I had knee surgery scheduled for yesterday afternoon. I got to the hospital, got registered, got prepped, got my IV, then waited. And waited. And waited.
Then I waited some more.
Then they closed the pre-op ward, and told me they were going to roll me out into the hallway and leave me there to wait for surgery, because they were all going home for the day.
The hell you are.
My doctor was running late all afternoon, and the surgery before mine became very complicated. They couldn’t estimate when he’d be done, and by that time it was almost 6:00 pm (my surgery was scheduled for 2). I hadn’t eaten all day, my tension level was very high, my patience was at an end. I asked them nicely to give me my clothes back and remove my IV.
My doctor called me this morning. He was very apologetic, explained what I referenced above, and assured me he didn’t overbook (when the nurse tried to persuade me to stay and wait, I grumbled something about overbooking), and asked if we could reschedule. I told him I’d let him only if I was the first case of the day. He greed.
Wow, that really, really sucks. I guess it happens, though - I mean, if the surgery before yours took a turn for the worse, it’s not like there’s much the doctor could have done. Surgery is unpredictable.
But leaving you prepped and waiting in the hallway? The pre-op staff goofed, big time. If they knew the doc was running that late and it might still be a very long wait before your turn, why in the world wouldn’t they tell you, and give you the option to reschedule and go home? That’s just ridiculous.
I’ve left doctors’ offices when I waited more than 45 minutes for my appointment (my reasoning is, if you’re going to charge me for being late for an appointment, I get to leave and get my co-pay back if you’re running late) but I’ve never had to leave from a surgery.
I’m glad you raised all kinds of holy hell…that’s just ridiculous.
Yeah, it happens, and I totally understand. I didn’t make a scene or yell or anything like that, but I made it clear that 1) I’d waited long enough, 2) my patience was expired, and 3) If I didn’t get out of there I was heading toward a meltdown. All true, and I wasn’t apologetic about it. Hours of sustained stress and anxiety, plus being hungry (no food since Sunday night), plus a healthy dose of WTF??? pushed me past my limit.
When I talked to the doc this morning, I told him my side of the story, that I understood he couldn’t abandon or rush his surgery, that I wouldn’t want that, and that I also made the decision that I didn’t want him working on my knee at the end of an alread very long day of surgery. I said something to the effect of “Listen, I understand you guys all think you’re superman with the stamina and all that, but I want you fresh and well rested when you cut me.”
And to be honest, I was already thinking about drawing a line in the sand before they proposed leaving me in the hallway.
Yipes, that sucks. I would’ve done the same thing*. I once was almost in a situation like that when I had surgery as wee thing: my 10 AM surgery didn’t start until about 4 PM. My parents were apparently like you were (I was too young and scared to really get it): understanding, but still pissed.
