Using correct spelling at work

[TroysMammy]

I'm not putting this in AIBU because being a GP Receptionist I don't want people thinking it's ok to put the boot in because of the job I do.

I've been a GP Receptionist for over 11 years, prior to that I was a Secretary within a Bank. My colleagues have been there approximately 19 years, 5 years and 18 months, all women in late 40's and 50's all having a work history in other organisations.

However it is really annoying me that they cannot spell frequently used words and don't seem to care. We use Ask My GP and if people don't have internet access they phone us and we type up the request for their records. Recently I have come across the following:- virgina, soar, white sells, goldstones and gaulstones, swoollen, patient is asking for advise, exema, wooping cough, tetnus and when we were booking travel vaccinations and typing in where patient is holidaying - Deli (Delhi) Tialand (Thailand).

I've typed up quite a lot of words we use on a regular basis for them, advised they can use google, even if they type it in incorrectly and there are medical books available and still they get it wrong.

Am I being really picky because if I saw incorrect spelling on my medical records I would think that the person who had typed them was unprofessional. I also think the same of Daily Mail journalists who can't spell either.

If they don’t get people’s names right and get records mixed up then that’s unacceptable regardless of whether it’s the result of learning difficulties- it needs performance management because it’s too dangerous to let go - and as per pp there are disastrous mixups like “hyper” vs “hypo” just waiting to happen.

A friend of mine has dyslexia and dyspraxia and she works in a Pharmacy. She has adapted ways that work with her disability. She's good at her job.

I can't do anything involving numbers and I even struggle with basic maths I don't have a diagnosis but it points to dyscalculia. However I use a calculator when working out quantities of drugs in multiples of 28, there is no way I would guess it.

Merely stating facts @TroysMammy. I don't think that equates to putting the boot in.

I wonder how many doctors' receptionists have first degrees from Russell Group Universities, let alone post grad or professional qualifications.

@StrangerHereMyself

If they don’t get people’s names right and get records mixed up then that’s unacceptable regardless of whether it’s the result of learning difficulties- it needs performance management because it’s too dangerous to let go - and as per pp there are disastrous mixups like “hyper” vs “hypo” just waiting to happen.

I agree. I'm disappointed that some posters don't understand the serious implications of getting it wrong.

I have a job where being able to communicate clearly and effectively (which means being able to spell, and construct a sentence that is grammatically correct) is very important.

My line manager and I aren't from round here, and she gets rather irritated by some people writing as they speak - "we was", "you was" and incorrect apostrophes for example.

It just makes us look like unprofessional noddies.

RosesandHellebores perhaps as you say not putting the boot in but any reason to try and belittle. Do you trawl Mumsnet for threads about GP Receptionists so you can have sly digs? I expect you have a fistful of degrees, post graduate qualifications and are overly qualified for every job known to man.

In wouldn't care and would assume the note taker was dyslexic or similar.

I'm sure the whole record isn't littered with errors, just the odd one here or there.

I certainly don't trawl threads about Dr's receptionists but I shall counter rudeness and I think it's pretty low to demean one's colleagues on a public forum.

I'm quite sure when I worked for an investment bank I had colleagues who weren't as quick on their feet as I with analysis but they had other qualities.

I am sorry you feel so bitter.

If spelling is wrong but meaning is clear its not really a problem. But the Nurse above who accuses the OP of over valuing spelling needs to think on this - I've read one Nursing write up when a spelling mistake misled a colleague and caused a near miss, and several occasions when it's taken unnecessary time to figure out what the report was saying. Excellent written and verbal communication skills are essential for a qualified Nurse.

It’s really bad, if an employee is incapable of basic spelling, they cannot be anywhere near patients information, their failures could be catastrophic. I would be furious if someone had failed to spell things correctly on my own medical information, and would want clarification on how such a fuck up was allowed to happen. But it’s not OPs job to manage the wilfully illiterate colleagues, sadly, OP, you’ll have to wait until patients start to complain, or the doctors notice the blunders their employees chose to make.

Why doesn't the system have a spell checker built in?

