Why are so many GP receptionists rude?

[Jenna2212]

I don't think I've ever heard of a surgery where people have positive things to say about the receptionists. At a time when people are most vulnerable and in need, why do GP surgeries tend to recruit such hostile people to greet sick people?

Have you had any bad experiences with your GP surgery? Feel free to post below. 💊

Glad to hear that! Not that they were rude, before, but that they are not now. It's the last thing you need when you're already facing such challenging days. Wish you only good days x

Well aren't you lovely! I'm offering solutions to patients, I can't do everything for them and believe me if the GPs didn't call the shots my hands would be less tied . Look on your surgery website to see their services before being nasty to them and randoms on the internet, now that is being shitty. It's not my fault that NHS Wales is not fit for purpose.

Out of curiosity, do you feedback the complaints from customers e.g. about booking systems, too few doctors per patients etc? And if so, what is their response? I am just curious as to if the GPs who make decisions for such lousy service care...they are effectively running a business (most GP surgeries are owned by private companies and operate under contract and in collaboration with the NHS. The GP bills the NHS for their time and resources. The NHS will set out some guidelines e.g. codes of practice, consent forms etc. But for things such as receptionists/appointment booking methods, customer service training: it's all managed and decided upon by the GP Practice Manager(s).

We haven't got time to tell the Practice Manager, when she's there, about the grumbles we get. We do tell people if they are not happy with anything to put it in writing but they rarely do. It's fine to complain out of frustration but if people could give us sensible suggestions how to resolve it we would be very grateful. The websites have a complaints section which people, if they chose not to write can contact the Practice Manager there.

There are feedback forms and text messages sent asking for feedback about how we did, on the whole they are complimentary. The information is put on the website.

Unfortunately people these days use the word rude when you explain procedures and protocol but it isn't what they want to hear, people can also be awkward, entitled rude and nasty too. I imagine there are some rude receptionists, I haven't come across one myself.

It doesn't help having a 2 partner practice when one has decided to retire and have to rely on locums, prescribing pharmacies and an Urgent Primary Care team to assist the ever increasing and aging population that need medical care. Patients are gutted that the GP has retired. They get affronted if "their GP" is on holiday or God forbid unwell.

I sometimes feel like crying as it can get upsetting being bombarded on the phone with a compared to other surgeries, a very small reception team, one full timer, 3 part timers. 3 staff in the morning, 2 in the afternoon, you work out how 2 members of staff for 5 hours every afternoon can answer a prescription phone line for a few hours, queries phone line and man the front reception desk in between dealing with increasing emails, online prescription requests, phoning patients with information on queries or hospital letters they have had to investigate, send out letters for patients to contact about test results, process pharmacy prescription orders, put signed prescriptions in the correct place, email urgent scripts to pharmacies, send urgent xrays by email, phone the hospital to book in urgent bloods then phone the patient with the details and have the GPs wanting us to do things inbetween. It's a pity there can't be a fly on the wall documentary on the week of a GP Receptionist it would be an eye opener.

Before anyone says I'm not in the right job I've been working in the same place and same role for 15 years and I don't know how much more I can take.

Unfortunately,I have had a few bad experiences with one particular receptionist at my GP's practice. Thankfully,she left about a year ago. She was one of these women who obviously loves men but hates women. She was perfectly nice to any male person,but was offhand to the point of rudeness with women. I had so many fuck ups with my repeat prescriptions while she was there,which have strangely stopped happening now since she left. I think it's the old saying of 'Give anyone a bit of power and they will ALWAYS abuse it' being the case with a lot of doctors' receptionists.

I've found that some are awful and some are great. You've got to like people to do that job because some patients are rude. The pay is terrible and there's a lot of stress. If you don't like people, don't do a people-focused role. That goes for working in HR, too!

The receptionists at my GP surgery are lovely and really try to get you an appt if it’s clear you need one. That does mean they have to ask what the issue is, which some people seem to object to but I don’t understand why. Different people have a different idea about what requires an “emergency” appointment.

I’ve dealt with some really awful receptionists but my current surgery has lovely staff. I get very flustered on the phone and they are very patient with me.

Honestly, my practice, they are all so lovely and understanding. If the doctor is free they will put me straight through, yes the doctors are amazing as well! For any problem with a child or vulnerable person it's a case of can you get here within the hour.

After a phone call with my doctor she actually asked me if I could actually go and see her the next day and she would book the appointment!

The practice offers evening and weekend appointments in different places nearby.

Absolutely delighted with them after years of difficulty getting through they have turned themselves around. Should be the same everywhere. Xxx

Two of the receptionists at my practice saved my son's life. I ran in saying he wanted to kill himself and I didn't know wtf to do. They got him into an NHS clinic within 20 minutes. He's now a happy and healthy 30 year old. Thank God for those receptionists!!! Xx

They follow the instructions of the GPs who hide behind it and are nice to your face.

My GP from 1995 to 2013ish, initially the receptionists were lovely and then two doctors retired and the practice was taken over. The interactions with the front desk became much more difficult.

