Punctuality

People, if I could give you one piece of advice, it would be this: BE ON TIME.  Better yet, be early.

Whether it's for a date, a doctor's appointment, Sunday school, or a midterm, punctuality could be considered one of the most important factors in your life.  There is a reason that doctors' offices charge fees for no-shows.  Your professor may accept that paper 2 days late, but trust me, he's not going to grade it as kindly as the others.  And when was the last time you had a second date with someone who was an hour late the first time?

Here's the thing - you may not think it's a big deal to be late, but how do you feel if someone is wasting your time?  Being late is like wasting someone else's time.  And chances are, they value that time.  I know I do.  And you, wasting that time?  That is not simply rude.  It's disrespectful.  It is NOT okay.  It IS a big deal.

What is fueling this rant?  Let me tell you:
I usually do not see patients on Fridays.  I get to the office somewhere between 9:30 and 10, and finish up the paperwork for the week, and go home.  I have available slots for patients, but the sonographers are usually busy with emergent cases on Friday, so the we try to avoid scheduling routine things (like people who see me,) on Fridays.  Because of the holidays, our schedule has been extremely full this week.  And next week.  And the week after New Years.  Basically, I'm booked solid until February.  So when the scheduler called me on Tuesday to ask about adding a Friday patient this week, I said I'd be happy to do it.  Put her in at 8:45.
Except that I had my own appointment at 8:00.  As part of the package at my new dentist's, they scheduled me for an orthodontics consult at 8am on Friday.  So I called the dentist's office and explained, and asked if I could reschedule.  Their receptionist said it was no problem, I should be done and out by 8:30.  So I kept it.
As fate would have it, I also had a patient scheduled for 9:30 on Friday, so I stayed at the office until 6:00 on Thursday evening, making sure I had everything in place for the morning, and no one would have to wait on me.  I got to the dentist's 20 minutes early to fill out paperwork, and reminded them of my time constraints.  Again, they said it would be fine.  I didn't get into the chair until 8:15, so I told the lady who brought me back that I had to leave by 8:30.  No problem.
Well, the ortho finally pops in at about 8:27 and starts looking at my mouth.  We very briefly touch on possibly doing braces, and she was about to talk about night guards (because I clench my jaw,) when she was called away.  I sat and waited until 8:40, and finally just got up.  I explained the situation to the person at the desk (who was not anyone I'd talked to prior.)  Apparently, after the consult, she was supposed to be meeting with me to talk about pricing and insurance coverage, but I told her to email me, and I left.
Sidenote: The orthodontist was actually working on another patient this whole time.  There was someone actually getting a procedure done at the same time as my appointment, and she was just supposed to pop in to see me while the gel was setting.  Seriously, not okay.
So, by the time I get into my car to go to work, it's 8:45.  I get to work, run across the parking lot, and get into my office at 9:00, already rehearsing my apology to my patient...
Bitch didn't show up.
So this patient, who so desperately needed to see me that she couldn't wait the two weeks for a more convenient appointment, stood me up.
I just compromised my own health care for someone else's, and they don't even have the damn courtesy to call in and cancel.
And to add insult to injury, my 9:30 patient didn't show either.

So seriously, people.  Be on time.  Have some fucking courtesy.  And show a little respect for the human beings who are generously waiting on you to keep up your end of the bargain.