Good for you. How RUDE of them not to immediately suggest another appointment instead of that "we'll call you when we feel like it" nonsense. As if they are just using you on stand-by status to augment their cash flow. Can you find another stomach specialist? Can you go to an emergency room if it gets bad? (Do not mess around with gastric bleeding!!!!)
I had a doctor(a specialist) once pull this stunt one except that they didn't even bother to notify me that the appointment was cancelled, in fact, I had recieved the reminder call the previous day. I go to the appointment...and the office is not there. They've moved. Great. I call them up on my cell phone. "Where are you, I have an appointment?" The person answering the call is a CALL SERVICE and only knows the address, does not know how to get to it, but informs me that the doctor has cancelled and is not seeing patients today anyway. So I hunted down the new office. Guess what? THEY ARE THERE, they just are not answering the phones!
I stood there in front of that glass partition and held up my little appointment card and knocked until they had to acknowlege me. I told them I had NOT been called about this cancellation, and that I had redone my entire day to make this appointment, and that this had caused me to drive 24 miles for nothing.
And the clerk looks at me and goes, "well, at least you can go shopping."
At which point I told her that I had been waiting 6 weeks for a test result from this doctor and she had dam* well better schedule something in sooner rather than later. I also got a printed copy of the dam* test result from them and stood there and read it in front of them. They rescheduled me in for the next week.
We aren't done yet. I went, the doctor LIED to me about what was on the test result, (she had no idea I had a copy...I was flabbergasted, it wasn't a case of mistaken paperwork, she was just making up nonsense to get me out of the room quickly) and then a few months later I get a nasty letter from her office saying that because I have missed 2 appointments with her without giving notice, I will be "dropped from her care" if I do it again.
Well, yes, I have missed two appointments....she cancelled them, one without any notice at all to me. Nice of her staff to log it in as I'm just not showing up.
The part about lying about what was on my MRI really disturbs me. Most people assume a doctor would not do that. I used to assume a doctor would not do that. I would prefer her office just quit pretending they accept my insurance. It's not like I have a lot of choice in who I can see on this insurance...we're stuck.
I want to start a national movement in this country where if a doctor is not forthright and honest and at least making some effort to be cooperative with scheduling, you get to tell the insurance company NOT to pay them. That's the problem. They get a fee whether or not they are doing a good job. You wouldn't have this on a cash-only basis.
I hope your stomach feels better, and that your boss has more compassion than that nasty office staff. Yes, I understand "life happens"....that why you leave slots open in the future to reschedule.
