8 January 2014
Importance of Making Appointments
Making a scheduled appointment on time is very important. It is ones responsible as an adult to be able to fulfill his or her obligations, and if for some reason those obligations can not be filled then it is up to that individual to take the necessary steps to cancel that appointment, 24 hours in advance if possible. As a soldier, the Army pays for the appointments we make, and by missing an appointment we are costing the Army money. Missing an appointment also affects your health care provider and your battle buddies. When an appointment is missed and is not properly cancelled, the health care provider is left with an empty time slot that another soldier could have taken full advantage of, especially if their situation is worse off then your own. This shows a lack of respect not only for your physician, dentist, or whomever, it also shows a lack of care for the health and well being of your battle buddies. Appointments scheduled while a soldier is on leave seem to be the most common reasons for missed appointments. Not only is scheduling an appointment during your leave dates a bad idea; it heightens your chances of missing that appointment greatly. If for some reason you do have an appointment scheduled while on leave, make sure that you always have some way to remind yourself if you think you may not be able to make it. Calendars, cell phones, and written notes are all useful ways to help keep that appointment fresh in your mind. While on leave you should known well over 24 hours in advance whether or not u will make your scheduled appointment, so the necessary phone calls should be made to re open that time slot for another soldier. Another important step in keeping up with appointments if you really feel like u need help remembering is making your chain of command aware of all of your scheduled appointment. Your first line supervisor should be the first person informed of