Recently I have been very frustrated with my Endo's office. When I make an appointment it normally takes me at least 3 months to see him. So I end up making an appointment 3 months out. Sometimes I have to cancel because I don't have my work schedule 3 months out and then I get a letter from them saying that I cancel appointments too much. I find it crazy that it takes 3 months at the least to get in to see my Endo! I am just curious how long it takes most people to get in to see their Endo? Does 3 months seem ridiculous to anyone else? Normally, I end up making an appointment with the NP because she is easier to get into and knows way more about my pump. However, I also get letters from the office saying that I need to see the Endo and not just the NP. So I guess I am just frustrated with this guy but at the same time reluctant to switch. At least when I can get an appointment and do see my Endo he listens to me and spends time trying to work out problems I may be having. Thanks for help!
Since there is a lack of Drs. everywhere, more Seniors, the continual arrival of Immigrants(some who are older and ill)and more People with Diabetes and other ailments, some Drs. do research and surgeries like 2 of mine so they are not in full-time. I think that 3 month appointments are appropriate. Three, two and one month appointments are normally held for the newly diagnosed, Patients having a lot of problems managing their Diabetes, Patients starting on pumps or having problems with their pump treatment, before/after surgeries, etc. Drs. are overbooked as it is. Some will accept the appointments but inside some hope that a number of Patients cancel to lessen the burden.
My Endo had asked me a couple years ago, if it was okay for him to see me every 6 months instead since I was and am doing pretty Good. I was more than Happy to let someone else take my place. My Drs. have been and are there when I need them and they are usually just a phone call away. Thankfully, I don’t need a Specialist for every ailment.
I would not want to be a Dr. or Nurse in this age. Yes, there are Bad ones(frauds even) like in every Profession but God Bless the ones who are skilled and kind.
I’m sorry that you are experiencing this difficulty but you are definitely not alone. I hope that you will find the solution that you need and soon.
Ha, i’d be glad to have only 3 months. Usually my appointments are six or more months out. Not that hard to make them though, as my mom’s work schedule is easily changed.
My Dr. is horribly overbooked. He’s one of two specialists in the state, so it is pretty hard to get an appointment with him. Heck, it’s hard to get him on the phone, but i don’t really have any other choice
About once every three months is the norm for me as well. If I am sick after hours and need to speak with him, I will call my endo’s emergerncy number and he , or the doctor on call always returns my phone calls. I have a good relationshipo with his Nurse Practicioner, who is a CDE, and she can answer and help between the three month appointments. Terrie8’s comment that one and two-month appointments tend to be for the newly diagnosed seems to be right in my experience.
Erin, I hope you can find a way to work with your work schedule and your diabetes team. You mentioned that you are getting good care from the NP. I think that You do have to see the endo on a regular basis,in order for your insurance to pay for changes in your prescription and medical care…It is not at all unusual to see your endo once every three months
So far with my new endo, it’s been every 3 months. I make the appointment for the next visit at the end of the current visit, so yea, 3 months out, pretty standard. Los Angeles has more doctors and specialists than you can shake a stick at so it was more a matter of finding one I can work with than finding one that I can get in to see. My current doctor has Saturday appointments which is why I chose to go to him. He works out of two offices and is in the one in my area once a month. So far, his office has always been available to answer questions or fill prescriptions, and he was willing to see me for a follow-up visit to check my bloodwork after he put me on Lisinopril. He wanted to do the, “Call you if there is are any problems” thing, but I said I would rather go over the bloodwork regardless of the results and he said no problem.
The other nice part is that the endo handles my care personally. The NP mostly makes appointments and keeps me updated but my endo takes the time to go over everything with me at the visit.
I see my ENDO every 4 months it is a set appointment and if necessary I take a day of vacation. I consider it very important to my health but then there are few months that I don’t have a doctor’s visit. The ENDO office I visit has 17,000 patients with 4 physicians and I think 4 NP’s. I think my ENDO is the coolest doctor he has a lot of respect for my decisions that I make and we talk about different stratagies. I tell people he has me on autopilot.
Personally, I’d be more frustrated with my employer that they can’t accommodate me for a one friggin’ day to go to the doctor. Is the schedule actually that rigid that it can’t be changed for a couple of hours on a single day?
When you make your next appointment, tell your employer or the scheduler and ask them for the day/morning/afternoon off or to schedule you around the appointment. Or arrange to switch with a co-worker. Work it out with your supervisor - they have doctor appointments too. If they won’t do it file a complaint with somebody. Human resources. The State. The Feds. Somebody. Or take a sick day. Or schedule a vacation day.
Another alternative - once you find out that your schedule conflicts with you doctor’s hours, ask the doctor’s office to put you on a list to call you in case someone else cancels and you’re available to fill the slot.
I still think it’s the employer, not the doctor, who’s being inflexible here.
I see my endo and the NP - they alternate - so I go every 3 months - so say in January I will see the endo and in March I will see the NP. Works very well for me. Both are very patient and give their full atention to me and my needs.
I schedule every 4 months but if there’s an emergency, they can work me in last minute. I would talk with the employer and explain the situation. Maybe you can feed them the information of what date/time your next appointment is and they can schedule around that. ( Maybe get on a first name basis with the scheduler) For crying out loud, it’s only one day every 3 months and this is important! How do they deal with vacation time?
It totally makes sense that he would have to see some people sooner like people who are having problems with control, pumps, or newly diagnosed etc. I don’t actually see my endo every 3 months because I am not having any problems with control or issues with my pump or anything. I see him about once a year and I see his NP probably once a year too. So I see one of them every 6 months. I only work 3 nights a week and I do 12 hr shifts so it makes it hard because of my sleep schedule to make an appointment that works especially when I have to try to figure out what I will be doing three months from now. When I have had problems in the past I am normally able to get in touch with my doctor or doctor on call over the phone and I can normally get in to see him within a month so that is better than the three months. I guess the other part of the equation is his office moved so he is pretty far from where I live so that doesn’t make matters any easier. I guess I just thought that having a first available appointment 3 months out seems crazy to me! With my other specialist I always can make an appointment within the next 2 weeks and earlier if I am sick. However, it sounds like three months out is the norm so I will probably just have to find a way to make this work. Good recommendation to call and ask to be put on a list if there is a cancelation! I will try that.
This is an important point and all respondents have covered the bases. The only thing I can add is that Medicare (which I have) requires diabetics to have q3 month appts. My endo sees only diabetics and is also overbooked. Because I am stable he sees me q 6 months and I see the NP on the alternate 3 months. And my pump supplier does ask me the date I saw my db dr last each time I call for a new order. This is required by Medicare. It is crazy just like it is crazy that Medicare required me to have the c peoptide test even though I had already been on a pump for 6 years when I started SSA. They wanted proof that I was a diabetic even thought I had been on insulin since 1983 (or was it’82?). Imagine being on insulin and not being diabetic. Apparently Medicare thinks that is possible!
But I agree with others that it is rare to see an endo more often than q 3 months.
Medicare does not require 3 month appointments for those of us who are not on pumps. I’m on a 6 month leash, and I have Medicare. My endo’s office is taking appointments this month for October.
I am on a pump, and go every 6 months unless I am having a problem. While we were working out the pump settings, I went monthly. My doctor is very available and returns calls in a timely manner if I am having a problem. But I know I get special treatment, being a doctor myself. I delivered my doctor’s baby!
