The Waiting Game: Doctor Appointments Have Never Felt So Long

 Gursimran Vasir                                                      2/11/2026

Science Writing Seminar

The Waiting Game: Doctor Appointments Have Never Felt So Long

I pledge my honor that I have abided by the Stevens Honors System.

I am all too accustomed to the doctor's office song and dance. Appointment at 1:30, you see the doctor finally at 1:55, and they are done with you by 2:01. Then you go to schedule the follow-up appointment, and they tell you the next availability is May…today, February 8th. Of course, this isn't just the experience with my primary health care, but dentist, optometrist, allergist, orthopedist, dermatologist, you name it, and I am not the only one. Fifty-three percent of physicians note that their patients are waiting over 20 minutes before being seen(1).

Software Advice Column found that twenty-three percent of patients have walked out of an office before ever being seen. This is not the fault of the individual doctors but rather the overall healthcare system. Doctors are assigned to see 20 to 35 patients per day, each for about 10 to 15 minutes. (2). That can be up to 525 minutes or 8.75hours of patient time, and one patient even going a minute over creates a snowball effect on later in the day patients. This high patient roster is a lingering symptom of the healthcare staff shortage; both doctors and nurses are in higher demand than those graduating with the appropriate degrees. Simultaneously medicare has had a reimbursement drop of more than 33 percent since 2001 one putting hardship on private practices, leading them to close (1). This puts a greater burden on other doctors, increasing their rate of burnout. 

Another reason for the doctor shortage is the rising costs of medical schools, making it unaffordable for many to attend (same). Some even take out loans just to apply, with each application costing 40 dollars plus 160 for administrative tests. (3). Some schools even send out secondary applications that can cost up to 150 additional dollars, with the average student applying to 16 to 20 schools, which can sum to upwards of 3,000 dollars.  (4) This is just one of the many financial burdens to even participate in the application process, excluding exam prep, textbooks, and the cost of living without full-time employment. 

For those who can afford the process and complete the degree, put yourself in the shoes of Dr.Ilana Yurkiewicz, who calucutes he is supposed to complete 26.7 hours of work in just one day. Aside from seeing patients, doctors spend hours reading and filling out paperwork to provide the best care. He writes about fights with insurance companies on the phone, digging through medical records, discussing cases with other doctors, fand illing out countless forms just to get one prescription. Some are essential to the job, like discussion, but many of these tasks are roadblocks that he fights just to deliver medication or set up a surgery. This is all done in between patients, once again increasing the next patients' wait time. Doctors currently only get paid for their time during visiting hours and must then fit all this work within the schedule or take it out of their weekends. The fewer doctors in the system increases their workload and our waiting time. 

These waiting times are more than just an annoyance; they can severely impact the care provided to patients. In severe cases, longer wait times can increase mortality and cause illnesses to progress to states where they have longer-term impacts. Forty-six percent of 35 to 44-year-olds have walked out due to longer wait times, which can increase their time till diagnosis, leading to secondary health impacts, including anxiety and increased organ stress(2).

Take the story of one tenant, Victoria Holmes, who could not get an appointment for four months. She spoke about traveling back to her hometown of Dallas, Texas, from Washington DC because she was referred to see a neurologist for her headache and could not get an appointment. Her symptoms and anxiety got worse, resulting in her booking the trip just to get seen (5). In her case, she was able to afford the trip, but for many otherss they cannot take the time off nor afford to travel and are forced to wait with their symptoms until an availability opens. 

The wait time within healthcare happens both in the office, once you arrive, and the time it takes to book a follow-up or see a specialist. This is a universal issue amongst all sectors of the field and can lead to detrimental health impacts. Wait time is a problem that needs to be tackled through rearranging the internal health care system, such as making medical school more accessible, and lowering the hoops doctors must jump through in order to fill out prescriptions and move on to their next patients. 

As patients and voters, we can consider the physician shortage when it comes to electing officials. The AMA Recovery plan for American Physicians outlines many ways in which the shortage can be tackled from a legislative perspective. While this isn't the full fix, it can be a step in the direction of shorter wait times and shorter time between appointments, and may just save your life in the future(6). We can also take this as a sign to get seen as early as possible. To combat the long wait times when you experience a symptom, try to book appointments sooner rather than later and stay up to date with routine visits. They are the best method to catch things early before they require immediate attention. It is important to think about the choices as an individual you can make to overcome the current issues and as a voter to fix them from a legislative perspective. 

Citations

1-Oliverez, Manny, et al. “Why Your Patient Wait Time Is a Problem & How to Fix It.” CaptureBilling.Com - Medical Billing Services, 28 Feb. 2021, capturebilling.com/why-your-patient-wait-time-is-a-problem-how-to-fix-it/. 

2-Gifford, Melissa. “Why Do You Wait so Long at the Doctor’s Office?” PartnerMD, PartnerMD, 7 July 2025, www.partnermd.com/blog/why-do-you-wait-so-long-at-doctors-offices. 

3-jk2060. “The Hidden Costs of Medical School.” Georgetown Today, 19 Nov. 2021, today.advancement.georgetown.edu/health-magazine/2019/hidden-costs-medical-school/. 

4-Shemmassian, Dr. “How Many Medical Schools Should I Apply to? Which Ones?” Shemmassian Academic Consulting, Shemmassian Academic Consulting, 11 Feb. 2026, www.shemmassianconsulting.com/blog/how-many-medical-schools-should-i-apply-to. 

5-4, Sep. “Bruce Scott, MD, on Why Patients Are Having Difficulties Getting Doctor Appointments.” American Medical Association, 4 Sept. 2024, www.ama-assn.org/press-center/ama-speeches/bruce-scott-md-why-patients-are-having-difficulties-getting-doctor. 

6-Ehrenfeld, Jesse M. “We Know How to Overcome Medicine’s Crisis. Let’s Find the Will.” American Medical Association, 25 Oct. 2023, www.ama-assn.org/about/leadership/we-know-how-overcome-medicine-s-crisis-let-s-find-will.