

flowerpower

Sun, Jun 06 2021, 11:38 am

I can wait over an hour usually. Even a morning during the week( which I would think would be quieter..). I barely go and dread it when I do

amother

Lime

Sun, Jun 06 2021, 11:56 am

Can you find a different doctor or ask them when is a good time to come with minimal waiting?

I learnt this from my ob appts
First ob - minimum 1 hr waiting. Waited once 5 hours. Crazy but I thought it was normal.
2nd ob - slightly better. 45 min- 1 hr. Again, I assumed this was normal.
3rd practice - very efficient. Less than 15 minutes as long as I came on time. Large, busy practice.
4th practice- also good. 5 - 15 minutes waiting. Med sized midwife practice.

I switched practices not because of waiting time but for other reasons. Because I thought it was standard. It doesn't have to be.

My pediatrician is generally between 5 - 20 minutes waiting. Depending on the time of day.

amother

Lightgray

Sun, Jun 06 2021, 12:00 pm

Pediatrician unless it’s a really busy time it’s between 5 to 15 minutes. Same for midwife. I once used an ob that had no wait time at all. It was amazing. But maybe there was a reason for that because I didn’t like him much and haven’t gone back to him...

amother

Iris

Sun, Jun 06 2021, 12:10 pm

I don’t stay with doctors with such poorly run practices. IME their disorganization won’t stop
There; when you need a form
Filled out or a prescription sent there will be delays too.

amother

Cornsilk

Sun, Jun 06 2021, 12:41 pm

sigree wrote:

Instead of asking them to call you if they're running kate, can you call them a half hour before appointment and nudge and ask them?

amother

Cerise

Sun, Jun 06 2021, 1:21 pm

My childrens pediatrician has minimal wait time, usually less than 10 minutes. The office is run amazingly well. It is literally in and out at any time of day.

If you post your location , maybe we can help you find a new one if you want to switch?

amother

Starflower

Sun, Jun 06 2021, 3:16 pm

I am familiar with waiting up to 15 minutes, vut more like 5 or 10 most of the time. My main concern with waiting is not so much the time, which is of course annoying in a busy schedule, but being in an enclosed space with other sick people or kids, germs all over the place. Not a healthy place to be on any account.
If this is a regular thing it shows lack of respect for the patients. I would complain to management and if nothing is done, switch doctors.

amother

Burlywood

Sun, Jun 06 2021, 3:29 pm

I used to work for a pediatrician.
The busiest times were right at opening and the last hour+ (3-4:30)
That’s when people who work all day want to come in. Between 11-2:00 was usually a much shorter wait time.
Also lots of times people just walk in by opening time since their kid got sick overnight, or they call in for 1 child and end up bringing 3 because the others are a little under the weather also.
I would rather wait by the pediatrician since he’s a good one than go to one that’s so perfect with his timing but when I call in that my kid is sick he says no appointments left today.
(Yes there were plenty of days especially in the winter and by change of weather that this pediatrician saw approximately 150 patients between 9-4:30. It would be very hard to schedule this perfectly.)

Rappel

Mon, Jun 07 2021, 12:17 am

I don't have any wait time... But I do live in Israel, so it's a little different than seeing a private practice. If things are running late, the secretary calls/texts the list of appointments to let us know