2.05.2011

Lab Corp Fail (Rant)

Last week I received a call from my OB's office telling me that I had abnormal results on my 1 hour glucose test. This meant that I would have to take the 3 hour glucose test. My office does not do them so they would send my orders for the test a Lab Corp facility in the Springs. I asked if any of the offices offer weekend hours so Dave would have to take off of work. She said that one office does and she would fax the orders there.

Lab Corp does not accept appointments over the phone. It is all done on-line. You choose your office, fill in what test you are taking (glucose testing is the exact wording on the website) and then you pick an appointment time and fill in your pertinent information. I did all of this selecting a Saturday appointment at 8:30 a.m. I got a confirmation e-mail and number.

For the the 3 hour glucose test you should fast for 12-14 hours before the test which I did. I set my alarm this morning, took a shower, got my knitting and reading materials ready and drove 25 minutes to south Colorado Springs. I get there, wait in line, and when I approach the desk I tell them that I am there for my 3 hour glucose test. The guy looks at me and says we don't do glucose testing on Saturdays. I let him know that I was able to schedule an appointment for glucose testing on a Saturday through their website. I even showed him my confirmation. He says that the system shouldn't have let me and then he goes to talk with him manager. His manager says no to the testing as well.

I am starting to tear up a bit here b/c I am tired, hungry, 6 months pregnant and I want to frickin' know if I have gestational diabetes or not. Nobody apologizes for the mix up, nobody offers to reschedule my appointment and I was very upset. I left the office and immediately called Lab Corp customer service to file a complaint.

I have rescheduled my appointment at a different Lab Corp office for a weekday. Dave is taking the day off of work. I wish I could've taken care of this last week and I would have been able to if the online Lab Corp appointment scheduling actually worked. I am just angry at the way their employees treated me, I am angry at their crappy appointment scheduling website and I am angry that I have no real recourse.

What has happened to customer service? I worked in customer service for many, many years and it really isn't that difficult. Yes, some people can be trying but good customer service boils down to basic common decency and courtesy. It makes me sad that people cannot even deliver on that score. Shame on them.

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