I'm trying to figure out when doctors' offices started calling to remind us of our upcoming appointments and why.
Was it because we patients got so busy we couldn't remember to show up? Did we become so inconsiderate that we didn't think twice about standing up our physician for our "date?" Think twice? We didn't think about it at all.
Does a fifteen minute vacuum in the day's schedule forebode some kind of medical practice apoptosis? Or has the doctor's budget gotten so tight that a missing patient here or there threatens financial collapse?
Whatever the reason, the telephone answering machine certainly made it efficient. First, it was just a pleasant voice with a brief message, "we are calling to remind Willet of her appointment with Dr. Welby at 10:00 tomorrow." OK, got it. I can usually remember something from one day to the next.
But recently a message was left five days prior to my appointment. I'm not sure how much of a help that is. Does the recorded messenger know it is talking to a machine when it says "to confirm this appointment, please press 1." When I listen to the message late Monday night I have to assume my machine did not press 1. So does that mean I need to call the office Tuesday morning to confirm? Or can I call during the evening hours and leave a message on the doctor's machine? Or can I presume they know I am a frugal person who would call to cancel rather than incur a $30.00 missed appointment fee?
Taking appointment reminders to the next level, I recently received an email reminder for a doctor appointment, a first for me. The email was sent April 30th reminding me of my appointment June 27th. Now, they are giving me more credit than I deserve for being able to use the Calendar Alert system on my iPad.
At any rate, right now there is no way I will forget my upcoming appointment. Too much hinges on it. I wonder if the doctor needs a reminder?
No comments:
Post a Comment