Unprofessional and unpleasant swiss doctors

Complaints Corner
21
That's how I introduced myself, so I don't know what people mean when they say it's maybe the way you approched them. I approched them as normal and educated people would do.

22
I can recommend Dr. Irene Bonsall, Basel. She is a GP, specialist in internal and general medicine. She speaks English, Russian, Swiss German, French, Spanish and also offers positive psychotherapy. Very nice and professional too!

23
Is this recommendation entirely unbiased Gary - you wouldn't be related by any chance

24
lol! She is my doctor and she is great !

25
When looking for dermatologists in Schaffhausen, I find this link

http://www.doktor.ch/hautaerzte/hautaerzte_k_sh.html

and that list shows only "expats"

26
Doctor is a profession where they are not taught customer service. Caring for a patient is a very individual attitude, may be you unfortunately bumped into someone rude. Sometimes the seriousness of the disease /treatment also dictates the attitude. A doctor dealing with emergency case would be more sympathetic towards his patient as against checking beauty marks.

Regarding allergies, you have to mention it aloud, people assume you are not allergic to anything unless you say so. I am now on gestational diabetes, I have to cross check myself if any newly prescribed pills will have any effect on my sugar levels . Though I visit the same doctor, it's human for them to forget

And I agree, it's a nightmare to receive surprise bills.. but you can't really argue with a doctor over his charges, can you?

The lawyers, Notariats all do the same!!

27
'Customer service' aka 'bedside manner', verbal and body language during a consultation, etc, is very much part of the UK medical schools curriculum, especially during the 3 compulsory years of GP training. But agreed, it is not in most parts of the world, including Switzerland.

28
All our doctors in Basel were wonderful.

29
Erm... that is a bad idea if you end up in hospital and the docs there call this doctor, asking him about your allergies - and he doesn't know, they give you the wrong med and you have a reaction

You really should get an allergy pass to carry on you at all times. But you will need a doctor to give you one with his stamp on it, so you will have to tell a doctor about your allergy.

On another point, what will you do if one day you collapse someplace e.g. because of an infection, paramedics pick you up and give you meds containing the allergenic agent? You won't be able to read the components on the box while you're unconscious...

30
The reason they cannot tell you the price of the bill is that you are billed for the doctor's time and any procedure they perform. Each procedure has a specific cost, so without knowing what procedures are performed they cannot calculate the cost. The first medical bill is quite surprising when you see how detailed it is and how much everything costs!! I would expect to pay at least 60 CHF for a GP visit any maybe 100 CHF for a specialist.

My GP hates the paperwork that comes with the models which require a referral - it's not my fault that that's the way of the system and how I can obtain cheaper premiums, but it can make him quite grumpy. If you don't have a health insurance model that requires you to have a GP referral, just go directly to your specialist.

31
I must say I do find that Swiss doctors tend to be allergic to doing allergy tests for people... they will either guestimate what you have or tell you that you dont have one...

32
I am allergic to penicillin and never would dream about not mentioning this when I see a new doctor or dentist. IMHO that's the lowest degree of self-responsibility an adult patient should show. After all the patient is the only person who has to live with possible mistakes.

33
Don't lose heart. I have sampled a good number of doctors in Switzerland by now (gynecologists, pediatricians, eye doctors, etc.) and they really vary. One has been just terrible, most have been okay, a few have been wonderful. I have found that, for me, seeing a doctor who works as part of a group is the best option, perhaps because they are more accustomed to discussions or perhaps because their English tends to be better-I'm not sure.

It is true, though, that you need to look around and find what works for you. Also, I disagree that doctors can't provide rough estimates-I have asked and gotten them from several doctors. They've been rough (two-fold) but pretty accurate within that range. Of course, if something very unusual happens, all bets are off.

34
I also had the same problem here in Switzerland which i posted a thread about.

My experience was horrible with my GP, and told me i was wasting his time and that there was nothing wrong with me. When i asked for a referral and for him to fill out my insurance form he became very frustrated.

I was unsure if this was normal for Switzerland as i had just moved here.

I wonder if we went to the same doctor

Anyway, i also had a referral to a dermatologist and she was lovely so if you would like her details, send me a mail.

35
Not fun when you don't have a good experience, but it's not the case that "Swiss Doctors" are unprofessional and unpleasant. People are, at times, and you've had an unfortunate experience.

I wish that I could send you to my GP in Lutry! I've been seeing him for 10 years. I still go even though I now live in Lucerne! He speaks English and French and takes all the time necessary to understand your history and your needs. In fact, it can be annoying to go to him because he is never on time. His prices are reasonable too. Although I've never asked in advance how much treatments cost, I've never been "shocked".

I have 2 Chiropractors (Morges and Luzern) and both are awesome and polite. Same is true for my dentist and my OB is a sweet-heart.

I have to say that compared to my US experiences where I've often felt "rushed" and only half heard, my doctors here are superb!

Don't lose heart, keep looking and get some recommendations!

Good Luck!!

36
I bet these doctors didn't have a microwave either!

37
As with any experience, if something constantly happens to you that doesn't seem to happen to others you have to examine the common denominator of these problems...

38
just as well, else they'd have even fewer doctors!

39
Nice post and frankly this could be applied to just about anything expats complain about...Just loop it

I have noticed perhaps a cultural nuance to medicine en Suisse...I have gotten the impression that patients and, by extension, physicians are not accustomed to being queried to the extent they can be in the US...Not that physicians are averse to it but that it's not likely the norm

And just like in the US, to find a physician that suits your taste, you have to 'shop around'...Some are less warm & fuzzy which is similar to the US but Suisse trained docs, IMHO, are largely quite competent

40
How did you choose which physicians to visit? Did you do any research before scheduling the appointments? Review of online resources, asking friends/ neighbors/co-workers, etc. can help identify a doctor who is more likely to meet your expectations.

Also, it may be wise to ask about the education/training that a doctor has had; i.e. if you are accustomed to US doctors, perhaps you should try one here who has been educated or trained in the US.

In the end, though, choosing a doctor is sorta like dating. You go out with someone, you find that that person is boring, or chews with his/her mouth open, or only talks about him/herself, or has whatever quality that turns you off. You simply don't go out with that person again, or you decide that the qualities that are bothersome are outweighed by other good qualities. However, you can't discern all that without spending some time with the person in question.