My GP from 2015 to 2023, 50% of the receptionists were vile. They behaved as the GP partners told them. They were tasked with being obstructive at a practice that had grown too quickly and where the partners were feathering their nests.

I changed practices in 202e - couldn't stand the poor service any longer. The difference is extraordinary. The Partners are nicer and not chasing the pounds so hard.

I'd also say it's often because they are paid minimum wage, have inadequate training and often are, frankly, a bit rough. They have few social graces and think they can speak to the public as they would speak to people on a night put down the local pub.

Dons flak jacket and runs.

I have been with the same doctors practice for 45 years and only once has a ‘care navigator’ been nasty to me . I am on several medication for a couple of illnesses and needed to get my prescription a few days early because I was going to Cuba on holiday . I put my request in over the internet but also emailed the practice to ask for it to be ready before I was going away .
The middle aged receptionist said my prescription wasn’t ready and wouldn’t be till next week . She denied all knowledge of my email and wouldn’t ask the doctor still in the practice to do an emergency prescription for me . As I was going away the following morning I was very upset that she wouldn’t help me .
A young receptionist heard the whole conversation and could see how upset I was , and she went off to see the doctor and came back 5 minutes later with my completed prescription.
Goodness knows why the first woman couldn’t have done that I don’t know. The surgery was not busy with no one in the waiting room/ reception area. She was horrible just because she could be.

Many years ago now but unforgettably, my 6 month old DS became ill. He vomited, was pale and quiet and I rang the surgery but was told there were no appointments available. I rang the health visitor who said it was probably a tummy upset. In the afternoon, I took him down to the surgery and was made to sit in the waiting room until all those with appointments had been seen. The baby was so obviously ill that people offered to let me see the GP ahead of them but the receptionist refused to allow it. We waited for almost two hours after which the doctor admitted him to hospital where he had an emergency operation for a blockage of his bowel. We were told he would have died that night if it hadn't been done. He would have been in acute pain while we were in that waiting room but was so ill he wasn't even crying and as an inexperienced mum, I didn’t realise that.

He has children of his own now but I've never forgotten how close we were to losing him and the callous indifference of that receptionist.

they're underpaid and overworked. A lot of them are also sick of munchausens sufferers and hypochondriacs wasting their time.

My old GP receptionist used to think that she was the doctor. She'd question your reason for being there and shout intimate details to the waiting room. I once watched her ignore the phone for 20 minutes and get her own friend in for an appointment. She has retired but been replaced with a very angry Eastern European lady who sits listening to death metal and mutters (I assume not nice things) in Polish under her breath. I go because my GP is fantastic, but god their receptionist are a breed...

I work as a Medical Receptionist and myself and the rest of the staff are lovely to patients. I've seen posts on Tik Tok about rude Receptionist and also from a Receptionist point of view. It's a hard job but no need to be rude that goes for the patients as well as the staff.

I had to intervene one of the last times I was at the GP because the receptionist, usually fine enough, was actually being racist to a patient who was struggling with English. Absolutely awful and I think that incident (and my subsequent complaints) was the last of her though as I haven’t seen her since.

Rough? Well thank you for that. Just remember we are human beings with feelings and to call anyone rough is downright disgusting.

I am a GP receptionist. It’s an incredibly difficult job for minimum wage. Not one receptionist in my practice works full time we couldn’t cope with the pressure/abuse every day.

what most people don’t realise is, we physically ‘make’ the appointments but it is most definitely not our decision about when the patients get the appointment. We will ask what the symptoms are and how long they have had them etc and then add them onto the triage list with this information. It is then decided by the clinician whether they need an on the day appointment, appointment within a week or a routine appointment. They also decide whether they see a GP, nurse practitioner, physio etc. We then have to phone and make the appointment.

I will always start off polite and do my best to help people but will not be spoken to rudely, and we obviously will go out of our to help if they are polite.

It’s always going to be difficult when there aren’t enough appointments and people are worried about their health but the NHS is suffering and what doesn’t help is things like, I need more antibiotics my child doesn’t like the flavour or they like the colour pink instead of yellow!

Our surgery isn't fantastic but I've always found the receptionists friendly and as understanding as they can be within the limits of what they can offer.

I call reasonably regularly due to ongoing family health issues and most times they come up with something helpful.

Surgery pharmacy on the other hand needs to learn customer service skills..

And so are the patients human beings and are entitled to be spoken to nicely.

I am sorry @Troysmammy but some GP receptionists are rougher than a badger's bottom and unhelpful with it.

It is very different at my new doctors but at the old one they were vile, utterly vile.

They are a mixed bag for sure. I bet they are pissed at having to wear awful floral print polyester blouses all the time. I know I would be.

There is a receptionist at my GP who is lovely. I went to make an appointment for mental health reasons and I didn't even say why. She twigged straight away by how I was acting. She has always been lovely when I go there.

Then there is another who has massive fake nails, and just looks at you and talks to you like you are shit.

@Jenna2212 They all seem really nice and helpful at my surgery. Previous surgery was the same. Must be lucky, I guess.

Mostly it’s probably because they are fed up of dealing with entitled members of the public every day. But yes, they do seem to take it to extremes.