Drs and cell phones

[Dunbar]

I need a polite way of saying " you don't check your phone when that is up my ass do you?" (I have a sigmoidoscopy next month) At my last visit he read a text while I was in the middle of talking. It bothered me at the time but I didn't say anything. I am more than a bit peeved right now and I know speaking in frustration is not wise so I come to you good people to help me if and when the situation arises again. It will, he has many hats to wear and is becoming more distracted as the years go by. Thanks in advance for the input.

 

[ronroush7]

So sorry.

 

[Cat-a-Tonic]

What your doctor did seems super rude to me. I would ask him nicely if he could please turn his phone off during the procedure as it was a distraction during your last appointment. That's a totally reasonable request. My GI has never answered a text or phone call during any of my appointments. For me, being in the US and having to pay for my healthcare (or at least paying the parts that insurance doesn't cover), my doctor is seeing me on my dime so I would be highly offended and just plain mad if he were taking phone calls or texts in the middle of an appointment or procedure. Maybe that's just me, and I know some people are glued to their phones 24/7, but I would definitely ask him as nicely as possible to put the phone away for all future appointments and procedures. Doctors still have beepers for emergencies, right? So if there were a dire emergency they'd still be able to get ahold of your doctor presumably?

 

[ronroush7]

What your doctor did seems super rude to me. I would ask him nicely if he could please turn his phone off during the procedure as it was a distraction during your last appointment. That's a totally reasonable request. My GI has never answered a text or phone call during any of my appointments. For me, being in the US and having to pay for my healthcare (or at least paying the parts that insurance doesn't cover), my doctor is seeing me on my dime so I would be highly offended and just plain mad if he were taking phone calls or texts in the middle of an appointment or procedure. Maybe that's just me, and I know some people are glued to their phones 24/7, but I would definitely ask him as nicely as possible to put the phone away for all future appointments and procedures. Doctors still have beepers for emergencies, right? So if there were a dire emergency they'd still be able to get ahold of your doctor presumably?

I agree.[emoji1]

 

[Jennifer]

If the call or text were for personal use then yes that would be rude however many doctors do bring their phones into appointments for multiple reasons, the most important being for emergencies. Doctors also have apps on their phones so they can quickly look up medications, drug interactions, other illnesses, tests etc during your appointment so you can get the fastest and most accurate care possible. Usually they apologize if it's an emergency or call they've been waiting for all day from another doctor to help another patient or let you know what they're looking up. If it's distracting you then you could ask if it's something that can wait.

 

[VioletRose]

I agree with Jennifer. I was rude if it was a personal text that was not important (that being said, if their kid was super sick or smth urgent, I wouldn't mind... Drs are also humans with a life...). However, in most hospitals, Drs don't use pagers anymore, but get a text with the number to call back. It's also how they communicate amongst each other (Drs, nurses, residents, admin...). So it's very possible that it was work related, and instead of answering a page, they read the text...

 

[wondering]

Yup - would add that as someone in medicine, a lot is communicated via text. So when my phone vibrates it's hard for me to know if it's something urgent about a patient or a friend wanting to know if I want to meet up after work. I also use my phone a lot with patients as my hospital has an app that lets me pull up labs and other results. But I always explain why I'm looking at my phone.

 

[Dunbar]

Thanks guys. Now, a couple of suggestions, preferably witty? I am not the most politically correct person so what ever falls outta my mouth may not endear me to the man. ;-)