To leave instead of waiting until my appointment

[Kate8889]

Context: US healthcare

I made an appointment the other day for cold symptoms with my doctor, they said I needed to show up 45 minutes early to get swabbed to test for flu/COVID etc.

I get there and they swab me, 40 minutes until my appointment. I go to leave and come back later (my house is very close by) and the nurse stops me and says I need to stay in that particular seat until the doctor is ready to see me. 40 minutes out of my day for no reason. I asked why I needed to wait exactly and she told me this was protocol but could give no reason.

I left and came back for my appointment and everything worked out fine. Was I out of line?

I assume they wanted you to wait for their convenience - so you could have been called earlier if that worked for them.

However this would have cost you a very rare half day sick/holiday - so you went home to avoid this and came back for correct appointment time.

I see no issue and it worked out for you in the end and I assume being US you were paying to get seen so were more directly paying for an expensive service.

However is a UK site where we can wait hours to get seen - have been taught to avoid medical care for minor ailments and don't have the same restictions on work hours, sick days and hoildays as they do in US so it won't be seen in the same way.

Yep it's not great

Firstly I sympathise with the sinus issue, I have a spiro test next week which is the last stage before an inevitable referral to secondary care and then probably FESS. Which I had in my twenties, but doesn’t last forever.

But it’s kind of obvious why they wanted you to wait around. Firstly they swabbed you for a potentially infectious disease… probably don’t want you walking about in the world spreading it to other people in the event that you are infectious. Secondly, if the doctor got through his schedule early then you could have been seen earlier as you were on the spot.

OP this is a translation issue. Previous posters are viewing it through a UK, NHS viewpoint, and most people can work to make up time lost for medical appointments. But my 😲 is getting prednisone for a sinus infection. I’m on it following transplant surgery and I think it’s the devil’s tic-tac. Wouldn’t touch it if I literally had a ny choice. Hope you soon feel better xx

Yet you managed to post.

I really don't know why you posted, OP. What do you want or expect people to say?

Well they weren’t going to quarantine her after the appointment 😊

That’s the US for you 😬

I'm in the US so I'm not seeing it through an NHS lens. But I still think YABU. 40 minutes is really not that long. They always want you there at least 15 minutes in advance anyway, and then you frequently have to wait past your appointment time to be taken to a room and have your vitals checked and then again for the doctor to come in and see you. You should know that when you have a doctor's appointment you can never predict how long it's going to take.

But you'd better believe I'd be seeing a doctor for a sinus infection that had lasted 4 weeks!

YANBU OP.
Obviously if it means you could need to take a half day off work you were right to do what you did.
Your work rules don’t sound great though. A bit of flexibility is a huge plus in a job. And American holidays are too short.

Haha

I have no words that I can actually say out loud

Well no, but people can take measures to stop infecting others. Sometimes I think we haven't learned anything from Covid.

If it was an infection she would have been given antibiotics too. The steroids are to open up the airways. I am on a low daily dose waiting for a spiro test and then referral to secondary care. I couldn't breathe easily without it. As you say, sometimes you have no choice.

Seems sensible to me. What's the point of waiting in a particular place? Especially one where you and other people may be infectious, so more time means more likelihood of passing on illnesses.

I'm sure the clinic are pissed off with people who head off and don't come back in time, but since you were back in time I don't see the issue.

Thank you for that! Apologies if I was ignorant.

I hope the nurse didn't have fake boobs - they're immoral, don't you know?

Not at all - I am living in sinus hell at the moment, so it's kind of the one thing I feel I am a bit of an expert in! Thanks for the lovely support - I would happily chop my head off at this point to get some relief! 💜

I think it's reasonable to leave if the staff can't give you an explanation as to why you should stay. People in this country are infantilised by our 'protocol' sometimes. You had the swab, as requested and were on time for your appointment. The time in between is your own to use as you see fit.

Stupid goady post. You sound a piece of work OP.

Hi OP.
You have my sympathy, sinusitis is beyond awful.I've only had it once and that was enough.I felt so ill.The pain was in my cheekbones and forehead.
Bending forward was agony.
So yes, I think you did the right thing.
Im shocked at only having 12 days off per year though.
I worked at our local University and we had 27 days annual leave.I guess we were lucky.
Hope you feel better soon.

You are the one that made the appointment and agreed to the test now you are whining that you have better things to do with your day ! Christ, you couldn't make it up

She didn't book a 40 minute wait. She booked a swab and an appointment 45 minutes later, which is what she did. Why shouldn't she whine about the clinic wanting to dictate what she did in the meantime?

Realistically, how productive are you for 30 minutes?

If you're paying for it in the US, maybe you expect different treatment, I don't know. But waiting a lot longer than 40 minutes is not unusual here.

It not being unusual doesn't mean you should have to do it if it has no impact on the service. They wanted her to sit there because it was their protocol, not because it was something that affected her health or their treatment of her. If she'd come back a little late and expected them to accommodate her or been annoyed if they refused to see her, I think the pasting she's been getting would be justified. But she just acted responsibly and used her time more wisely, so the criticism seems really small minded.