SNAFU

Yet another SNAFU on my way to surgery: first my endoscopy was rescheduled without my being adequately notified and Tuesday I discovered that my pre-surgery class has been cancelled as well!  I certainly hope my surgeon is more competent than her staff!!  These are the same people who can’t remember to bill my insurance company for office visits.  I suppose the hospital will be better about that, though.  I’ll bet I get billed for the physician’s portion and have to call them, again, and have them bill my insurance for it. 

 

As for adequate notification of a changed medical procedure, leaving a message on someone’s answering machine is not good enough!

 

Years ago, I was the person in charge of empanelling citizens to read grant proposals and give away Arts money.  If I had to reschedule a panel, my job was to TALK to everyone affected by the change.  Not leave messages on machines!!  I couldn’t consider my job done until I had spoken to everyone.  Spoken to them, personally. 

 

In essence medicine is a service industry.  It is extremely poor customer service to leave a patent standing in a medical facility being told their procedure has been canceled without notifying them, personally of the change.  I understand that things happen.   In this case, my surgeon lost her grandmother, for which she has my sympathies.  Her staff not taking the notification of her patients of the cancellations seriously enough to keep trying until they reached every person is inexcusable.  I received 1 phone call, which went to my machine.  My time is just as valuable to me is anybody else’s is!!  Respect for the people you service is the basis of good work in any profession.  It is doubly important in medicine!  Poor customer service could result in serious consequences.  It is life and death. 

 

I realize that I should have checked my machine.  Believe me, I have been ever since this happened but 1 phone call is not adequate notification.  Had she tried even one more time, I would have been home and gotten the news of the cancellation.  "I left a message" is a cop out.