Doctor -patient relationship has totally changed. There are innumerable people and things now separating them. It changed from a visit when needed, walk-in or doctors house call when unable to go to the office and payment to a structured complicated process. Now you call the office and if you are lucky enough to navigate the option you get someone who asks you about your problem and if you have insurance and then gives you an appointment at their convenience in date and time. It is still more flexible and reasonable when calling a family doctor than a specialist. Most insurances require a written referral from your G.P. So that has to be picked up after convincing their office you need one. The time of seeing a specialist is most of the time hilarious. You call Dr. X, a Urologist, or more likely a firm called e.g. 'Popular Pee Professionals' a group of thirty, for some severe burning in urine and frequency and you would be offered an appointment about 6-8 weeks from now. The person giving you the appointment does not even recognize how absurd that is. She/ He is just doing their job. The alternative, yes go to the E.R. or urgent care.
When and if you go for the visit you have to have a photo I.D., your insurance cards, a referral if needed and the amount of co-pay, if any, ready. Then you get sheaf of forms if standardized questions regarding reason for your visit and personal medical history and medications. Then you are called by your first name, apparently to make you more at ease and familiar. It could a loud "John" and in a large waiting room from a group of people two or three might respond by getting up. This is the first of many indignities you might face. What happened to "Mr Jones"? Should a twenty-something call a retired Prof Jones, old enough to be her grandfather and a total stranger by his first name? Does anyone care? Not to talk about the call of the confusion a common first name can cause.
Now you are ushered into a room with the assurance to change into a paper gown with the ties in the back, and cheery assurance that someone will be right with you. Twenty minutes later you see a person dressed in operating room scrubs and a stethoscope takes your weight, pulse, blood pressure and temperature, and leaves you with another cheery assurance that the doctor will be right with you.
Fifteen minutes later the doctor comes in and introduces herself, looks at your sheaf of papers, asks you a few questions while typing on his tablet (the device in his hands) will check your abdomen etc. if he feels it's needed and gives you some instructions and tells you that his secretary will call in a prescription and heads towards the door as you try to ask some questions, which are answered in monosyllables... You go out dazed at this rapid visit with little eye contact and exchange but somewhat relieved at being seen. It could also be that the person who saw you was a nurse practitioner or an advanced nurse practitioner, and chances are that the person was wearing scrubs too.
Back to the front desk you get another sheaf of papers with your diagnosis and instructions regarding medicines and any problems with it and your next appointment. You have used up about twenty sheaf's of paper in this 'paper-less' era. More will be given to you when you get your prescriptions. To bectd
