I’ve emerged from 4 months of debilitating illness. Searching for a diagnosis (tests, procedures, office appointments) and pursuing treatment plans was time consuming and depressing. Naturally, I became less productive as I became increasingly worn out. Then I got lucky and was cured by surgery that removed a massive but benign renal cyst. After all of these years of the chronic stuff, a cure seems magical.
But looking back, I feel frustrated, not just by how this impacted my ability to live my life. But all the hours and days that were wasted. When your health and healthcare consumes your waking hours, it’s a time suck. But what makes my blood boil is the numbing hours spent waiting to see the doctor who is running 30 minutes (or hours) behind or the test/procedure that’s running late.
If I was one of the lucky who has 2 doctor appointments a year, maybe I’d feel annoyed when the doctor is 30 minutes or an hour late for our 20 minute appointment. But most likely I wouldn’t say anything for fear of antagonizing and I’d probably just forget about it — until the next time it happens. At that point, either I’d change providers (if I could) or maybe make a nasty comment. But as this study shows, It Costs You $43 Every Time You Wait For the Doctor.” , your wait can also add up to dollars lost. According to one of the lead researchers, “Discussions of health care costs usually focus on money paid to doctors and hospitals. Very rarely or almost never do we say, ‘Hey, how much time is this taking on [the] patient’s side?’ ”
Consider what this means when you live with chronically difficult health and you’re likely to have multiple appointments a month — or even in a week — as many of my clients do. A client who is preparing for a major operation has actually calculated that over the past two months in getting ready for the surgery, she has devoted a total of 6 full days in filling out forms and attending appointments and tests. Here’s the kicker. She estimates that she’s spent at least another 12 hours waiting for doctors and tests that ran late. And she hasn’t had the operation yet! As a tenured professor, she used her sabbatical year to carve out the time to get this done. How lucky is she to have this option?
Few have this kind of opportunity or flexibility. Too many people choose or are forced to leave their jobs because they can’t manage their health, their healthcare appointments and their job. Lost productivity is not a good thing.
Those of us who need frequent health care are shouldering a big burden and unnecessary loss. And it adds up to a lot more than $43 per visit.
Bill Blades says
I take my newspaper, trade magazines and telephone to put my time to good use (predicting I’ll not be seen on time). Thus, I husband my time.
Rosalind says
Great point. I do the same. BUT when you have a job or employer that needs you to be in the office, this excess wait impacts your deliverables — and your ability to get the job done doesn’t it?
Ellen says
When I have a week without an appointment I feel like it is a vacation. I resent that so much of my free time is spent waiting in Doctor’s offices or because I live in a very rural area driving to them. I’m learning to use my phone to catch up on books and the news while I drive. But I have also learned to accept that this is just the way it is and I’m not going to waste time getting mad about it anymore.
Linda says
I haven’t had to wait for very long at my Family Doctor’s office. They’re pretty good, about 15 minutes if they are running late.
But the Veterinarian’s office is different. My dog has arthritis, so we get to share stretches and walks to help us both. I also started taking him for acupuncture and chiropractic at our regular Vet’s office to help him be more comfortable, and it seems to help quite a bit.
But he gets stressed out by sitting there, something I have mentioned a few times. The last time we were there, we sat for 45 minutes, with him getting more stressed and drooling by the minute. It was hard on him, and harder on me, because I knew how upset he was getting. I asked several times what was happening, and got a vague answer about running late. We left without the treatment, and the extra bonus for me was that my back felt much worse because of the crappy chairs, and knowing that my friend was stressed, and I couldn’t help him in the office. Going to look for a visiting veterinarian for next time.
Rosalind says
Ha – I can imagine how difficult it would be to be waiting in a Vet’s office. I’m lucky our Vet is always on time. But I remember when the pediatrician ran late. So it’s just as difficult, if not more so, when you’re the caretaker because you have to manage the other person/animal/s responses as well as your own. And in the end, you’re still spending more time than planned and that impacts the rest of your dasy — whether it’s work related or not!