We get this question a lot. Rather than answer it ourselves, we found an excellent article online by a patient advocate that addressed this issue. We have reprinted it below:
Why Does My Doctor Make Me Return to the Office to Get My Medical Test Results?By Trisha Torrey, About.com Guide
Updated April 06, 2010
Some patients have complained that doctors are requiring them to make office visit appointments in
order to do simple things like have their routine medical test results reported to them. These patients
wonder why their doctors require them to return to the office to get medical test results.
Reports are generated for every medical test you get, whether it's performed in the doctor's office or
in another location. In all cases, you, the patient, need to know the results. Getting your test results,
no matter how they are reported to you, is a necessity - not optional.
There are three main reasons a doctor might order tests for you. One reason would be to diagnose you. The second reason would be to measure the effectiveness of a treatment. The third reason would be to monitor a chronic illness or condition. Your medical test results will produce three possible outcomes, and each type requires different delivery:
If your test results are bad news then they should always be reported in person.
Bad news might be a new and difficult diagnosis, or it might be that treatment has failed.
If your test results are complicated or require follow-up then they should be reported in person, too.
For example, you may have learned that a colonoscopy revealed some polyps. It's not necessarily bad news because you may already know they are benign. But you'll need follow up in the form of new details: explanations of your treatment options, getting a referral and appointment for your treatment choice, explanation of that procedure and more.
If your test results show that no follow up is required
(maybe they are good news, or perhaps they are your standard answers - nothing has changed), then they
can be reported by phone.
They should not require a follow up visit to the doctor's office. Examples of this type of testing might be your
annual mammogram which is entirely negative, or a regular cholesterol check which hasn't become
problematic since the last one.
Why the Doctor May Insist you Come to the Office
For any reporting or follow up your doctor must deliver to you, good or bad, that requires more than a
minute or two to deliver, it's not only wise to receive that information in his or her office, in person (so
you can continue to ask follow up questions) but it's fair, too. In most cases, when your doctor delivers services on your behalf, then the only way he or she can be paid (reimbursed by your insurer) is if you sign-in for an appointment. When your doctor has invested his or her time and efforts into your care, then it's only fair he or she be paid. So make those appointments.
