Grrrr... doc moved

[Andrew'sMom]

Just stopping by with a snarl & a growl today. Called this morning to confirm Andrew's card appt for Feb only to find out the doc has left the group! This is the third time this has happened in the last 12 months to us. Is it not considered good professional etiquette to at least inform the patients in some way (letter, e-mail, phone call) when a dr leaves?

 

[Ross]

I think I'd be a little bent too.

 

[Bina]

I am not happy with "un-professional" behaviour either.
Even if the doc has hundreds of clients, they could send out letters, or have a secretary spend an extra few days making phone calls to be sure the clients are informed.....

 

[Susan BAV]

Have all three doctors left (or been removed from) the same group? If so, that might indicate bigger problems.

How frustrating for you anyway. You do keep personal copies of all of Andrew's records/test/etc., don't you?

 

[hensylee]

Just stopping by with a snarl & a growl today. Called this morning to confirm Andrew's card appt for Feb only to find out the doc has left the group! This is the third time this has happened in the last 12 months to us. Is it not considered good professional etiquette to at least inform the patients in some way (letter, e-mail, phone call) when a dr leaves?

my local dr left last July 31st without even a 'howdy do' to any of us. Nor from the clinic where he was a member. I was so disappointed in him; he had been my dr for 20 YEARS, for goodness sakes. He is still around but none of us know what he's doing except maybe retired now. I feel so let down by someone I trusted. His other patients feel exactly the same.

I now have a lady dr and she is young and great - so far. Today's my third visit and we'll see. I doubt I will give my total loyalty to another dr again.

 

[MikeHeim]

I had the exact same reaction as Susan and it is probably something to look into.

I do agree that the group should at least send something out immediately after the person has left. I don't believe they have an obligation to let you know prior to them leaving. As mentioned above, doctors have hundreds of regular patients and the last thing they need is to spend their last weeks at a clinic fielding hundreds of "how dare you" phone calls from disgruntled patients. Doctors are people too and certainly have the right to move on from their current job whenever they please and for whatever reason they feel is fit.

 

[Marguerite53]

I had the exact same reaction as Susan and it is probably something to look into.

I do agree that the group should at least send something out immediately after the person has left. I don't believe they have an obligation to let you know prior to them leaving. As mentioned above, doctors have hundreds of regular patients and the last thing they need is to spend their last weeks at a clinic fielding hundreds of "how dare you" phone calls from disgruntled patients. Doctors are people too and certainly have the right to move on from their current job whenever they please and for whatever reason they feel is fit.

My first response would be like yours, too, but I like what Susan and Mike have suggested. See if you can't get a little info out of one of the "trusted" nurses or receptionists as to what exactly is going on there. Do you know anyone else who uses any of these doctors in the group whom you might ask? It may very well be something going on within that group. If you liked your cardio, shouldn't they let you know where he has gone off to?

It is January. Here in Portland we get a monthly magazine called Portland Monthly. Most large cities have this same magazine published as Seattle Monthly or Philadelphia Monthly, etc. Anyway, January is the Top Doctors month. Sure, it's somewhat of a popularity contest, but the doctors in that city rate each other and you get to see who they like best. My cardio has been on the list for 5+ years, and my Ob/Gyn just showed up! Many of these doctors no longer accept new patients, but they are certainly in the know about who is who and can recommend. I'm sure they get alot of attention from this annual publication and are prepared to field calls. Time to start working that telephone!

Good luck.

Marguerite

 

[hensylee]

It is SOP that when a dr leaves a practice all his patients should be notified in advance so that they can choose another doctor and pick up or arrange for their records to be sent to another doctor.

My cardio was appalled that my dr just up and retired without notice to any of us. But we all know there was a conflict and he got mad and just left. He's not the only dr who did - this outfit can't seem to keep doctors. They don't treat them well. I went over there to sign for shipment of my records and they are down to two doctors, no patients were waiting to see a dr, no cars in the parking lot. The outfit is owned by our piddly hospital across the street. In our town we don't have to nose around; everybody knows part of the story and when we compare we come up with answers. Bet there's a problem if your doctors keep leaving.

Shame for my dr because he owned his own building uptown, decided to join this other outfit and left his freedom behind for $. Big mistake.

 

[Lisa in Katy]

It actually depends. I knew a doctor that was straight out of medical school, didn't know any better, and signed a non-compete agreement. Little did he know that the more experienced doctor was an ass and did this for his own interest because he knew that he couldn't keep a partner. When my friend couldn't take it anymore after about two years, he was required to relocate to another city, at least 50 miles away, and couldn't inform any of his patients. He had a friend call to make an appointment to see what they would say, and the staff made the appointment without informing this person that Dr. Jones had left. When the person showed up for the appointment, she was told that Dr. Jones was not available, so she would be seeing Dr. Smith instead. So the friend said that she wanted to reschedule when she could see Dr. Jones and they finally told her that Dr. Jones had left the practice and that they weren't sure where he was. They made it sound like he had picked up and left in the middle of the night, which of course wasn't true.