Not so smart old dog
Judy Conlin
I should be excellent at managing appointments because I usually have some every day. Some are doctor appointments. Some are dentist appointments. Some are lab appointments. Others are committee meetings, club meetings, theater meetings or board meetings. I write them on my calendar and try to plan my life around them.
Ha.
That is a waste of time. An appointment means nothing these days. You get a phone call or an e-mail or a text asking you to reschedule as the person you were supposed to see is on vacation, out of town, or who knows where. You spend days trying to reschedule and find a date that works for you both. This may finally be rescheduled, and it also may need to be changed again.
I realize all these places are extremely busy with lots of people to handle. What they don’t seem to realize is that even very old people (like me) are busy just trying to meet all their obligations which increase significantly with age. We seem to have a different doctor and office for each of our body parts as time goes on. Sometimes I long for the old country doctor who took care of all your parts except teeth and some eye problems. Only one office to go to-only one guy to deal with, but I fear that is not coming back as we get increasingly more specialized.
Even though they say an old dog can’t learn new tricks, this old dog is pursuing that goal. Having tried to go to a portal and reschedule, I’ve found I am totally incapable of doing this. When I call to reschedule and don’t get a call-back, I just quit. I leave the ball in their court. If they discover I haven’t been seen after a while, they usually will find a way to contact me for a new appointment and if not and if I’m still alive and functioning, perhaps I didn’t need to be seen after all.
I realize this is a radical approach from a registered nurse, but I think the lowering of my stress level must be a plus in my favor.
This week I found another helpful solution to this appointment problem. I had an appointment to have blood drawn at 11 am in Tallahassee. I started out early because I know how hard it is to find a parking spot. Thus, I got there on time and was prepared for a quick entry and exit. At the desk, I was told by a helpful attendant that they were a little behind and I was number 19 on the list. I could sign in and wait, but if the wait got too long, she would reschedule me for another day. I thought about this. I did not want to reschedule. That would mean another trip to Tallahassee and the possibility of having that same wait . Then, this old dog had an idea.
“Just sign me in,” I said cheerfully. “I must leave for a bit, but I’ll be right back to wait my turn.”
My helpful clerk agreed this would work.
I left the lab and headed to the cafeteria. They only served broccoli cheese soup, and toasted cheese sandwiches. They were crowded and I had to wait to order. I didn’t mind. There were 19 folks ahead of me in the lab. By the time I got to order, they were out of the soup, but they did have the sandwich. I ordered it and a large chai tea latte. Again, the lady at this snack bar was besieged by hungry workers and it took a while.
Again, I didn’t care. They might be down to 15 or 16 ahead of me by now. I leisurely ate my cheese dripping sandwich and drank my huge latte. I needed a bath after that and took a trip to the restroom to free my hands (and I have to say the front of my blouse) from some very sticky cheese.
Pleased with myself, I sauntered back to the lab and inquired about the number in front of me now.
“You’re next,” she said with a big smile. I smiled right back. I had outwitted the system. This old dog had learned a new trick.
I bragged about this to Nurse Judy, my all knowing alter ego, on the way home.
”You might want to review this before trying it again,” she said.
“What do you mean?“ I ask.
“If you had cut that time a little closer you might have missed your appointment and had to come back anyhow. Besides that, you’ve probably ruined the results. Your cholesterol level will be up from all that cheese, and your blood sugar will be elevated from that latte. You’ll probably be rescheduled anyhow.”
She always rains on my parade.
More later,Judy
www.nursejudyinfo.com
