IESS Is Cutting Doctor Visits to 10 Minutes — Here's What That Means for Your Next Appointment

The Clock Just Got Tighter

If your IESS doctor visits already feel rushed, they're about to get shorter.

Ecuador's Instituto Ecuatoriano de Seguridad Social (IESS) announced a new scheduling strategy that cuts general follow-up consultation times from 20 minutes to 10 minutes. The change is designed to open up more appointment slots and reduce wait times — which currently average around eight days nationally.

The new policy is effective immediately.

What's Changing

Visit Type	Previous Time	New Time
General follow-up	20 min	10 min
Result delivery / new prescriptions	20 min	10 min
Specialist consultation	20 min	20 min (no change)
First-time consultation	20 min	20 min (no change)

The 10-minute modules are specifically designed for:

• Follow-up appointments where you're checking in on existing treatment
• Lab result reviews where the doctor reads your test results and adjusts medication
• Prescription renewals where you're getting the same medication refilled

Specialist appointments and new patient visits remain at 20 minutes.

Why IESS Is Doing This

The math is simple: if you halve consultation time, you double the number of patients a doctor can see in a day.

IESS has been under enormous pressure to reduce wait times. Our earlier coverage noted the system's paradox — a surplus of doctors but a massive surgery backlog. This scheduling change addresses the outpatient side of that equation.

The goal is to reduce the national average wait time from eight days to something more reasonable.

What This Means for Expats

Many expats in Cuenca use IESS as their primary or supplementary healthcare provider, especially those with voluntary affiliate (afiliación voluntaria) status. Here's the practical impact:

For routine follow-ups:

• Arrive with your questions written down — you won't have time to think of them in the room
• Have your medication list ready to show
• If you need a prescription renewal, say so immediately
• Be prepared for a faster, more transactional visit

For complex issues:

• Request a specialist referral — those appointments are still 20 minutes
• Ask for a first-time consultation slot if you're presenting a new health concern
• Don't try to squeeze two problems into one 10-minute follow-up

For lab results:

• If your results are normal and your doctor just needs to confirm, 10 minutes is fine
• If results show something concerning, ask the doctor to schedule a longer follow-up or specialist referral

The Language Barrier Factor

Here's the part IESS didn't address: 10 minutes is barely enough when you're communicating in your second language.

If your Spanish isn't fluent, consider:

• Bringing a Spanish-speaking friend to translate
• Writing your questions and symptoms in Spanish beforehand (Google Translate or ChatGPT can help)
• Requesting a translator if the hospital has one available

Will Quality of Care Suffer?

That's the real question. IESS says specialist evaluations still have 20 minutes to "ensure clinical quality standards are met." But reducing general follow-ups to 10 minutes means doctors will need to be more efficient — and patients will need to be more prepared.

The medical community hasn't publicly responded to the change yet, but it's worth watching how doctors adapt.

Bottom Line

If you use IESS, your follow-up visits just got shorter. Come prepared, be concise, and don't hesitate to ask for a specialist appointment if 10 minutes isn't enough for what you need.

For anything complex or new, you still get the full 20 minutes — just make sure you're booked into the right appointment type.

---

Sources: El Diario, La Hora, CuencaHighLife