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Comment by DavidPeiffer | Hacker News Reader

I have my primary care provider and a specialist both in the same health network. PCP check-in is trivial (and through the same service). But at the specialist, the only way to complete the check-in process is to check a box allowing them to contact friends and family in pursuit of collecting money for unpaid bills. It specifies that it's not required, but I also cannot complete the check-in process on the tablet without checking. Such a bad dark pattern.

I have previously checked the box, then ask the receptionist to immediately remove my authorization and print a confirmation. And it's not just unchecking the box, she's adding an exception note on my account. I doubt it'd be respected correctly if I ever had a bill go to collections.

I do raise a stink with the receptionist every time and she's good about it, but should probably escalate it higher in the organization.

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>I do raise a stink with the receptionist every time and she's good about it, but should probably escalate it higher in the organization.

This is the part that sucks. It's not the receptionist's problem, he/she just wants to get on with their day. Generally they're powerless to do anything anyway.

Last time I went to urgent care they had one of those screenless digital signature collection pads. "I just need you to sign a couple intake forms" and she motioned at the pad. I asked what I am signing, and she said "just some intake forms." She looked at me like I had six heads when I asked to see the actual forms, as if no one had ever done that before, then took a few minutes to find them.

Felt bad for making her life harder. Makes me wonder if something like that is even contractually valid: how can you collect a signature "on" a form that you don't even show the signer?

For those I quietly sign my name as "document not provided" so everyone can quickly move on with their life.

Sounds pretty risky. Have you run that by a lawyer?

I haven't and I hope never to get involved in a legal battle with a doctor. I'm just trying to get on with my life. But if they try something funny and it comes down to that, I can't imagine this would leave me any more exposed than having signed my name.

At that point, why not just sign e.g. 'void'?

> It's not the receptionist's problem, he/she just wants to get on with their day.

Sorry for my ignorance, but why isn't it the receptionist's problem? Isn't it part of their job to address these sorts of concerns from patients?

They’re some weird millennial idea that’s taken hold over the last ten years that when you get terrible service somewhere it’s in bad taste to voice that to the representative of the company you’re currently with, to save them the hassle. Company gets off for free now because we can’t hurt the feelings of someone who works for them. The whole Karen thing, can’t be a Karen.

That's not what being a Karen is at all. Being a Karen is largely about being aggravated at employees with no actual decision-making power in the situation or wasting people's time with demands that are obviously going to be pointless. I don't think most people would call you a Karen for wanting to read intake forms. What they might call you a Karen for is giving a flippant statement like "Well why not?!" when you ask the receptionist to explain everything on the forms in perfect legal detail and she says she can't.

So the company doesn’t train their employees to properly explain required forms - totally legit thing to complain about, but you can’t?

Back in the day, the employee would expect the complaint, likely agree with it and not take it personally as it’s very obviously not directed at them or within their power to change. However, what they can do it let their employer know customers are unhappy.

If you have to sign something before someone will see you at urgent care, I wonder if you can claim you signed it under duress.

Of course, a sane healthcare system would make sure it never comes to this in the first place.

This happens to me all the time. While most have accommodated me in requests to read printed forms, this seems pointless because no matter how much paperwork I read, I seem unable to properly interpret it, and it's a take-it-or-leave-it situation anyway.

I was in one situation where I was required to "sign for my belongings" before they were returned to me--and before I was allowed to see them at all--and the document on the screen described someone else's belongings, such as things I did not have. The chick told me to calm down and I asked her if she read her employment contract before signing it.

> This is the part that sucks. It’s not the receptionist’s problem

It’s the office’s problem, and the receptionist is the public interface for the office. (Of course, if you aren’t willing to do anything but complain to the receptionist, and it doesn’t effect the business of the office, then I’m nots sure what the point of repeatedly raising a stink with the receptionist is.)

> I also cannot complete the check-in process on the tablet without checking

> a box allowing them to contact friends and family in pursuit of collecting money for unpaid bills

Wow, this is pretty shocking. Could you please share more details e.g. company name?

Did you relay your experience with this evil pattern with the doctor? What did they say?

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