Release Me From This Shackle!

I spent the better half of today at the fracture clinic. I’m sorry to say (or rather, sorry to reiterate) but that clinic has got to be the busiest and also the most unorganized clinic there is. The clinic opens at 8:00am and my appointment was at 8:15am. By 10:30am, I still hadn’t been seen!

I went to ask how long this would take. When they looked through the files and such, I was told that there were still 6 people in front of me. Hmm, let’s consider this for a moment.

The clinic opens at 8am. I had been waiting for an hour and 15 minutes for my appointment. So you mean to tell me that there were THAT many people scheduled between 8am and 815 for one doctor? Ridiculous! I asked them if they could send me for my x-ray now as I knew the doctor would want one. They told me it wasn’t necessary as the doctor didn’t ask for one. Ok.

After another 45 min or so had passed when I was finally called. I saw the doctor who looked at my past x-ray. He looked at my foot and seemed satisfied that I was good to go without the cast. However, like in all cases, it was necessary for me to see Dr. Lau, the big cheese doctor.

He came in about 15 minutes later to look at my foot. He also seemed satisfied. He asked the first doctor if I had gotten an x-ray today and he responded in the negative. “I’d like to get an x-ray…just to make sure”.

I could feel my blood boil as I had asked the people outside to put me through to do an x-ray while I was waiting as the doctor would want one. I went outside and spoke to the guy who seemed to be in charge of this operation.

“are you luc?” (as in ‘looch’, short for luciano) I asked him.

“how long is it going to take for me to get an x-ray done?”

“Ooo,” he said, “well, there are about 10 people in front of you waiting for an x-ray.

In cometh the twitching of the eye.

“Listen, looch. I came here over an hour ago and told THAT guy *points* to put me through to do an x-ray and he assured me that the doctor didn’t want one. Now I have to wait at the back of the line when I could have gotten this done already? My appointment was at 8:15 and I’m still here!!”

He sincerely looked like he sympathized with my situation. “Why would he do that? It says right here that a repeat x-ray would be needed”. Luciano gestured towards my open chart, which was open to the page showing my last appointment’s notes. It clearly said a repeat x-ray would be needed.

I went to look for a seat in the ludicrously full clinic. Before I could find a seat, I was called in to do the x-ray. Good job, looch. Good job.

In the span of about 30 minutes, I got the x-ray done, got seen by Dr. Lau again, and was given the go ahead to go without my cast. He asked me to come back on October 31st for another follow up appointment…at 9:30am

If this appointment was for 8:15 and I’m just leaving and it’s almost 12pm, how long is a 9:30 appointment gonna be with patients getting pushed back?

…yeah…I’ll be there.