gyno rant

May. 12th, 2008 06:05 pm
[identity profile] to-wong-foo.livejournal.com posting in [community profile] vaginapagina
If this isn't kosher, let me know.  I just really want to rant about this :/

So, Friday I had a gyno appointment to discuss birth control/write me a prescription (I've been taking free samples).  It was TOTAL CRAP.  My boyfriend went with me, we showed up early (as the office has been known to take away your appointment if you're a certain amount of time late and it's a $50 fee).  We'd made up a LONG list of questions the night before.  My appointment was at 11:10.  When we got there, the room was basically empty.  While we sat, easily 10-20 other people came and went to their appointment.  We didn't even get taken to a room until...almost 12:30.  We then sat around in the room for maybe 15-20 MORE minutes.  So, my gyno FINALLY comes in and she completely ignored my boyfriend...didn't even say hi.  She asked me what I didn't like about my current BC.  I showed her that I had a list, but she just wrote something down and told me to choose a pharmacy.  Nothing else, just "choose a pharmacy."  I ended up choosing the wrong one (pretty far from my house)...luckily it was at least in the same town!  Then she told us to follow her to check out.  Nevermind the fact that my list covered a whole page front and back...she wasn't going to address those concerns.  Nevermind that I had a health question...I didn't even bother because she would have told me to schedule an appointment so she could look at it...which would cost me $25 more dollars.  At least the problem's cleared itself up more or less (really just seems my poor vag had to readjust to having my boyfriend around almost all the time!).  And problems I pointed out, she told me I either had "one or the other, not both" (excessive vaginal wetness, but dryness during sex).  She didn't offer any solutions for my moodyness or dryness...just told me that that's why she doesn't take pills anymore.  And to top it off...my boyfriend exploded at me...which was just the perfect finish to such a crappy appointment >_< luckily he realized how much of an ass he was and apologized (then did a dozen different cute things that made the day SOOOOOO much better).  We even managed to figure out which Rite Aid she'd sent the prescription to and it WAS super cheap.  Now if only MedCo had some sort of intelligent order system...I feel like spending the extra $20 a year to avoid all the crap they want.

My (now ex) gyno rushed me through at my FIRST annual (which sucked for a dozen outside reasons) a few months earlier.  I waited for an hour there.  And then 3 more hours because she had to go assist in surgery.  I'm wholly unsatisfied with her.  Needless to say, I'll be getting a new gyno.  But the problem is...there's a whole 2 other gynos in the area covered by my insurance.  Hopefully I can find someone better.  Anyone know of any place to find gyno reviews online?  I've looked through the one on here, but there's none in my area.

Sorry this is so long...I really needed to rant about that.

Date: 2008-05-12 10:32 pm (UTC)
archangelbeth: An egyptian-inspired eye, centered between feathered wings. (Eye in the Pyrawings)
From: [personal profile] archangelbeth
...eugh! Sympathies!

About my only suggestion would be to plug in the name of the practice, and your town, and hit "enter" on Google (or Yahoo, or both), and see what turns up. (This is a trick I've used to identify phone numbers when collection agencies call my cellphone looking for the phone number's prior owner. O:p )

Date: 2008-05-12 10:44 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] amaebi.livejournal.com
That sounds nasty, unprofessional and demeaning. :(
(deleted comment)

Date: 2008-05-12 11:26 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] disturbedme.livejournal.com
I agree with this 100%.

Doctors really don't care. YOU have to be pro-active for yourself/your health because no one else will be, especially not doctors.

Date: 2008-05-13 12:10 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] musicgirl312.livejournal.com
I think that's a bit of an unfair generalization- some doctors don't care, some care a whole lot, and everything in the middle. Being proactive about your own health is always good, but there ARE good physicians out there.

Date: 2008-05-13 12:17 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] crimsontwylite.livejournal.com
I agree with this, my gyno was very happy to help when I brought in a whole slew of questions and then kept asking if I had more. She's a great person, and much better than my first gyno that rushed me. From someone who's seen both sides of the fence, it depends upon the doctor AS WELL AS the patient.

Date: 2008-05-13 12:40 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] strand3d.livejournal.com
Not true. Doctors care, that's why they are doctors. It's not exactly easy to spend a good 10 years in school if you just don't care at all. Frankly, being a doctor these days isn't easy considering how badly insurances companies pay and what a pain in the ass dealing with them truly is. Not to mention practices are totally overfilled and half their staff is worked to death.

Date: 2008-05-13 12:12 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] shiny-jen.livejournal.com
'Doctors care, that's why they are doctors. It's not exactly easy to spend a good 10 years in school if you just don't care at all.'

The money and the status can play a big role. I personally have never had the pleasure of meeting a nice doctor, or one who is even remotely polite.

