Our professional doctors?

Our professional doctors?

Recommended by a friend of my son, I went to an otorminolaryngologist (ear, nose and throat - THT - specialist) at a THT clinic run by a private foundation on Jl. Ciranjang, Kebayoran Baru, on Wednesday, July 24, 2002, in the evening.

When I confirmed on Wednesday morning -- by phone -- I was told by the receptionist that the specialist would be available at 7 p.m.

I arrived at the clinic at about 7 p.m. in the hopes that I could get early treatment. There were several patients sitting in the waiting room when I arrived.

After waiting for one hour, I got no guarantee if the would be available, and no one at the clinic could explain why the doctor had not yet appeared.

A nurse then told me that the doctor had finished surgery at 4 p.m. (on Wednesday), and that "he could be sleeping, now, so none of us (employees) would dare call him."

More surprisingly, she told me that the doctor's residence was just behind the clinic!

I decided to leave the clinic soon to get another specialist after I had waited for one hour without any explanation.

It made me start to wonder about the professionalism of such people. Isn't surgery a normal part of his professional responsibility, and aren't the patients at the clinic also his professional responsibility?

Why didn't the doctor at least try to let the waiting patients know why he failed to appear just to show his attention and responsibility to his patients? He could have simply asked somebody to let the clinic know why he was late.

While obviously ignoring the patients' time wasted waiting for him for at least one hour (without any explanation), the doctor has demonstrated his arrogance and negligence.

I would like to ask all doctors, especially those who consider themselves professionally established and well-off, to have more empathy for their patients.

Don't forget that your patients play significant roles in the life, or death, of your career.

SOERYO WINOTO, Tangerang, Banten