I decided not to book with Dr Bhutani’s clinic after being treated rudely and unprofessionally by Dr Bhutani himself.
I messaged them on WhatsApp through their website (I’m an international client, so timing differs). I got a reply late at night in India, which surprised me, but I didn’t think too much about it. The reply recommended contacting in the clinic hours, had some links, clinic time, and few more numbers. The next morning I called the whatsapp number I had and was asked to call back at 11:30. I called back as instructed, got no answer, and then received an angry call back from Dr Bhutani. He said I was calling within clinic hours which were busy for him, all ‘the patients want to see Dr Bhutani’, and continued to criticise me for messaging late at night, saying “in the US and UK you don’t get this kind of access to doctors, but this is India.” I was taken aback and explained I’d simply used the number on their website. He also wrongly assumed I wanted appointments over Diwali, despite my saying I’d arrive a week before and book afterward.
If my 2 week timing was an issue, I’d have appreciated that being said politely rather than with anger and wrong assumptions. I’d also suggest not using a personal number as the the direct WhatsApp contact if it isn’t meant for out-of-hours queries, or making any bookings — patients shouldn’t have to guess which number to use.
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