Need some help to make up my mind

[LittlePink]

I cant decide whether to make a complaint about this or not. My initial reaction is yes but im starting to mellow a bit now and calm down.

My midwife contacted me to tell me ive got a urine infection and to pick up a prescription from my GP. So I went to collect it and noticed straight away it was amoxycillan. Im allergic to penicillin and get lip swelling so I told her I don't take this because im allergic to it. So she said come back in an hour and i'll get the doctor to change it. So I went back and she told me to take a seat. Kept me 15 mins then took me aside to challenge me on my allergy. She had the new prescription hugged close to her chest and was saying in a very confrontational way "look we cant just change things like this. Theres nothing documented on your records about this so we cant just give you something else. Do you have evidence of your reaction?" I said well no as it was a couple of years ago and I haven't had it since as they always give me something else.

It was then I got irate with her and said "look you need to listen to the patient and im telling you im allergic to this. Its not my fault if its not documented but you need to listen to me when Im telling you its dangerous to take something im allergic to!". She gave me the prescription after much reluctance.

I was infuriated when I left and I spoke to my mum about it who said just let it go, don't upset yourself about it but im not so sure.

Do you think this needs reporting or should I just let it go? Im very hormonal and irritable at the moment anyway so the slightest thing annoys me. Thanks for reading.

[Geminiwitch22]

Personally I would talk to her supervisor, it should be on your notes yes which says someone has failed to document it. Also if it has upset you because of her attitude she may need to have a meeting if it's not the first case.

It's not your hormones, if you took them and had a reaction after you told her she would have been in serious trouble

[RedPony]

I would certainly report her op. A medical professional should NOT encourage you to be happy being prescribed medication you are allergic to! Every time I have been prescribed penicillin the person prescribing has always checked I am ok to take it before giving it to me. She sounds very unprofessional and we'll done for standing up to her

[Secretsquirrel13]

Is this the receptionist at the surgery? Or a qualified person?

[spottydolphin]

sorry, this was the receptionist????

I would absolutely complain! the doctor had done a different prescription so obv had no issue right? the receptionist was totally out of order to say anything about it

[Missingcaffeine]

I would write a very polite and factual letter or email to the practice manager. They have to address anything in writing and make sure all the partners (usually the key GP's) are aware. This is probably a training issue that the surgery should look into as someone less assertive might have taken the prescription and ended up with a dangerous reaction putting themselves and baby at risk. Sometimes reception staff have very little training at all and it can be a really stressful job. The reality could be that this receptionist was afraid of 'bothering' the GP to ask them to change it as perhaps the duty GP was in a bad mood or stressed. Sadly this is often the case, but sometimes highlighting it can make the key players in the surgery reflect on these things.

I'm a nurse manager and have previously worked in GP surgeries. I think these sort of things should be reported, as it enables the professionals to know the reality of what is going on and to try to address any poor practice. If these things don't get reported, they may never change. Not because the management/GP's don't care, but because they don't know.

[Alita7]

I would definitely report it, both her attitude and the fact that your allergy hasn't been appropriately documented.
You're a vulnerable pregnant woman, what if you'd not had the balls to argue and either taken the amoxicillin because the midwife said to, and had a dangerous reaction or just not taken anything, resulting in your uti getting worse which is dangerous for the baby.
It just sounds so ridiculous, no one would just make up an allergy, there was no benefit to doing so, surely the logical thing to do would be to say sorry it's not documented in your notes do you have any more information so I can put a note in...

[LittlePink]

Yes it was the receptionist!! With no clinical knowledge. Even so, everyone knows the damage an allergic reaction can do to someone!

[LittlePink]

Sorry I didn't explain that very clearly in my OP. It was the receptionist I was dealing with.

[frames]

It was the responsibility of the prescriber to have this discussion with you. Did you see the GP or were they asked to prescribe by the MW? Either the GP who (prescribed) asked the receptionist to challenge you, or receptionist took it upon herself to do so on behalf of the prescribing GP. As a nurse manager not only are you aware of the impact complaining will have (very little) but also of the reality of situation from the perspective of the MW, GP and receptionist. What is the alternative to amoxycillin in urine infections? Is that alternative safe on pregnancy...I would have wanted to address these questions to a prescribing doctor.You also need to be educated in reducing the risk of further infections....did the receptionist check you wipe your bottom from front to back?

[Missingcaffeine]

Sorry I misread that the prescription had already been changed and she still challenged you. This is really inappropriate. She clearly has done this for some kind of power trip, rather than because the doctor is giving her a hard time. This definitely should be reported!

[LittlePink]

Frames, this post has nothing to do with how I wipe my bottom or needing any education on this! Was merely asking for advice on whether or not I should complain about an incident. Ive not had a uti for about 20 yrs and they are very common in pregnancy. I will take it you were joking though.

I got a call from my midwife asking me to go and collect a prescription and was told I don't need to see a GP but to just pick it up from the desk. But thanks to all that's replied, Ive written a complaint.

