Our family meeting was on a Saturday so first thing the
following Monday morning I was up early researching therapists to make Miss Cathy
some appointments. The first call I made was to Dr G, her family doctor, he’s
the doctor that’s known her longest and she respects the most.
Just like in business, it’s always smart to network with
those that you respect and healthcare is no exception.
These days the instinct is to type ‘Therapist’ into Google
but I think it’s best to have a referral (if possible) from a doctor who knows
your loved one so that there is (hopefully) a personal connection when they are
giving you a therapist’s contact information.
Unfortunately I did not feel ‘connected’ to the therapist Dr
G recommended.
The therapists’ office was located nearby which is convenient
but unlike in real estate it’s not just about “location, location, location”.
I’d called to set up a consultation with the therapist’s
office and almost immediately I was turned off by the receptionist’s
Priorities. She seemed to be much more focused with how the practice was going
to be paid than with information about a potential new client.
Believe me, I know that the medical field is a business and
everybody is out to “get paid” but can’t we at least have a modicum of pretense
that it’s about the patient and not “the paper”?
The person that I spoke with also referred me to the
practices’ website where “I” was to download, print out and fill out several
forms to bring to the first meeting (information regarding payment-first and
foremost).
While asking for a dossier (even before one sees a doctor)
is quite common these days I just didn’t get a great feeling from the elitism
of it all.
What if I didn’t own a computer, printer or have an Internet
connection? Isn’t it awfully presumptive
of a person’s status on the part of the doctor’s office?
And it’s not like we’re talking about making a ‘Ped’s’
appointment for a child here, this is an appointment for someone that’s almost
an octogenarian.
Suppose Miss Cathy was the one calling to set up the
consultation, can you imagine her trying to navigate the homepage, ‘clicking’
on links, going from ‘new patients’ to ‘forms’ to…well, you get the picture,
besides, I don’t think mom has turned on a computer since she retired from the
Veterans’ Administration back in Nineteen hundred and ninety three…enough said.
It just seems to me to be alittle insensitive for someone
who supposedly specializes in geriatric counseling to put a 21st
century burden on people born in the early part of the 20th century,
is he a “Therapist’ or a ‘Cyber Paper Tiger’?
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