Craig Rosenbaum | July 12, 2018 | Medical Malpractice
Going to doctor is not decision that most in New York make lightly. You likely spend a day in bed when you feel sick, hoping that the rest will allow your body to combat whatever illness you have. Only if rest and over-the-counter medications do not work do you typically then schedule a doctor’s appointment. During that visit, your expectation should be that the doctor will dedicate all the time that is needed to correctly diagnose your condition and begin treatment. It is for this very reason why many come to us here at confused as to why their doctor visits were so brief.
Information shared in Medscape’s 2016 Physician Compensation Report showed that most doctors (between 40-41 percent) spent only an average of 13-20 minutes with their patients. That statistic may seem shocking, given that during that time, a doctor should ask questions about your medical history, conduct a thorough review of your body systems, order (and analyze) diagnostic tests, and then arrive at a diagnosis. Effectively accomplishing all of that in such a short time frame certainly seems difficult.
Granted, not every case a doctor sees is life-threatening, yet your provider should still treat yours with the utmost importance. Some might argue that doctors may cut visit times short due to large patient volumes, yet patient care should not be influenced by such a factor. If your doctor does not give you the attention you need because he or she has to run to see other patients, he or she could easily give you a misdiagnosis, which could contribute to much greater problems. Your angst (and anger), then, may be understandable should your condition not improve (or even deteriorate) following your visit.
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If you’ve been injured in an accident in Manhattan, NY, and need legal help, contact our New York City medical malpractice lawyers at Rosenbaum & Rosenbaum, P.C. to schedule a free consultation.
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