I don't mind if I have to deal with issues about clinical decision making.
I don't mind if people want to feedback about how we can improve services, especially if they are sensible and affordable.
I don't mind taking the time to deal with e-mails and letters to explain the way people have been dealt with.
I do object to having to deal with offensive e-mails because a fit young patient can't see the doctor of his choice on the day of his choice at the time of his choice (wanted to be seen at 10 pm on a friday night). I have now spent 30 minutes of my free time dealing with this.
Am I being unreasonable in being irritated by this?
7 comments:
This is a very frightening photo to see in the morning JD, maybe the reason why you are not in a good mood now, it's awful!
Always start your day with a smile, always ... so, here;
:-)
Of course not!
Send them packing!
I want to send him an e-mail suggesting he "F*** off and die", but I won't. I will say that I am sorry we are not in a position to meet his wishes, and there are ways of registering with a new practice (at least 10 cover his address).
Maybe that will be the e-mail I send on the day of my retirement!
Well, most of the complaints that come in are bullshit...bullshit in that they complaint is made because the complainer has mucho unrealistic expectations and cannot see the big picture. The level of care people expect is insane. They're crazy.
This is what worries me about OBAMA care. We have had inservices about what changes to expect and it ain't pretty. First of all the hospitals here are going to have to get most of their reimbursement for patient care from medicare.
Medicare is going to start reimbursing the hospital based on PATIENT SATISFACTION SCORES. This means that if the patient complains about "feeling pain after major surgery" OR "slurred speech after a stroke" that the hospital will not receive payment for the treatment provided.
So let me give you an example of what that would mean for you if your practice was going to be dependent on funding under that kind of system:
You are the only doctor at your surgery one day, you have a patient collapse in your office and have to start CPR, multiple emergencies are coming in and you are already behind with your scheduled appointments by about 2 hours. A patient in the waiting room at this time gets mad that you didn't see him first for his sore thumb. He fills out a patient satisfaction form and when the government sees it, they refuse to pay out for the care you provide. They do not care that you were short staffed and dealing with multiple emergencies.
The hospitals here allow the staff to see the results of the patient surveys once they are acclimated into graph form and let me tell you, they are INSANE.
"I didn't get enough room service" "the patient down the hall made too much noise" "My doctor didn't come the second I asked for him" "my coffee wasn't strong enough" " "I didn't get immediate attention when I wanted to blow my nose" (never mind that there was an arrest on the other side of the ward). "It was too noisy" (never mind the fact that the patient in the next bed had a compromised airway and needed suctioning).
EVERYTHING comes back on the doctors and nurses too. If kitchen sends up the wrong tray or pharmacy takes forever to tube up meds, it is the Nurses who get the bad satisfaction scores sent to them and posted in their locker room. If a patient thinks that blood culture results should be instant (duh they need to grow for a few days) and doesn't like having to wait, It is the doctors get the blame and poor satisfaction score.
I have a mix of patients with insurance and medicare/medicaid patients getting free care and let me tell you it is the latter who complains the most about the most silly things. We had a heroin addict complain that we wouldn't allow him to use his PICC line for long term IV antiobiotics for shooting up heroin at home. His peripheral veins were shot you see.
But according to management and the government the "customer" is always right.
The thing is no one educates these nutjobs. And you can't educate them anyway because they are unreasonable. Their expectations and understanding of sickness and hospitals has been so distorted by media,customer service BS and their own sense if entitlement.
We have also been told that as Uncle Sam will be STARVING the hospital of money that we should get ready for layoffs and extreme short staffing.
JD
The non paying (NHS) customer is always right.
Bet at that time of night they would be doing something else and would be a no show like so many of Gordon's early shifts.
Bet they are a "professional" too who charges more per hour than you do.
One of the ND team who has just got home.
You need a Business Manager JD, subsequently to become Business Partner. She will edict that all comments, criticisms and complaints are to be addressed to her. She will not attempt to justify but will attack every critical point. Oh and she will sell every change to practice or procedure as "to improve patient care". I am certain our practice is now run by her and not the doctors.
Would take a load off you. :-)
Just answering a complaint about how the last doctor's reply to their query was very short - dug out the letter, which is over 2 sides of typed A4 long!
Post a Comment