Appointment time v/s client time constraints

As the scheduler, it is very important that you support the client in understanding that they — and anyone else who wishes to be there— have to be present at the beginning of the time leeway given as their appointment time.

The agreement form states: “I understand that all persons who wish to be present for the procedure have to be present and ready at the beginning of the appointment time leeway I was given.” It goes without saying that this includes the person responsible for being there for the appointment.

It is important for you to be alert to any comments or concerns that the client voices to the effect that they might be “a little late”, that they have an appointment just before, that they have to drop off their kids, etc, etc, etc… If you hear the client saying anything to that effect, you must handle this concern and tell the client that he has to be there at the beginning of the hour leeway. If they say that “they’ll probably make it on time”, then tell them that it is safer to schedule (or reschedule if already scheduled) and that it is important for them to be there BY the beginning of their hour leeway. For example, if you schedule an 8AM and the client says that they have to drop off the kids or some such thing, tell the client that it is important for them to make arrangements so that they are able to be at their home on time or the doctor might have to leave. Tell the client that although it is possible that the doctor will get there later than the leeway given, the doctor strives to be on time so as not to delay his/her entire day, which would cause additional distress/waiting time for the next family. Never schedule an appointment at a time when the client has concerns that he might not be able to be there on time.

Also, I am copying a section of our “Scheduling guidelines”:

Scheduling when the client has time constraints or has an appointment after the euthanasia visit

Sometimes, a client will tell you that they have to be at another appointment right after the euthanasia visit. The best thing to do is to recommend to the family to schedule the appointment when they do not have any appointments scheduled immediately after as they will understandably be upset and that it would add to their stress to know they have to be somewhere else right after. However, in cases where it cannot be avoided, it is important to make sure that the client allows enough time for the visit and that they will not be worried with having to get somewhere else on time.

For Example: If the client has to be somewhere by 2pm, we cannot give them an appointment time of later than 11am (3 hours prior to their deadline) to be “safe” for the client and the doctor. If we give them an 11am that means the doctor may be there as early as 11am or as late as 12pm. They should allow at least 1 1/2 hours for the appointment (in case something takes longer than usual) so that they don’t feel rushed, plus what ever time they will need to get TO their appointment (perhaps 1/2 hour). To be safe, we should allow at least 3 hours between the appointment time and their engagement time (1 hour leeway plus 1 1/2 hours for the visit plus enough time for them to get where they need to go). However, please make it clear to the client that sometimes there can be unforeseen circumstances such as jammed freeways, accidents, etc… which means that it is possible that the doctor will be much later than anticipated and that they might be late for their later engagement. Ideally, they should not schedule the euthanasia visit when they have an engagement after the euthanasia.

Once a time is agreed upon, tell them the time slot and then let them know that the doctor will arrive within the 2 hours leeway as described above. Let them know that the doctor will be coming from other locations and sometimes there is more time needed for an earlier client or traffic conditions which can delay the doctor’s arrival. Make sure this leeway is really understood by the client and that rarely, due to unavoidable traffic situations, it could be more than the leeway given and if this happens, the doctor will keep them updated on the arrival time. You may need to repeat it a few times to make sure it is understood and that we eliminate possible upsets due to “the doctor being late”. They should not worry about lateness until after the leeway time given has elapsed. This relieves them of the stress or worry they may feel over the doctor not showing up or not arriving in the earlier part of the one hour slot.