Comments on All Ears: Cellphones in Medical Offices

I work in a medical office and I think this is a g...

2009-07-08T20:45:13.739-04:00

I work in a medical office and I think this is a great idea!!! My boss has this saying...."Don't complain unless you have a solution" and my man you have a solution! lol Unfortunately, the
reality of it is, the thought process of anyone who would excuse themselves during a medical exam to answer their phone may not get what you are doing.

Gotta play devil's advocate here. My last oncologi...

2008-12-01T19:17:00.000-05:00

Gotta play devil's advocate here. My last oncologist visit, my dr. twice paused to answer his cell. The second was to confirm where his family was going out to eat later in the week. Between calls when we discussed my stuff, he twice looked at his watch. Time is precious especially at the cancer clinic.I understand that. But it goes both ways. NO CELL PHONES ON BOTH SIDES OF THE EXAM TABLE PLEASE!!

poor poor doctor. your ego is huge. quit crying an...

2008-06-12T18:34:00.000-04:00

poor poor doctor. your ego is huge. quit crying and just do your job like the rest us. Buck up !

I don't think either patient or doctor should answ...

2006-02-14T20:55:00.000-05:00

I don't think either patient or doctor should answer a cell phone when with talking to each other. All business and professional life can be structured so this is not necessary. It is simply an affront to the other person present. If the other person's phone rings, I ask them to call the person back later (before they answer). If they answer, I leave with no explanation (they should know), unless my total livihood depends on it (which it almost never does).

To a very large extent answering cell phones reflects poor personal and organizational management, so I have little respect for those who answer their phones in a conference.

Well, if doctors would spent more than 2 minutes a...

2006-02-14T11:22:00.000-05:00

Well, if doctors would spent more than 2 minutes and 30 seconds in the exam room and actually listen to patients maybe more patients would silence their phones. Personally, I think making the doctor wait is a nice change. Especially, considering the amount of money we patients pay to be forced to wait for that 2 minute appointment.

I am a nurse working at a large teaching hospital ...

2006-01-25T16:24:00.000-05:00

I am a nurse working at a large teaching hospital where, for the first time in my 26 year career, I am required to carry a cellphone at all times. It certainly cuts down on the running around trying to find people but it seems to me that patients might resent the interruption when we are discussing something important and possibly hard to talk about, ie end of life issues or something as simple as bowel status and problems patients might be having with that. There is also the issue of how to answer the thing when I'm in an isolation room. There is no way to change gloves before answering it and I'm unsure if cleaning with alcohol or other preparations are really effective at killing VRE or MRSA. I agree with the writer. Doctors are just as obnoxious as any other group of people when it comes to cellphones. They also have a very long history of demanding that nurses drop whatever they are doing, no matter what it is, to attend to whatever it is they want. So, on the matter of interruptions, I score most MD's with a "check minus" as the nuns used to say.

Cell phone misuse can take place on the other side...

2006-01-24T22:34:00.000-05:00

Cell phone misuse can take place on the other side of the stethoscope as well. My husband was in an appointment with his cardiologist, the first one after a 3-day hospitalization that resulted from an intractable nosebleed caused by coumadin whose dosage had not yet been stabilized. The MD was interrupted twice in the 15 min. appt. by his cell, and took the calls from the garage where his BMW was being buffed. We changed doctors, but I hope the practice managed to get this young man back on track before they get sued.