Civilians still waiting for doctors

[unhappycamper]

Civilians still waiting for doctors
By Ashley Rowland, Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Saturday, May 17, 2008

SEOUL — Civilian employees still may be unable to get appointments at the 121st Combat Support Hospital, five months after the hospital began using a six-tiered system to determine priority for seeing patients during a staffing shortage, according to a news release from Army medical officials.

Civilians in the bottom tier are able to get 6 percent of the hospital’s appointments on a space-available basis and still cannot make allergy appointments, the release said.

Col. Gregory Jolissaint, commander of the 18th Medical Command, said in an interview on April 29 that all but new civilian patients were able to get appointments. The appointment backlog had eased after the hospital hired two new doctors and shuffled its current staff to high-demand areas, he said.

Patients who can’t get appointments are being sent to South Korean hospitals.

The backlog won’t increase during the summer, though there still will be waits for appointments at the dermatology; behavioral health; and ear, nose and throat clinics, according to the release issued Wednesday. Patients no longer must wait for appointments at the gynecology, obstetrics, neurology and podiatry clinics, the release said.


Rest of article at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=54850