I HATE going to the Doctor More Than Ever Now

Yesterday marked my third visit to Primary care in a three month period.  I'm averaging about once a month.  April was the whole irregular heartbeat thing.  A few weeks ago, I dropped a maglight on my foot.  Yesterday I went to have my horribly swollen and disfigured tonsils checked out.  As if my hatred of being sick and going to the doctor weren't enough incentive to have a healthier home stretch of 2004, it was my experience with the doctor that makes me want to tough out everything I can or just get in the car and drive home for healthcare.  For starters, the doctor was a jackass.  He asked me two questions (do you have allergies...actually, he just looked at me and said "Allergies?" and asked me how long my throat has been swollen) and glanced into my throat before curtly announcing "Not strep."  He tried to give me ceclor twice, which I'm fatally allergic to and acted like it was some big problem when I told him I couldn't take ceclor.  He not so nicely asked me what the big problem with ceclor was and I told him "it'll kill me!"  And after I told him that, he asked me if I'd taken it before.  So I told him that yes I took it and yes, I had to go to the hospital.  Then there's long silence and then he tells me the medicines he's giving me-a decongestent, ceclor for the throat infection...I didn't even hear what the third one was because I interrupted him to once again tell me not to give me ceclor.  So, to recap this doctor's visit...in the five minutes or less I was there he didn't answer any of my questions, repeatedly tried to give me a drug that makes me have to get medical attention as to not die, and treated me like I was wasting his time. 

And Now That I Think about It, Pharmacies Aren't That Great Either

While I'll never be able to hate the pharmacy as much as the doctor's office, I'm no longer as fond of it as I used to be.  Last night was the first time I used CVS instead of Wal-Mart.  With Wal-Mart, no matter how early in the day you call in a prescription, once you get there to pick it up, the wait is always an hour.  I swear the first half hour is to make you want to buy more stuff and that second is to show you who is boss.  I don't like the pharmacist at Wal-Mart either!  And once the medicine is ready, I mean the requisite 60 minute wait time has passed, there is never anyone behind the counter to ring up the purchase.  So figuring in the 5-10 minutes it takes for someone to acknowledge your presence, followed by the next 5 or so minutes required to find the prescription from the rack of bags, and then the checkout procedure, we're closing in on 90 minutes to get a prescription that was called in 6 hours earlier.  So, last night I got a clue and had my stuff sent to CVS, which is a bit sunnier.  The rude pharmacist was replaced by a cute, floppy haired rx tech.  I didn't leave the store with the usual burning desire to boil my hands (see references to "That Unclean Feeling" from being in Wal-Mart).  A lady did, however, break wind in my general direction as she walked by (a major wtf moment). 

Between the doctor's office and the pharmacy, I now have even more incentive to never be sick again.