Patient that didn't exist, written by from You Got Me Thar.

Five years ago, I was starting out as a health care provider in a private practice.

As we are in a large metro area with moderate to high crime rate,

our practice had set up cameras to monitor the front desk activity outside hallway for security and

emergency reasons. Utilizing a very well known yellow booking software

I received an appointment request.

The appointment request had no insurance and listed only a name, J.D.

had an international number.

The appointment is never confirmed via phone. The appointment comes up, J.D. shows up. For the most part, it was a standard visit.

I did my usual banter. What do you do for work? Where are you from?

J.D. was pretty brunt and short in answering.

Given the location where the practice was, I was not taken aback.

The only thing that was strange, in the area J.D. claimed to be from there was a pretty

standard accent that everyone had. J.D. didn't have the accent of that area.

Looking back now I realize that J.D. had no distinctive markings or features either.

The appointment ends.

JD pays in cash, but makes no follow-up.

Don't call me, I'll callcall-you-type. Since the day was pretty busy, I didn't get a chance to sit

with my notes until the end of the day. I sat down to do my notes, I noticed that JD was not

in the note tally.

I checked the system thinking that the front desk must have forgotten since it was a cash note.

The appointment was not in the system either.

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