Some of those spellings could be typos by people typing who aren't trained typists.

Another thing to remember dyslexics are as likely to miss spell the daft 3/4 letter words as they are big word hypo and hyper sound different and are not likely to be miss spelt as sore and soar they sound the same.

I have always felt agitated when people don't spell correctly.

I've now got a daughter who is severely dyslexic. She's very bright but her dyslexia is really upsetting for her as she feels stupid.

It's opened my eyes to the difficulties people have and that I shouldn't be so quick to judge.

Please don't continually point out incorrect spellings to colleagues. They may not be able to help it and, if this is the case, you are humiliating them further!

The thing is it does matter when it comes to medical records. I was sent a letter telling me that I had a condition that I knew I didn’t have because the secretary had typed the wrong word.

It is very unprofessional and makes them look bad. My GP surgery is the same, a couple of the typists there just cannot spell. With all the spell checking facilities available these days you'd think they would at least try, but it seems not.

Why doesn't the system have a spell checker built in?

Spell checkers don't help with homonyms, or if a valid but incorrect word is used instead of the right one.
An unusual condition might not be in the dictionary and could get 'corrected' to the wrong word.
Spell checker are useful, up to a point, but not a panacea when technical language is involved.

that would really annoy me.
typing on the phone I can understand, blaming sausage fingers on a tiny keyboards.

with regards to spellcheck, some programmes don't have it.
or if you frequently use more than one language it conks out. or you switch it off because it's of no use for you.

Misspelling medications could be highly problematic. I believe there are a few with similar names but used for different conditions.
I agree that spelling is poor in general, even allowing for people with dyslexia. The friends I have who are dyslexic are really particular about checking spellings in any written work which is needed in a professional capacity.

I also have an issue with this, especially in regards to professional services. Even with interviews, CVs are rarely given the time of day if they're covered in grammatical errors. Typos are different, you can tell between the two.

I think some social media Facebook is harmful in this way as so many people spend their lives on it, watching others making similar mistakes and reinforcing their own, ultimately if it goes that way how will anything make sense?

Working from dictation can be hard... I heard a case in a chemistry department where a secretary interpreted the technique called by its acronym NMR as 'enema'. Maybe that's why essentially the same technique when used in medicine is called MRI!
But how often is dictation used nowadays rather than some form of electronic communication? If you've got access to notes and medical records then the best way of getting the spelling of a medication correct is to cut and paste it.

It's not from dictation as in Secretarial work, I've done that in the past and I know how difficult it can be to understand and make sense of it, especially with hearing difficulties. It's typing in information from telephone calls from patients without internet onto an e-consult system which is copied and pasted onto medical records or handwritten information which is then scanned onto a patient's records.

I'm the first to admit that I am not a typist. I can't touch type to save my life, and make typo errors all the time. I do have to stop and read what I have typed before I press send.

Isn't there any software with medical terminology that can be used?

It's not medical terminology that's really needed to be spelt like hypertrophic cardiomyopathy or diverticulitis for example but things like problem with vagina but writing virgina. White sells instead of white cells. Swoollen instead of swollen.

Yes course they should be literate. Real risks in medicine if you misspell two similar words - Abduct or Adduct, any more or anymore, affect and effect etc.

Suggest practice invests in literacy lessons or Dragon software. Should nurses be literate? Of course, dyslexics need a degree of reasonable adaptation but if you can’t maintain god clinical records with that adaptation then nursing isn’t for you. Record keeping isn’t an add on; it’s an essential skill.

Reasonable adaptation isn’t about excuses or lowering standards, it’s about making adaptation to allow someone to meet the requirements of their job.

I'm surprised because when I worked in a similar sort of GP-adjacent service staff were expected to study medical terminology (AMSPAR type courses/certificates) and there were crib sheets for common terms and abbreviations. It didn't stop one of the nurses from writing 'restbite' mind!

I don't think the examples you've given are acceptable if they're potentially ending up on medical records.

I've seen restbite too. I don't like hearing or seeing water for urine either. I always want to ask when I hear "you can't pass water" with don't go over the bridge then, find another route .