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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]This morning I was at a radiology center waiting to be called back for an MRI.  When I arrived I noticed an elderly woman in a wheelchair who was with an older man (but not nearly as old as her) who had just gotten out of a nursing home shuttle. The elderly woman was still being checked in when I sat down after doing my check in process.

Once I sat down I began to hear the employee behind the counter asking the elderly woman some medical history questions. The man who was with her clearly did not know her well, so I assume he was a volunteer or something who was helping get this woman to this appointment. The elderly woman could not hear well at all so the employee had to stand up to look over the counter at her in the wheelchair and speak very loudly. The questions she was asking included, "how old were you when you started your period?", "how old were you when you began menopause?", "when did you get your hysterectomy", "how old were you when your first child was born?", "when were you first diagnosed with breast cancer?", etc. The employee repeated these questions 4-5 times each and even suggested some answers/age ranges. The elderly woman in the wheelchair was giggling nervously and apologetically while shaking her head quietly repeating "I am 93 years old". The man was doing great trying to help her but also was like a deer in headlights.

It was an uncomfortable situation for all involved - employee, helper man, patient, people in the waiting room, etc., and nobody's dignity was respected. I feel like they could have taken her to anther room, or just put "NA" in the answers or even better - the facility or family member or what have you who scheduled the appointment could have answered these questions online beforehand like I always do before my mamo. This certainly doesn't seem like best practices for the facility, but I am also not totally familiar with medical center protocol and also wonder if there were some HIPAA issues there. Thoughts?

[/quote]

Those aren't questions that a receptionist should be asking.  I'd reach out to management[/quote]

You've obviously never been in breast cancer land (fortunately for you). This sounds exactly like the stupid questionnaires they make you fill out before every exam, never mind that it's all in MyChart. Normally the receptionist just gives it over on a clipboard but if the person was having trouble reading it or filling it out, or if the office computerized it, those are exactly the kind of questions they'd be asking.

This behavior sounds absolutely par for the course with my experiences at many medical offices. At Hopkins Medical Imaging it is practically like a locker room with women sitting around in robes waiting to be called, and then the assistant sometimes comes out and asks you questions or gives you the results right there where everyone else can hear. "Mrs. Smith? Here is your mammogram letter, we'll send it to Dr. Johnson's office as well, and they want you to come back for another ultrasound for that complex cyst on your right breast in six months, okay?" [/quote]

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