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Consider this a solitary vent – just getting it off my chest. Call it a behind-the-scenes peek at the sugar and spice, current generation.
I really don’t feel like responding, as it’s too emotional for me. Licking my wounds.
It seems MOST YOUNG PUNKS of today are DDS’s (Doctors’/Dentists’ Staff).
They’re basically self-centered Teflon.
They impatiently say they’ll act upon your painstaking instructions, but don’t.
They say they’ll leave you a followup message, but they don’t.
They don’t bother to read urgent painstaking emails you send them.
They could care less about conveying messages accurately.
When you call them out on it, they’re unapologetic.
When you ask “while i’m on the phone with you, please print out my email and tape it to Jane Doe’s desk”, they stand-offishly interrupt, stating “i’m not a child, i’ll do it when i have time”.
If you don’t talk to them in instant sound-bytes, they hang up on you.(This happened today – the new secretary is like rotten eggs compared to the predecessor who was like rare gourmet.)
I’d get the most satisfaction if there would be techiyat hameisim of the NON-TEFLON elders of the past.
At which time the NON-TEFLON people would vastly outnumber the IMPATIENT PUNKS, and then the only way the punks (and elders) could handle it, would be for the punks to live in an area separately, on their own.
For however long such a rude locale could last.
Olam LO chesed LO last!The infamous “they” strikes again. I’ve had my share of interactions with younger medical caregivers and maybe I’ve been fortunate, but the large percentage of them have been caring, concerned professionals who take the time to listen and respond to questions. While the realities of modern day medical care economics doesn’t give the the luxury of spending as much time as was the case when I was growing up, they are frequently more accessible via telemedicine and at least in my experience, respond to questions on a timely basis (both via phone or text). Sure, I ‘ve had some who are curt and have zero social skills but I’m sometimes willing to put up with their personalities for the quality of care they offer. Also, the front-office staff of most medical offices needs improvement but a lot of the problem stems from the crazy overlay of government and insurance requirements. Yes, the world of medical care has changed, but so has nearly everything else.
@Gadolhardorah
You seemed to have missed the point ywnjudy is making. This vent is NOT about medical caregivers, but the self important clerical staffs in the medical offices.On Thursday my primary care physician telephoned me to discuss some test results. He suggested I see a specialist (in his same hospital owned practice) to follow up with a further procedure. He told me he’d transfer the call and I should tell them to book the appointment. He transferred the call and got off the line. after a few rings, a young sounding female picked up, gave the name of the doctor with whom I wished to make an appointment and said This is Liza. I gave my name, the name of my primary care physician and that he had transferred the call so an appointment could be made.
Her immediate reply, NOT MY JOB. No offer to transfer the call or suggest another extension and she disconnected me. I called the office manager and played my recording of the call with Liza. I suggested strongly that maybe Liza shouldn’t have any job that involved talking to patients. The office manager commiserated and told me all the young clerks were terrible, but during Covid, no one over 30 is interested in working in medical offices for fear of contracting the virus. The manager made the appointment.I am dismayed that medical office assistants are projected to grow 19% next 2 years (with average job growth being 4%). I thought we just proved that millions of us are capable of making our own vaccine appointments over publix websites!
High costs of healthcare hides such inefficiencies as “only 10% of overall costs”, which may be as much as other countries spend on healthcare in general. Hopefully, recently introduced hospital price transparency combined with population zoomification will put pressure here, unless the “big guy” will reverse the “old guy” reforms
I used to work in insurance. I had to read the vulgar or poorly written letters from hospital billing staff because they couldn’t figure out how to follow universal coding rules. I also learned that some bills sent to patients are not allowed and violate their contracts, or simply, you are not obligated to pay.
Since then, I can’t go to a place without getting into an argument with these folks. Just this month I went to a doctor whose front office staff decided to bill me differently. I asked if they changed the rules, or if they just weren’t following the rules for 8 months. I was taken aside, where the woman ran down a pre-written list of excuses blaming everyone and everything, asking if I want to see the contract I signed (the one they never followed), and how “confusing” it is (I said repeatedly it is not “confusing”).
At the end of all of this, it was never answered if they changed their procedures, or if they did it wrong for months. The answer is clear, but not to them, who blamed their new staff for something the odd staff did. But they are not Jews.
I dread getting involved in the system in any capacity. I can go on for 300 pages.CT Lawyer: I read the OP but I think the front-office staff to a large degree reflects the standards and expectations of the professionals who own the practice. However, as more and more of the previously independent practices are bought out and rolled up into large hospital-owned or regional mega-practices, the physicians no longer feel the same personal obligation for oversight of the reception staff or billing/accounting staff. In the latter case, the administrative staff may not even be onsite and when you call, you are transferred to a centralized billing office in another city or location. As these ownership changes continue and ownership is more concentrated and distant, the teflon effects will worsen as there is less accountability and oversight by medical caregivers and professionals.
GH: as more and more of the previously independent practices are bought out
Now you are complaining. “if you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor” after he sells his office.
@Gadolhadorah
At these hospital owned practices (in this case Yale) the doctors have no say in how the office runs, they are merely employees. My primary care physician has told us he cannot stand the office help and is forbidden to tell they what to do, how to do their jobs, etc.
He hates the system, I have more than once offered to set him up in private practice, rent free for the first five years in a building I bought that was medical offices. He told me that he was afraid of going in his own, as the insurance company search engines for ‘find a doctor’ show all the hospital owned practices first.
In the past 5 years every single one of our doctors has sold their practices to either Yale or Hartford Health. Mrs, CTL wanted to change her doctor to one affiliated with a small suburban hospital but was told he does not have admitting privileges in the New Haven and Bridgeport which are all owned by Yale or Hartford Health.YwnJudy -“I’d get the most satisfaction if there would be techiyat hameisim of the NON-TEFLON elders of the past.”
You’re wrong. They’d act the same way.
Basically there is 2 problems with medical care nowadays.
1. The ones who practice medicine.
Once upon a time, there wasn’t too much knowledge that was required.
Nowadays, the practitioners can’t keep up with the latest and they aren’t compensated for their work properly!
2. The Business part:
To simplify it – when the US was full of Mom & Pop stores – it was part & parcel with customer service.
Nowadays it’s like dealing with the Government or Big Cooperations, you get Voice Mail and sometimes s/o returns your call.Why Teflon?
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