Old Habits Die Hard

I have this habit of arriving at doctor's appointments early. I always perceived this to be a good habit. First come, first serve, right? 

WRONG. 

Not here in the land of socialized medicine.  I learned this the hard way, of course.

Lesson #1: do not arrive more than five minutes early for doctors appointment otherwise you end up waiting a VERY long time. 

A couple of weeks ago Emily was sick with a nasty virus that has strategically hit each of us in our family, starting with her. Emily's doctor appointment was at 3:00. We arrived at 2:40, checked in with the receptionist, and begun what we didn't know would be a fifty minute wait. 

In the United States (and even in Oman) when you arrive and check in to a doctors office, they whip out your little chart, put in a basket thereby securing your place in the long lineup of patients.

Not so here.

Why did we wait fifty minutes? 

The appointment before us arrived fifteen minutes after we did (2:55) but of course was seen by the doctor (yes the very same one that was seeing Emily) before her b/c, and I quote from the receptionist, "Well their appointment was before your daughters, wasn't it?"  

SO. We arrived before they did therefore Emily's little green or purple chart should've been in the line-up before that bee-ach!

Couple that cockamany system with the doc running 15-20 minutes late and we have fifty minutes of waiting. 

I was LIVID.

This does not sound like an organized and efficient way to run a medical office. What if the person before Emily was twenty minutes late? Were we just going to sit and wait for them to turn up?

Lesson #2: Even ten minutes is too early

Fast forward three weeks. Now I'm miserably sick and going for my second appointment in two weeks hoping for some relief. 

Arrival time, 11:25. Appointment, 11:40 (I can't help it I'm a glutton for punishment). 

I watched the tick-tock of the clock and surveyed all of the areas of the waiting room that needed a paint job (which turned out to be ALL areas of the waiting room). 

11:30 Chic in black tights with oversized sweater arrives and sits down across the room.

11:35 Chic in black tights with oversized sweater called in to see same doctor I have an appointment with.

11:40 comes and goes. 

11:45 nothin'.

11:46 I begin to wonder how I'm going to get the previous fifty minutes plus these twenty minutes of my life back.

11:50 "Theresa Warren" is called over the loud speaker to see Dr so and so (more on the loud speaker another time).

Twenty five minutes still sucks but it's a HUGE improvement over fifty. 

From now on I will NOT be arriving more than five minutes before any doctors appointment. (ok maybe six but I'll try really hard for five even if I have to sit out in the parking lot and wait in my car!)