Answer the @#$%&*%#ING phone!

Dont you just HATE Medical offices that won't answer their phone?

"QUEST DIAGNOSTICS, HOW CAN I DIRECT YOUR CALL?" Just how hard would it be for them to pick up the phone and say that?

But, oh no. I let it ring for 10 minutes untill the system cuts me off, call back and let it ring for another 10 minutes, and just give up.

As I'm going out the door I tell the secretary I'm going over there because I can't get a call through.

"Oh," she says, "QUEST DIAGNOSTICS? They never answer their phone."

So I'm standing at the counter, paperwork in hand, and the receptionist is typing away. I'm watching the phone for 5 minutes waiting, and the lights blink. They go on. They go off. And the girl just ignores them. And NOTHING rings!

Finally she turns to me, and I look down. The light is blinking furiously. "Go ahead and answer your phone first." I say.

(No receptionist in the history of medicine has ever heard that phrase muttered, and she balks for a second. She's confused and almost reaches for the phone. Then she shakes her head.)

"We're not allowed to answer that phone. It's just for outgoing calls"

"Oh, well what's the number for incoming calls than?"

"Ummm...you have to call the 800 number in Sacramento. It's right there on your paperwork."

"I don't need to talk to Sacramento. I need to talk to you. AND I just DROVE 10 miles in rush hour traffic to do this, because you won't pick up the @#$%&*%#ING PHONE!"

(OK, I didn't actually shout "@#$%&*%#ING" in an office full of sick old ladies, but I made sure she knew I was thinking it.)