My car service center has a TV and thank Xenu it does!
I’m ambilvalent about the issue (in the real sense of “ambivalent”), but generally for me the pros of having a TV outweight the cons. Yes, it can be distracting. But if I’m enjoying my book or magazine, it’s not going to break my concentration. If I’m distracted, it’s because what I brought to read isn’t really hooking me right now or because my mind is too unsettled to read. Yes, the proliferation of AV into every damn aspect of our lives is irritating and worrisome to me on a nearly Orwellian scale. But the intrusion of snotty nosed (literally) bored kids who have nothing to keep them occupied and so bother and sneeze on me and my well kids is even worse. Yes, soaps, 700 Club and the morning chat shows are annoying as all get out. But sometimes I just need to zone out the anxiety I’m feeling if I’m really sick or I just can’t concentrate on reading (how many times have I read this same damn paragraph and it won’t get into my head!) and I like the distraction.
I think the best solution is to get some medical or health oriented programming. It doesn’t require massive brainpower, it’s not political, it’s not Disney, it serves a purpose other than selling cereal or plastic trinkets, and your patients may actually learn something.
One office I went to that was not a peditrician but, like you, sometimes had kids trailing in with their parents, had a little TV/VCR combo set low on a table in the corner, with a stack of Disney nearby. It was off most of the time, but if a kid came in, they were invited to pick something while mom or dad was in with the doctor. It seems a low TV is for some reason not as distracting as a high one in the corner of the room, and it wasn’t on all the time.
If the TV’s volume is reasonable, I can continue to read. And for some folks–like kids & nervous patients–reading is not an option.
Just–no FOX news. Please.
I’ve seen clinic waiting rooms where recycled jigsaw puzzles are available. Good for groups to work on, even if they don’t finish the puzzle. The next group can continue. Probably not for LITTLE kids, though. (These rooms have tables & chairs, as well as “comfy” chairs.)
My doctor’s office has something similar. The segments are short and fairly interesting and interspersed with medical trivia questions. While I always bring something to knit or read with me, I don’t mind it. I enjoy taking a shot at the trivia questions and I can tune it out if I’d rather do something else.
I don’t care one way or another, but when I had my cardiac stress test prior to my gastric bypass surgery, I was forced to watch “The Secret Garden” 7.3 times while completing the different cycles of the test. I love the story, but found it an odd video for them to have in an office where I figure I (at the age of 43) was probably the youngest patient there.
VCNJ~
What she (I think) said. Opiate of the masses and all that. (Yes, I know Marx meant religion, but it applies here as well, don’t you think?) The fewer blatting TVs over which I have no control, the better.
I am like other people here, I prefer to read when I wait. I would be distracted by a loud television but as long as it was put on low or mute (with closed captioning), or readers are able to move to another part of the waiting room to avoid it, I think it could be a benefit to the office. When I had a kidney stone a few months ago and had to go to the ER (I thought it was my appendix), I was glad the TV was there. I was in too much pain to read and looking at the screen (the volume was down to unhearable levels) helped relieve some of the anxiety I felt from waiting and thinking I was going to die. Don’t underestimate the psychosomatic benefit of pretty, flashing colors.
I don’t care for it, for many of the same reasons other people are giving: boring programming, volume too loud or too soft, no desire to see TV all the time. It also always makes me feel that I’m going to be waiting a long time. After all, a magazine you can flip through and put down when they call your name, but I figure they wouldn’t put up a TV if they didn’t expect you to be able to see a whole show. It also makes me feel low-class, which is maybe irrational, I know, but that’s the sense it gives me.
I also understand the practical need to keep children entertained/distracted. Could you get some of those cool colorful beads-on-wires things? Kids seem to like them. Heck, I wouldn’t mind playing with one myself…
If there is going to be a TV, I think showing family-friendly movies is a whole lot better than showing daytime TV, for sure, if you are concerned about inappropriate content for children. Most daytime TV will rot your brain …
Our current doctor’s office doesn’t really have anything at all in the waiting room, but somehow they manage to keep you from being in there for more than 10 minutes or so, so it’s generally not too bad. There are magazines in the exam rooms.