Date: 2008-05-13 03:21 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] strand3d.livejournal.com
Well that's too bad. I work for a very down to earth, kind, caring doctor who is a doctor because he cares about people. He does good work, he saves peoples lives, and he doesn't do it "just for the money" he writes off people's balances all the time.

Date: 2008-05-13 03:30 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] goth-kittykat.livejournal.com
my dad doesn't make that much money and he's a doctor, nowadays it's not so much of a hoity toity thing as it used to be. he does it because it's something he loves doing and he is very responsive to patients and tells them to call WHENEVER they have any questions.

>.> it's just really lame seeing how people generalize others.

Date: 2008-05-13 12:27 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] jennifer0246.livejournal.com
I'm sorry you were left so frustrated. One thing I've found helpful to remember is that in the US in 2008, you employ your doctor. You hire this person, with this particular background, specialty, and information s/he can offer you, to give you guidance and advice. So this person you hire, s/he should listen to your concerns, and if s/he does not do so in a respectful and helpful way, you can do a couple things: remind her/him politely and respectfully that s/he does work for you right now, and that you hired her/him to do a particular job, and you want her/him to listen to you fully and help you come to a conclusion. Or you can fire her/him and hire someone else :)

As far as recommendations I don't have anything beyond our resources here: perhaps if you are comfortable posting your geographic region someone would have a suggestion or two?

Date: 2008-05-13 08:51 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] marionravenwood.livejournal.com
You know, you can refuse to pay for a doctor's appointment if the doctor is way out of line like that. If you paid with a credit card, attempt to reverse the charges. I walked out right in the middle of an appointment once, called my credit card to block the charges, called my insurance to complain, etc. The doctor could have tried to argue with the credit card company, in which case I would have written that she failed to deliver services, but she didn't. I really, really wish more people would do this--just walk out, just like you would in a store! You're paying them! If they suck, you go elsewhere. Nothing, I mean nothing, gets your point across better than just leaving.

You should also complain to your insurance: if enough people complain about this doctor, they may drop her from their list of providers. If the doctor is part of a medical group or affiliated with a hospital, complain to them as well. They really do want to know.

Why would she want you to choose a pharmacy? They just write a scrip. You take it to the pharmacy, and you can choose whichever one you want.

(I disagree with people who think doctors should "care." No, doctors need to treat patients like *customers*. Great ones do, others don't. I don't care if they care; it's not like I care about them. One thing I love about managingcontraception.com is that they NEVER say "patient" and always say client.)

Date: 2008-05-13 09:19 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] frolicnaked.livejournal.com
Why would she want you to choose a pharmacy? They just write a scrip. You take it to the pharmacy, and you can choose whichever one you want.

I can't say this is what happened in the OP's case, but I know that if I specify a pharmacy, my provider will actually call in the prescription for me while I'm still at the clinic -- so the actual pills are ready and waiting for me when I first get there. It saves me an extra trip. :)

Date: 2008-05-15 07:22 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] cozycloudabove.livejournal.com
I know I'm late, but I thought I'd share with you my story, for solidarity at least.

About two years ago, I chose a gyno at random based on the proximity to work and such. I live in NYC, so there are TONS of gynos around. I just picked the wrong practice. My very first appointment with the gyno ever was very clinical. She answered questions and sort of talked me through, but she wasn't warm or friendly at all. Not too long afterwards, I got a call saying my pap smear was abnormal, I tested positive for HPV and I had to go in for a colposcopy. The person who called gave me zero information about what anything meant and I freaked out, convinced that I had cervical cancer or herpes. I made an appointment right away, with a different doctor. On the day of that appointment, I was chided by the second doctor for freaking out about this. She didn't explain anything to me at all and proceeded with the colposcopy which was incredibly uncomfortable and painful. Not long after that, I got another call saying that my "sample did not survive processing" and I had to go back. What's even better? They charged me for it too.

The results came back normal and I was fine. But then! Oh, yes, it gets better. Then, I made an appointment the next year, a little early, but about a year later. My insurance coverage was going to end and I wanted to get it in. The office had called to make sure that my insurance would cover the appointment, because it was a little early and I confirmed with the company that they would. When I get into the doctor's office, this woman has the audacity to ask me again if the insurance would cover it and then said, "Because I want to make sure I'm getting paid for this."

Needless to say, I'm never going back to that practice.

Date: 2008-05-17 10:37 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] awriterswindow.livejournal.com
Okay, definitely time for a new gyno. What I would do is if she is affiliated with a board at a hospital or anything like that, send them a letter about this. It's unacceptable. You should never have to be rushed through an appointment or treated that way. Ever. No excuses.

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