to not want to give symptoms to GP receptionist?

[vintageteacups]

So I called the GP surgery this morning and, as like the last time I rang, the first thing the receptionist said when I asked to book a doc's appoinment for dd (9) was:

"what seems to be the problem? We have a nurse's clinic this afternoon"

I calmly said that I would like a doctor's appointment and didn't tell her the symptoms.

What on earth? We pay our taxes and it's our right to take dd to see the gp, yet this cold fish of a woman just went "right, Dr .... at 11:50 then", took the name and address and put down the phone.

As has happened before, I felt really guilty about taking DD and felt as though I was wasting their time (even though I hadn't said what was wrong wtih dd).

Surely they can sift out the ones who turn up every monday morning with a spot on their finger and another runny nose (however, it's surely their right to book an appointment if they want) compared to me who has taken dd and ds probably twice each in 2 years. I have been once in 2 years!

They have a comments sheet - was thinking about extending it into a letter.
The receptionists have a really bad reputation for being grumpy and unhelpful.

Edited for Clarity - I agree. Such people have never working in a Public Facing role and have general feelings of superiority to those they consider less educated than themselves

If you mean me, I was actually an admin officer for a govt. dept where my daiuly job involved speaking to farmers, vets, the public about exporting their pets etc. My job relied on my good interpsonal skills, for which I was highly praised so I would never look down on anyone in any job and truly believe that its the service sector that keeps the country running; whether they have a degree or left school at 15.

Jamie, you could just as easily say receptionists have a chip on their shoulder about people who they think are better educated, and are on a power jag. But that would be a dreadful stereotype too, and I think it would be wrong. The truth is, nobody needs to be rude, and receptionists need to make an effort to be sensitive. It's not hard to see that.

See, teacups it strikes me that your sister wasn't terribly polite towards the receptionist on that occasion, if that's how the conversation really went.
She "said the screen was broken." Could she not have asked politely if there might have been some mistake as she'd been waiting a while to be seen?

Nah, you are right Gooseberry.

I think she asked first whether she had been booked in and the receptionist said no. Then she said that the screen must have been broken......

She was polite - you just can't get emotion from something typed on here.

vintage - OK. I will bow out now. This thread has just outed some people who have got on my nerves. You aren't one of them.

Hmm - I can't actually believe it's still going .

I suppose it rather depends whether anyone else had had trouble logging in that day. The chances are it was more likely to have been an error on your sister's part, than the screen being at fault, if everyone else had been OK. And let's face it, it's not difficult to botch those screens. Have done it myself before now, more than once.
I don't envy practice receptionists one bit. They're the front-line for everyone's wrath - probably partly because we deal with them when we likely to be unwell, worried or out-of-sorts in some way. Our tolerance levels aren't what they otherwise might be.

Am a receptionist..studied classics at oxford. My colleague has a degree in French and German, not really uneducated

I think you must be pretty unusual with qualifications like that. Really think most receptionists have little in the way of formal qualifications.

nonsense, people take such jobs after having children

Wow, so you're saying with a degree from Oxford, after having children you're destined for life as a erm receptionist?

I'm not usually plain rude on mumsnet but sorry rocky and lady, those replies are just plain dense.

Of course someone can have endless quals and be perfectly happy working as a receptionist.

I can quite happily tell you that I left uni with a 2:1 bachelor of science degree in geography and found it tricky getting a job in the same region as DP so took my first job as a civil servant admin assistant on just under £7000.

It's all relative and you're to think otherwise.

Some people don't have the same aspirations as the next person and I have been perfectly happy to be a SAHM and raise my children and not use child care than if I had carried on working my way up in the civil service.

I'm doing my phd.

I intend on staying at home and raising my children.

If I decided to work, it wouldn't be a receptionist. If I had aimed for a erm career in being a receptionist I wouldn't have bothered going through university for the past 6 years.

ladyofthecuntrymanor - fine, I have to do the job as my DD has severe SN so I can only work two afternoons a week.

is that OK? Sorry I am not as wonderful and ambitious as you.

What happened to sisterhood? Why so bitchy

an "erm career"

how fecking condescending.

I might not have as wonderful a career as you but at least I have elementary people skills and am not arrogant and obnoxious.

stick your "erm receptionist" up your arse, tbh

I don't have a career. I am not working. I am working on my phd and raising kids full time.

No I don't believe being a receptionist is a career I believe it is a job. A job is a job is a job. At least you work, good on you. But a career it is not.

plus..being a dental receptionist is not a piece of piss..the dentists at my practice freely admit they couldn't do it

I'm not even going to waste a second of my life talking to you any more.

I never said it was a "career".

It's what I have to do to earn some cash and have enough time to care for my DD.

I am frankly astonished that someone would speak to me in such an insufferably patronising manner.

Have no wish to engage with your snobbery any further.

I refuse to accept that answering the phone and writing in the appointment book is truly difficult for an Oxford grad.

ASo lady once you have your phd (what's it in?), what will you do? What is your degree in?

Why are you being so mean about jobs/careers etc. Very condescending.

And actually, aside from a career, if the women in the UK didn't volunteer as they do, the economy would collapse - and that's a fact.

I am an NHS worker (not a receptionist but similar band), despite having qualifications out of my ears. combination of antenatal MH issues and having a child with SN mean I am way overqualified for the job I do. Sometimes that's what life does to you, shrugs.

Believe what you like, am not going to waste my time explaining my job to you..

Although I do believe I am the true judge of how difficult it is..since I actually do it ..have been a programmer and IT manager and being a receptionist is actually more challenging sometimes.

But what would I know, I have only done the job for 6 years.