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And you call to make an appointment and you're talking to the secretary at some big HMO and you don't know this person. And they ask, 'What is the appointment about?' Do you explain your embarassing / personal condition to this person? If now, what can you say instead?

2006-12-13 10:45:37 · 8 answers · asked by pamgissa 3 in Health Other - Health

I mean, what if you're going in for impotence - or something like schizophrenia - or anything that you just don't want to talk about with a stranger.

2006-12-13 10:49:03 · update #1

8 answers

I have been a medical secretary for 9 years.
We have heard it all.
Trust me.
We do need to know the nature of what your appointment is about so we can schedule enough time for you and that the doctor has some sort of idea what the situation is beforehand. Docs don't like walking into a room with a patient blindsided.
Whether it is a psychiatric, gynocological, intestinal whatever... we really don't have the time to ponder over it. We don;t care. We are just doing our job the way the Dr requests. If you really don;t want to share your problem just request a physical and you will have a 30 minute appointment bocked out for you. So don't worry.

2006-12-13 10:56:20 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 2 0

It depends why you're calling the HMO. If you need to get permission to see a particular type of doctor, say it as directly as possible so it'll be more likely to get approved. Instead of "I'm having some personal issues," you say, "Ever since my stroke, I haven't been able to maintain an erection." Then, you will get approval to see the urologist.

If you're calling trying to figure out what doctor to see, that's also an important time to be specific. You'll get better results saying something like, "I'm having trouble getting out of bed in the morning, I feel so depressed." Instead of "I need to talk to someone."

Stick to the facts - your symptoms, for example.

Sometimes, they don't need the specifics. For example, if I am calling to see my doctor, I might say the appointment is about a "skin issue" instead of saying that I'm worried I might have genital warts!

I used to work for an HMO so I had to ask plenty of these direct questions. If you're really talking to a professional (a nurse/social worker) just know that they've heard it all! I always appreciated the people that would say straight up what was going on. If you act like you're not embarrassed, the person on the other end won't be embarrassed either.

It makes it much worse if the person has to ask you question after question to figure out what's really going on. That's when it really gets embarrassing.

2006-12-13 19:07:00 · answer #2 · answered by gusnfos 2 · 0 1

They need to know what you want to be seen for so that they can plan the doctors schedule accordingly. If you need to be seen for a sore throat (strep) they will allot you maybe 10 minutes. If you need to be seen for depression, they will give you more time.

If you need to be seen by a specialist (impotence = urologist for example) you should make appointments with those clinics there personally.

You are talking about the medical industry... full of professional people. What ever you are needing to be seen for can't be nearly as embarrasing as what the next person needs to be seen for.

They have seen/heard it all. Just call.

2006-12-13 18:58:57 · answer #3 · answered by Laurie D 4 · 0 0

Just say you're going in for a check up or a physical. The only person that needs to know the specifics about your appointment is the doctor.

2006-12-13 18:51:22 · answer #4 · answered by quatrapiller 6 · 0 1

you cant. Just be honest and tell her about your SMALL problem. But i dont think HMOs cover those kinds of treatments

2006-12-13 18:49:50 · answer #5 · answered by the great 2 · 0 1

You can just say:
It is personal and kind of embarrising, I'd rather not tell. They should respect your privacy, if not, you should talk to your doctor and tell his Secretary to please respect the patient, and to tell him/her that it is personal.
Good Luck!
~Fashion Queen

2006-12-13 18:50:51 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0 1

i would say little as i can. if its a female problem just say female problem if they persist, tell them its very personal.

2006-12-13 18:49:09 · answer #7 · answered by avalon123 4 · 0 1

when you think you are having difficulties with life.

2006-12-13 18:47:57 · answer #8 · answered by µMeGA WaTT 3 · 0 1

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