Is the Doctor In?

I tried to go back home a couple of years ago. I wasn't allowed for two reasons. One of them was the availability of medical care. We have a lot of great doctors, nurses and medical frontliners. The issue though was purely administrative. 

Many years ago there was a long discussion online on why you need to wait for a long time for your doctor. It's common to wait two hours for your consultation. I remember the discussion was really explosive that time. Many patients expressed their frustration because of wasted time.

On a thread one doctor explained the reason for the long wait is usually due to consultations that go longer. Doctors have to be thorough when they check you especially when you are a complicated case. I have a doctor here who's really very thorough. The average wait to see him is about two hours too. One of my French colleagues who went with me absolutely freaked out that day I went to see this doctor (well he insisted to accompany me! Na-stress lang ako sa kanya hehe). 

I don't have to wait long with my other doctors. Consults can go very long sometimes. My last visit to my respiratory doctor took an hour because I had a lot of questions for him. Luckily there was no patient after me so he indulged me. Back home there's a lot of horror stories about waiting for your doctor. The frustration of patients though is valid too. (I wonder if it's the same issue in other cities in PH?).

Granted that there are emergencies, long consults, rounds that run longer than usual, doctors that need to run to another hospital etc. I think a little administrative improvement can be done back home to fix this issue. My doctor's assistant is usually apologetic when the wait goes longer. Perhaps they need to remember (pandemic or no pandemic), waiting takes a toll on patients. We should probably outlaw "Filipino time". It is one of our worst traits. 

CB///342 #StuckAtHomeDay/Yr2/5 #StayHome #BeKind