[squizita]

Supervisor of midwives. Had you been shy or had limited English you could have ended up being convinced to take something you're allergic to!

[squizita]

Sorry misunderstood thought the midwife was the refuser... The receptionist! That is ludicrous! On some kind of power trip!

[Secretsquirrel13]

I'm glad you've complained as all too often these roles are performed by women who think they are on par with the trained medical staff. What came to mind was that nobody has recorded this reaction on your records and so you weren't prescribed the correct drug. More worryingly you were prescribed something that could have led to serious harm for you and your baby if you'd had a bad reaction. But in her mind it's not on the records so you just must be making it up!

[Jersey37]

I would definitely complain. For sure. 100%. It is your body and regardless of what it says on your notes, you have the right to refuse medication for whatever reason you want. I would get it put on your notes - you may have just had lip swelling last time, but if you tried again it could be a lot worse. My mother took Cipro for years for Urinary Tract Infections - and the bam one day she had a bad rash reaction. I don't know what we feel like we have to do as we are told with medical people - sometimes they don't know best. I was prescribed an ear spray when I was 8 weeks pregnant - the antibiotic was one not for pregnant women and EVERY other country said it should not be taken in pregnancy and the NHS site said it was not 'proven safe', but sometimes the benefit can outweigh the risks... even the pharmacist said an acidic solution would be safer... it got better and then got worse and when I went back to the doctor she was very annoyed at me. She insisted it would be fine as it wouldn't enter the blood stream (but all the documentation I found said that it COULD enter the blood stream - they couldn't say it wouldn't). I felt it wasn't worth the risk - so I got amoxicillin and it eventually cleared up.

My body, my baby, my OWN research, my analysis, my decision. End of story.

[LBNM19]

She's got a cheek. I would defiantly complain to x

[TestingTestingWonTooFree]

Another YANBU definitely appropriate to complain.

[CursiveLetters]

She should be fired! Yeah I would just write a polite letter explaining what happened, the clinic can take it from there.

[Viviennemary]

She was wrong. The new prescription was written I think you should make a complaint and ask to see a different midwife as her attitude was poor. Glad to see you've complained.

[MummytoMog]

Well it's a bit of a pain, but I think it's a bit much saying she should be fired - there are plenty of people who claim to be allergic to things who aren't really, and I'll bet she sees a lot of them. Polite factual letter is fine so that the practice manager can give a bit of guidance to the receptionist.

I would object to the description of a pregnant woman as 'vulnerable' though. Yes, I would find it more difficult to run away from a bear. But we're still quite capable of standing up for ourselves in a verbal confrontation thankyouverymuch. We don't suddenly become fragile little flowers because we're up the duff.

[Geminiwitch22]

Sorry gotta agree with mummymog about vulnerable yes maybe a less uncertain about stuff but not as always vulnerable. As someone said stay in a pregnant woman's good books or she'll tear you apart

[MrsWones]

Blimey!!! [shocked]

I'd be getting a full written complaint in to the practice manager straight away!!

The receptionist is practicing way outside of her competence and job role. If there has been a new prescription done for you then that means a medical professional has ok'd another antibiotic, and that should be that.
Completely out of order.

[spottydolphin]

" there are plenty of people who claim to be allergic to things who aren't really, and I'll bet she sees a lot of them."

that's not the point! she is not a medical professional she's a receptionist! If the GP had wanted to speak to the OP about her allergy then s/he could have done so.
The GP didn't, s/he simply re-did the prescription

the receptionist had no right whatsoever to speak the way she did to the OP. it's fuck all to do with her! and saying things like "we can't just give you something else" when she is standing there with the new script is just bloody weird!

[LittlePink]

"the receptionist had no right whatsoever to speak the way she did to the OP. it's fuck all to do with her! and saying things like "we can't just give you something else" when she is standing there with the new script is just bloody weird!"

Exactly, there was no point to it at all. The GP had already prescribed something else and the receptionist was withholding it from me close to her chest and challenging me on something that has nothing to do with her. Whether ive got a true allergy or not is none of her business. As you say, if the GP wanted to query it he should have come out his room and asked me about it. She has no place to determine if my lip swelling is a true allergy or not and basically make me out to be a liar. Ive discussed it with DH and a couple of friends who said the same as the replies ive had on here, so thank you for your responses. Will definitely be hand delivering the letter tomorrow.

[Alita7]

People make up allergies when they have an incentive to do so. Like if it will get them a better tasting medicine etc . but as far as I know adult antibiotics all come in tablets so no difference there. And the op had to go to the pharmacy and then back to the surgery and then back to the pharmacy... probably a good deterrent against such lies!

I would say pregnancy can make you more vulnerable in health care situations because sometimes we are bullied into doing something "for our babies health" when it might not be right for us or even beneficial to baby in reality. I think a lot of pregnant women are rail roaded into things because they are worried about the baby. It also increases the consequences of a mistake such as taking something you are allergic to.