Reviews of the MGH Walk-In clinic are quite polarising on here. I had read more negative reviews…read morethan positive ones, so I was approaching the doors today with a mild sense of dread.
I could not have been more unfounded in my expectations. My experience was fine, and went as smooth is to be expected, given I'm an international tourist with travel insurance to get around.
I went in around 8:45 this morning, hoping to beat the crowds. There were only a handful of people ahead of me. The receptionist/administrator informed me that I'd have to go to the international registrations office first to set up a patient number for my travel insurance/billing. Only a minor inconvenience, and really just makes sense given the need to chase international insurance providers etc. My only complaint thus far would be that, whilst the registrations office is around the next corner, the International registrations office is in an entirely different area which required directions to find. Perhaps if they were to perform renovations in future, they might put both registration offices next to or opposite each other. Only a very minor thing.
After filling in the forms. I returned to the clinic receptionist who added my information and slipped me back in on the waiting list. There was a slight discomfort during my wait in that a patient sitting a few seats down from me was rocking, shaking and bemoaning her lack of access to her doctor yet. Not really the clinics fault, and I can't really blame them for it. They were very courteous in dealing with her increasing volume and disdain for waiting. Tolerance is quite the virtue!
After maybe 5 minutes, I was taken in to a lovely nurse who took down notes of my stats, vitals, and my ailments, in preparation for the doctor. This woman was incredibly pleasant, and we had a small conversation about my holiday and what to do in Boston. There was never any rush to get me out as quickly as possible, and the nurse was both attentive and personable. After finishing my file, and our chat, I returned to the waiting room until the doctor became available. It was maybe a 10 minute wait. Perfectly fine by me.
The doctor took me through, went over my file with me to confirm everything, then examined me. After a quick confirmation via a secondary doctor passing by, my ailment was confirmed. The doctor (Dr Black) explained it to me in an accessible level, and typed up detailed instructions for treatment, with a comprehensive list of suggested medicines to go with my prescription. With that, and handing over my forms to the receptionist thereafter, my medical journey came to an end.
I left around 10:15am, but a large portion of that time was me filling out international insurance forms and trying to find the correct registrations office. Honestly, my experience was wonderful. I feel that, had I been a U.S. Citizen with domestic health insurance,you could easily halve my time there. Waiting and taking less than 30 mins all up to see a doctor and be treated is a very good turnaround. Back in my country, I could wait hours, and have.
Just try to go early - I'm sure it would fill out quickly on weekends or at lunch hours.