The previous doctor had one of those MedTVs. That wasn’t too bad, but I don’t know that children would find it interesting at all. They did have a small play area for kids, though.
Our vet has a VetMedTV and some books for kids. They used to have stuffed animals, but I was relieved the last time I went to see those weren’t there any more. It was hell trying to keep them out of the hound’s mouth!
I don’t like it. There’s enough TV around, and it’s not like kids need more. And I find it hard to get into my book if there’s a TV blinking at me.
My kids’ pediatrician’s office has a bead table and a fish tank. Every kid is always watching the fish tank; they love it. They especially love it that there are clown fish. I have yet to see a kid run around and misbehave in that office–they’re too busy watching the fish.
I have very fond memories of my own pediatrician’s waiting room–it had 3 old manual typewriters to play with. It was so great.
I think having a TV shows folks that waiting is the rule and that you are going to make them wait long enough to need a TV to occupy them.
That is the message it says to me, “you are going to be here a very long time”
I was once in the operating room of a dental surgeon who had a TV mounted above the chair. I was mildly distracted, which is what he intended. Then Oprah came on, talking about women boffing their tennis pros or some such thing. I got the doc’s attention. “If you don’t turn that off, I’m leaving.” He did, and he apologized.
I forgot about fish tanks. Fish tanks are much more awesome than TVs.
Also my old pediatric dentist’s office had three free-play video games. Those would be fun for kids without making it seem like they’re going to be able to watch an entire Disney movie while they’re in the waiting room. Loud, though.
I cannot stand television in public places. It’s very hard for me to ignore, especially if the sound is on. It’s a bit like smoking in restaurants. The preference of the smokers and the TV-watchers can’t help but affect the rest of us who would choose not to indulge.
Most doctors offices I have been to have a television on. Like others said, it is usually tuned to either 1) Soaps or 2) Family type movie. I say get the TV, but put it on some sort of childrens station (Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, etc.) that will play something that is good for children, not out-of-taste for those who might get offended, and okay for those who only have 20 minutes or so.
I personally enjoy reading the old Readers Digest and everything, but it is good for kids and believe it or not, it might keep some of the adults a little occupied.
A little side note that I didn’t see anyone else mention: Put on the Closed Captioning because the volume will probably be on the low end.
I find TV distracting and stress-inducing. Every time I go to a
ER/doc’s office/airport/mechanic waiting-room with one, I think, “wouldn’t they want people here to relax?” (Of course, I realise that some find it relaxing, but I’m not usually in a charitable mood in these situations)
At least in the super-markets, I understand why the TVs are. They (the mgmnt, not the TVs) just want people to buy.
The last time I was in the emergency room, I had a very bad bloody nose, so I had to keep my head somewhat elevated (which prevented me from reading anything comfortably). I was very grateful for having a TV in there because it helped me keep my mind off my nose and made the time go quicker, since the wait was rather long.
If the waiting room’s really crowded, I’m also glad for a TV because (1) it’s something to do if there’s no reading material available, and (2) hopefully, other people are more interested in TV than reading so there’s a better chance of having reading material available.
My doctor (actually a walk-in clinic with two excellent DOs) has a big-screen TV in their waiting room which they keep constantly tuned to… FOX NEWS.
For what it’s worth, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children watch no more than 1 to 2 hours of television a day and discourages television viewing for children younger than two years old. As a doctor’s office, you might want to be particularly sensitive to that.
Volume is key. Not blaring, but not too soft to hear. I also like the idea of a television sitting quite low to the floor. Easier to ignore. And if I had my choice, I’d want it tuned to a Discovery Channel / Animal Planet type station. Educational, but not normally offensive or stress-inducing (like news). However, I could not stand to work in an environment with a television on all day. My head would explode.
That said, I love love love aquariums. My OB had a big tank and it was great for everyone. Kids love it, I could totally zone out watching the fish. Of course, there’s more maintenance and care required for fish than videos.