In our city there is a MAJOR shortage of family doctors. My daughter is just little and I am tired of dragging her to clinics. Plus I wanted a consistent doctor for myself. So I begged a friend of mine who knows people in the medical profession to try to get me on a list somewhere, and she came through a couple of months ago with her sister-in-law who works in an office where a new doctor is starting in November. I’ll call this doctor Dr S. She is a young female doctor, which appeals to me as a mom with a little girl.
I hadn’t met the friend’s sister-in-law and details were a little sketchy about this new doctor, so I still kept my eyes & ears open. Right around that same time after making a few calls, I found out about a second new doctor coming to town starting in September, so I got on his list too. I’ll call him Dr K.
Dr K did interviews of prospective new patients to pick his patient list. We met him at the beginning of September. He is nice enough, but he is old, hard to understand, and also hard of hearing. My little girl didn’t like him, and to me he is okay but not fantastic. Plus he looks like he is going to retire any day! Anyway, he took us on as patients, and I have seen him once since, for my annual exam and to ask a couple of questions.
I have a follow-up appointment with him scheduled for next week to remove a troublesome but not worrisome mole, and he also referred me to a neurologist for a possible carpal tunnel issue, and sent me to the lab to get some blood work done.
Last week I heard from my friend’s sister-in-law and picked up the forms to become a patient of Dr S. While I was at that office, another office assistant asked me if I already had a family doctor - I said that I had seen Dr K once. She said “I’ll pretend you didn’t say that, because we are only taking patients who do NOT have a family doctor already.”
So now I don’t know what to do - do I see Dr K to follow up on the mole removal and bloodwork? Or is that wrong? Do I cancel and wait to see Dr S? If I start seeing Dr S, do I tell anyone there about Dr K or just leave him right off of my forms & paperwork? Do I owe Dr K an explanation or apology? He is VERY nice just … not what I’m looking for in a doctor. What if I am honest with Dr S and they refuse to take me as a patient?
I am just twisted up in knots over this. This mole has been bothering me for a year or more and now that I finally have the chance to get it removed (it’s big and deep and in a VERY awkward spot), I really want to get it over with. And I’m worried about lying to Dr S’s office - I don’t like to lie. But I’m also worried that if I’m honest, they won’t take me and my daughter as patients.
I’m looking for advice please! Thank you.