I’m a GP who normally runs to time. Some GPs (there’s at least one in every practice) always run late – just like any other person it’s caused by a mixture of things like being generally disorganised and talking too much. Their patients often love ’em though because they’ll always take the time to make their patients feel special…
Genuine medical emergencies happen of course and it only takes one to get an hour behind. Have you ever tried calling a hospital switchboard to speak to the on call doctor to get a patient admitted?! Ambulances normally take more time to pick patients up from a GP’s surgery too so that guy on oxygen aint going anywhere until the ambulance turns up and carts him off.
Unfortunately though most of the time it’s the buggers booked in before you who turn up late (even 2 or 3 minutes which is really common quickly adds up in a standard 18 patient surgery booked at 10 minute intervals which aren’t quite long enough for most patients anyhow), can’t find your room, don’t understand the patient call system (so sit in the waiting room wondering what that buzzing noise is), don’t check in, etc then have half a dozen problems. Also, apologies often get met with some sort of expectation of an explanation which adds another minute or 2. Some practices and GPs are better at managing this than others but there’s a balance to be struck.
Ultimately the system has no slack in it at all (apart from the golf and drinks at lunchtime of course…).
Minor rant over.