So... two months later.....

I have been fighting with my doctors office on how to correctly do a referral for two months now. First, he just forgot to do it, then they didnt know how.... then they argued with me about how to do it correctly...
I call today just to see.... has it actually been done. They have made a referral to the Weight management Clinic insttead. I have told both the doctor and the receptionist that it was not the right way, I provided them with the instructions on how to do it, and even gave them the number to call to ask questions. The recptionist kept telling me i was wrong and that this is the way it is done.....

In any case, I am sitting in a file at the WMC at the Ottawa Hospital. The lovely lady there told me that now I wait to get an appointment there and then I can tell them to do the referral...... what a huge mess. I can see why people who dont have the fight, just give up.
Does anyone know how long it takes to get an appointment there? I am assuming I will not see anyone for another month or two at least since they just received the referral on August 17th.

i don't know how long its going to take for you. I just wanted to wish you luck, and i hope this moves quickly. Good luck.

Thanks

Honestly, I am not happy about any of this and think it is complete incompentence on my doctors part- however, I am just happy to be moved somewhere. I know it isnt right, but it is better than what he has done for the past two months!

It's incredibly incompetent, but yes, look on the bright side, at least you're going somewhere. I fought with my doctor for two years, to even send the referral in, he was dead set against me having surgery at all. I finally had to go behind his back, and get a referral from another doc that was covering the office.

took me close to a year to get my first appointment that was about 3 years ago i guess
 after i got the first call this is how it went..

January 14 2011 - Orientation at WMC
February 2 2011- Bariatric Nurse
April 6 2011- Dietician,Behaviorist and Dr Wicklum
May 18 2011- Gastroscopy
May 25 2011 - Sleep test (again)
June 1 - WLS Class
June 7- Surgeon Dr Yelle
June 13- Starting Optifast
July 4 - Surgery

Yes, I know the wait times are almost a year for the Bariatric surery, but this is just a straight referral to see Dr Dent. Then, I will have to ask them to do the referral to the Registry....
Just wondered if anyone who went this "wrong" route, knew how long it took to see Dr Dent thru the WMC, not as a surgical patient.

didnt take me very long to get in to the see the other doctor i forget her name.

maybe be a month or 2 but no longer

Thanks to all of you..... our health system is great if you advocate for yourself.... otherwise you really do fall thru the cracks sometimes :)
I appreciate reading all of your stories and experiences!

Dr. Dent was the person *****fered me to the registry.  I was already a patient of his so I have no idea how much that affected my timeline.

I called in June and got an appointment July 8th.  He referred me then and I had my orientation in Ottawa August 28th.

Once you get your appointment with Dr. Dent let me know and I will suggest to you the things to say so he will refer you.  

 I had the same problem. I asked my doctor to refer me and he said that I had to get myself put on the national registry. I asked him in October of 2010 and again in March of 2011. I kept telling him that he had to do it and he said I was wrong. Proves that just because he has a medical degree, he is not actually smarter than me. LOL! In April of 2011 I got married and moved to another city and luckily my husband's doctor agreed to take me as a patient. He referred me right away. 

Be assertive and stand up for yourself. Good luck :)