My wife and I were sitting in a doctor’s office a few weeks ago when a woman called to ask if she could still be seen.  She was, at that point, more than 2 hours late. The doctors office was packed, people being seen in a timely manner but with no leeway for change.  When the receptionist politely explained that there were no openings, and that she would be happy to reappoint the patient for another day, the patient hung up.

Ten minutes later the patient’s husband called.  He couldn’t understand why the doctor simply could not “squeeze” his wife in.  After all, she would only need a half hour of the doctor’s time.

If your Physician, Dentist, Orthodontist, or OBGYN squeezes you or your family member in, they do so at the expense of both you or your family member, and every other patient that has to be seen that day.  We all make room for true emergencies (pain/bleeding/swelling), but non-emergency visits should be scheduled when the doctor has the time to provide you with the highest quality care, in a stress-free environment, and not shortchange you or the patients scheduled around you.

We all do our best to run on time.  Unfortunately stuff happens.  If we run a little late sometimes it’s because we are trying to give each and every patient the care they deserve.  Most of the time delays we experience are caused by either patients arriving late for their appointments, or patients who have problems (such as broken braces) that they did not advise us about ahead of time.  Please be patient with us, and we will do the very best treatment for you that we can.

Thank you.