"Waiting patiently"

I went along with my partner for her endoscopy. They gave me a bleeper when I went for a coffee after waiting for an hour. I returned the bleeper and sat down in the waiting room - until my partner came out three hours later and my partner told me they had bleeped me. -which they hadn't. My partner says she wondered why several people in front of her were picked up whilst she waiting. Eventually my partner asked if I could be phoned and they then discovered that I had been waiting patiently in the waiting room. I don't know if this is normal procedure but Im guessing it's not since many people who came after me left. I wonder if there is a protocol whereby I can make myself more visible to the staff since sitting and waiting seems to lead to more sitting and waiting.