Clarice Hong, MB BCh BAO

I was referred to Dr. Hong by my GP. One of the strangest experiences I’ve had with doctors — ironically with a counseling clinic. I called for an appointment primarily to get a prescription refilled. I was told to get there by 3:45 pm for a quick appointment because the doctor had a 4:00 pm appointment.
I arrived on time and checked in. During the check in, I was alerted that I would be charged a minimum of $ 200 for the appointment. There is a big sign at the reception with the rates — the first one says doctor counseling up to 1.5 hours is $ 200 — $ 400+. That collecting payment seemed like such a high priority for the office was the first red flag. I thought that $ 200 for asking someone to refill a prescription sounds pretty steep — so I asked the ~ 8 ladies behind the reception desk if I would be charged $ 200 for what was getting to be a very brief appointment because I was still waiting for the doctor and it was past 4:00 pm — and the doctor had another appointment at 4:00 pm. At this point, I thought that the doctor was «in the house» and just running over. They said they didn’t know, that it was a «hospital fee» — they said it in a way that sounded like they were making that up — and that the doctor would have to decide.
At 4:05 pm, it was clear that the doctor wasn’t even in the office. She suddenly blew into the office, as if on a broomstick, yodeled my name across the waiting room — like calling for a dog — without pausing or looking at me, flopped into her office while slamming the door. If she’s the one setting the tone for the office, I just didn’t think that this was going to be a good match, so I sheepishly followed her, peeked into her office and let her know that I’d decided to pass on the appointment. Dodged a bullet.