Will Zocdoc Find Your Doc?

In a well-written article for USA Today, full of sassy turns of a phrase, Michael Wolfe sang the praises of a new Internet service that he predicts will do to medicine what Amazon did to books. The product is ZocDoc. Apparently, ZocDoc is a new paging system that allows the “consumer” to find a doctor with an open appointment in his or her area immediately! 700,000 people have registered on Zocdoc already.

ZocDoc was conceived when co- founder Cyrus Massoumi ruptured an eardrum on a plane and could not find a doctor when he landed. The customers of ZocDoc are the doctors and dentists who subscribe to the service; ZocDoc is free to the patient. Rather than floundering through outdated numbers and phone trees, patients can find a doctor, book an appointment, and receive a confirmation all in a matter of minutes thanks to new software developments and web-based patient management systems. And 40% of all appointments made with ZocDoc happen within 24 hours, ZocDoc claims. On the plus side of all this is that it’s convenient, the doctors are screened, the website is user friendly, and customer service seems to be key. Great for urgent situations that are not emergency room level. However, some doctors don’t like ZocDoc. Although doctors subscribing to the service are screened, be aware that like any other website, the physician ratings are based on input from less than 2.5 patients on average. One doctor said the 45 minute default appointment time can schedule an appointment the doctor is not aware of, hence leaving a patient waiting. Interestingly, if you search for a downside of ZocDoc, you are routed back to the ZocDoc site, and this makes me a little nervous. I could only find one negative article about the site.

So how does this work for a cosmetic surgeon? Sure you might need a doctor quickly if you have the flu or have injured yourself, but elective surgery is another issue.  Cosmetic surgery should not be rushed into. ZocDoc is not set up for booking with cosmetic surgeons. When seeking cosmetic surgery, you not only want to research your doctor and the facility your doctor practices at, but you also have time to shop around. At Little Rock Cosmetic Surgery Center, patient safety and satisfaction is a priority.

Call Melinda at the front desk for your consultation with me. 501-277-0707