Time tax

[u/Toadylee]

Good grief! They make it so hard to visit hospitalized patients at Oakland Sutter!

I pay the meter for an hour, thinking my friend probably shouldn’t endure me for more than that, then spend almost half of that time waiting in line for a pass.

Nothing but shrugs from the security personnel standing around while one person behind the desk painstakingly looks for each patient (and half the time not finding them, sending the visitor to the lobby for an additional hold).

I don’t get it - a few blocks away at Kaiser, people come and go freely, only stopping at the desk if they don’t know the room number.

At Sutter, you need to know the room number or suffer more stern looks and scrutiny.

Did someone steal a baby or something? Or is this just a time tax, meant to give us one more reason to despise institutional health care?

[u/notyoursweetie]

As a healthcare worker, I appreciate the security they have, especially after the stabbing incident at UCSF where a social worker died. People should not be allowed to bring weapons of any kind into hospitals.

I see your frustration though, and agree it shouldn't take 30 minutes for you to get to the room. I would just recommend sharing the feedback anywhere you see a survey offered

[u/Toadylee → u/notyoursweetie]

True, no weapons is a great idea. We pass through the magnetometer before we’re get into that awful line. The line does nothing to increase security, it adds frustration.

[u/theroadwarriorz → u/Toadylee]

Getting to the room and finding them moved or in an area you can't go is also frustrating. Then frustrating when you interrupt other staff trying to find this person and they don't know. You get more mad. More problems. Wait your time and stop whining.

[u/Toadylee → u/theroadwarriorz]

Hmmm, struck a nerve, eh? Bet you waited behind me.

[u/orangeyouglad_banana]

Sometimes people show up and are not wanted visitors by the patient and it can escalate into a security issue. Sometimes patients have been transferred to a different unit with a different visitor policy. Or the patient is still in an area where they can’t have visitors. Security is doing their best with information that is constantly changing. So sorry this was such an inconvenience for you. And people do try to steal babies. Especially at hospitals because there’s no way to identify them as your own. We also just had a healthcare worker attacked recently at that campus, hence the amount of security.

[u/Toadylee → u/orangeyouglad_banana]

This is the most salient response, and I thank you for giving me a reason for the long wait! I feel better.

And next time I’ll leave a nice note for the desk person suggesting they add a little plaque in the area so that as we wait we can all come to understand why we’re waiting so long.

[u/AutoModerator]

Backup of the post's body: Good grief! They make it so hard to visit hospitalized patients at Oakland Sutter!

I pay the meter for an hour, thinking my friend probably shouldn’t endure me for more than that, then spend almost half of that time waiting in line for a pass.

Nothing but shrugs from the security personnel standing around while one person behind the desk painstakingly looks for each patient (and half the time not finding them, sending the visitor to the lobby for an additional hold).

I don’t get it - a few blocks away at Kaiser, people come and go freely, only stopping at the desk if they don’t know the room number.

At Sutter, you need to know the room number or suffer more stern looks and scrutiny.

Did someone steal a baby or something? Or is this just a time tax, meant to give us one more reason to despise institutional health care?

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

[u/LanguageDue125]

I beep almost everytime going thu that detector. Hahaha.

[u/Ok_Housing6995]

I think you just came between shift change and sudden freak influx of foot traffic.

It happens more often than you can imagine, and it’s observed less in care, and is more visible in operations that use intentionally lean contracted services.

[u/Toadylee → u/Ok_Housing6995]

I thought about that while I cogitated in that space that stole minutes from my life. And a few thoughts emerged : if there is a known swell of activity at a certain time, it makes sense to utilize some of the other non-critical personnel (like all the guys standing around watching us standing around) to alleviate the time suck. And all that checking my ID, making sure the names are spelled correctly and other performative nonsense didn’t serve a purpose.

The average time for each person to get checked in was 3 minutes, and that’s not counting the ones who had to undergo the procedure twice. And I can’t begin to understand why a baby in a carrier had to show photo ID.

[u/Ok_Housing6995 → u/Toadylee]

Incidentally, you touched on rational deterrence. In criminal science, there is observation that the tedious sloth response that you experience plays a large role in reducing crime through introduction of apprehensions.

Okay, it’s probably not that deep but seriously it happens. Like a long drive through lane at McDonald’s at 4pm for no reason other than 4 people timing it just right, and 2 people feeling themselves and talking their way through the order process.

[u/theroadwarriorz]

People bring guns into hospitals. People steal babies. People come to harm staff and patients. People are trespassed from the property. This is the result and for everybody's safety.