Working as a medical receptionist

[scaffoldingtheworld]

Has anyone got any experience of working as a receptionist at a medical centre?

I job has come up with part time hours which suit me well. I have strong admin and reception skills but haven't worked in this field before. Any tips you can give would be helpful. Good or bad!

Is this a GP surgery, or another type of medical centre?

You need a very thick skin to work as a receptionist anyway, a medical receptionist even more so!

Based on my own direct experience it's an incredibly busy and fast-paced job. In order to do it well you will need to be bright with good general medical knowledge and a sharp memory. You should be empathetic and kind but also be able to assert yourself and deal with demanding/difficult patients. I enjoyed it but it's not for everyone. I saw quite a few people start and leave pretty quickly. You have to have the right kind of personality imo.

I did it for a year before being promoted and moving into a different field and I still work in the same surgery but in a totally different (and much more enjoyable) professional role.

A friend of mine did this job, poorly paid, subjected to abuse by patients on a regular basis. She was thick skinned. There was a lot to learn, she hasn’t been a medical receptionist before either OP. She is still doing the job.

@Leavesofautumn

Is this a GP surgery, or another type of medical centre?

It's at a drs surgery.

I am already in a high paced and stressful environment but I think this will be very different.

I think everyone should work in healthcare at some point, just so that they realise how much work goes on behind the scenes. Appreciation of the NHS goes up a level when you see what happens behind the curtain

GP reception is TOUGH. Doesn’t matter what you come from, it will be a baptism of fire

But if you’re up for the challenge then go for it!

I think it depends on the location. I have two friends who have done this job. One in a large health centre in an ‘edgy’ part of London, and one in a naice rural village. Very different experiences. The former had to deal with lots of abuse, the latter none. The former said it was a rewarding job and she enjoyed the camaraderie with her colleagues, but found it stressful and moved on to a different role after six months. The latter has been doing it for years and enjoys it.

@scaffoldingtheworld

Has anyone got any experience of working as a receptionist at a medical centre?

I job has come up with part time hours which suit me well. I have strong admin and reception skills but haven't worked in this field before. Any tips you can give would be helpful. Good or bad!

I’ve done it. It’s fine. Be helpful and caring. And expect most people to be fine, and a steady minority to persist in being rude and unreasonable no matter what you do.

You will quickly learn that 98% if mums arguing because their ‘mothers instinct’ goes against what the doctor says will be wrong, but they will conveniently forget that next time they ring up and argue a few months later and tell you a mother’s instinct is never wrong ….

It’s a good job. You can really make a difference to someone’s day and contribute to the effective running of the practice. Be thick skinned and diplomatic

@VenusClapTrap

I think it depends on the location. I have two friends who have done this job. One in a large health centre in an ‘edgy’ part of London, and one in a naice rural village. Very different experiences. The former had to deal with lots of abuse, the latter none. The former said it was a rewarding job and she enjoyed the camaraderie with her colleagues, but found it stressful and moved on to a different role after six months. The latter has been doing it for years and enjoys it.

Yep, very much agree.

My surgery is one of the biggest in the city and is in an area of high deprivation. This makes the job much more demanding but, for me anyway, more interesting and more rewarding.

An acquaintance of mine started the same job in a small two-GP surgery in a "naice" leafy suburb at the same time as me and left after 6 months as she was bored!

It would be working in an old mining town. Not a major city.