Doctors Allergic to Email?

[Slinky]

Yeah, well I've encountered a specialist (as have a couple of friends w/their doctors) who now charge $15 to $25 if you call in for a script renewal. They write the scripts for free during an office visit and you are told all renewals outside of regular office visits will be subject to the charge. I told my specialist that it would be a cold day in h*ll that I would pay for a script renewal needed between office visits. That in the future I would not keep any more of these stupid "well visits" but would ONLY call for an appointment when I was sick and needed one AND if they couldn't get me in to the office w/in 1-2 days I'd forget them entirely and just go to my family doctor where I could get care when I NEEDED it, not 2-3 weeks later when I'm either cured or dead. I've already had my family doctor write the new scripts for the two meds this specialist put me on. Last time I was in I was asked if I needed any script renewals and I just told the specialist that my family doctor had written them for me.

[elg5cats]

it would be a cold day in h*ll that I would pay for a script renewal needed between office visits. That in the future I would not keep any more of these stupid "well visits" but would ONLY call for an appointment when I was sick and needed one AND if they couldn't get me in to the office w/in 1-2 days I'd forget them entirely and just go to my family doctor where I could get care when I NEEDED it, not 2-3 weeks later when I'm either cured or dead.

Slinky..............you go Girl!!!!! I think we need to directly give feedback to the doctors who treat us like a royal PITA and simply practice on the egocentric level of only MD needs count. I joined the club of giving direct feedback to a MD this week. (Not my sleep doc who is IMPRESSIVE.) MD clearly had read my chart, walked into the appt with a "treatment plan" and didn't want to be interupted with patient input. I clearly told the MD, I experienced this situation as unsatisfactory, frustration, absence of listening......then proceeded to point out on the MD own computer screen...labs were drawn on date, medication dose was changed on such date, medication used for # of days, symptoms are returning for 2 weeks and your treatment plan is to wait 4-6 weeks for labs to see if there is a need of dosage adjustment...........I proceed to share with this MD, my first experience was disappointing, contained judgemental comments which I was not appreciative of. I informed this doctor, it was not in my best interest to have any further appointments and I would not be seeing her in the future.... as far as email correspondence, I find MD's more willing to correspond via email within their own health care institution and staff that's their patients. I was a patient at Vanderbilt University in the past. I continue to have web access to my medical records, labs, and clinical notes. I think MD's miss the point of their liability, it's the angry, poorly served patient who is at most risk of seeking legal counsel. Patients will often tolerate a significant level of incompetence or "mistakes" when they view their docs as relating well to them...........we don't sue people we like as much as we sue people who insult and leave us angry.....MD's seem to be oblivious to the importance of relationships and believing the patient has the capacity to problem solve!!!!

[Slinky]

Right on, elg!! The only one of my doctors who has given me his e-mail address is my Endocrinologist. I don't bug him. I do contact him by e-mail every 3 months to tell him its time for my every 3 months blood draw for my Crohn's disease and ask if he wants to add any particular blood test so I can have it all done at once. He always e-mails me the results (but I've usually beaten him to the punch by picking the results up at the lab).Heck, some of these doctors you are lucky and blessed if you have their FAX number!!!!

[BlackSpinner]

Yeah, well I've encountered a specialist (as have a couple of friends w/their doctors) who now charge $15 to $25 if you call in for a script renewal.

Correct - when I was designing the medical billing system they wanted to be able to book and charge for several patients during the same 7 minute appointment time so they could charge for writing scripts - all in the same time so they would get paid several times for the same appointment slot.

[riverdreamer]

The doctor's office where I work uses email quite a bit to answer patient's questions. For labs, though, very few of the laboratories they use have their results set up to come in by email. Most come via fax, and if we wanted to make them able to be sent by email we would have to convert them to pdf. Then there is the problem that each lab that DOES happen to use email, they all use different programs to format the lab reports. It is a mess, as we are trying to get our patient's data set up in an electronic format.

Then we have some of our docs who are computer whizzes, and others who can barely type. We have some patients who email multiple times every day, and expect an immediate response, and others who don't have computers. And, last but not least, as someone mentioned up thread, email is not HIPPA compliant. You have to use special programs, maybe even special servers, to be HIPPA protected. Most small doctor's offices just can't afford the cost of all the technology needed to do it.

In spite of this, the office does find it is easier and faster to do what they can by email. Rx renewals requests, appointment requests, and minor problems are all handled by email.

[OldLincoln]

My doctor has provided me with his email address, but he does not normally use email due to privacy concerns. Email does not meet HIPPA privacy requirements.

You ready for this?.... now, sit down and take a deep breath..... Unencrypted email does not meet HIPAA however fax DOES!! Why? Because it is not considered electronic transmission, but telecommunication. Cool huh? Now you know why doctors fax scripts to pharmacies, and hospitals fax records to doctors, etc. BTW, before the grammar cops show up, HIPAA is correct and is the acronym for "Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act".

[DreamStalker]

Pull over Mr. Lincoln. I need to see your grammar license and registration please.

[jnk]

Pull over Mr. Lincoln. I need to see your grammar license and registration please.