To be surprised by how difficult it is to get (non-urgent) medical attention?

[VelvetSpoon]

I phoned my GP surgery today to make an appointment.

I am not ill, it is not life threatening. However, it is something that ideally I would prefer to arrange sooner rather than later.

The next available appointment is on 10 June.

The surgery used to operate open appointments on certain mornings (between 8.30-9.30 I think) where you could turn up and wait to be seen. This has now been replaced by an arrangement where you call in on the morning, and there are 10 appointments available (so if you're caller 11, hard luck). However, the next one of those is not til next Tues and of course absolutely no guarantee I'll even get seen then.

I asked if there were any other options - yes, apparently I can attend a local clinic. Great, I thought. Except it then transpires the local clinics only see the under 25s

I was left feeling distinctly unimpressed, and still no closer to actually seeing a Dr! Oh, and to add insult to injury, the only appt they had on the 10th is at 1pm, too early to get to if I take an afternoon off, and too late to get to work in time if I have the morning off. Surely I should not have to take an entire day off for a (pretty routine) Dr's appointment, and have to wait 2 bloody weeks for it?!!

Just report them to CQC, utterly ridiculous, OP.

Herecomes I'm sorry but can I just say that I have heard reception staff being unspeakably rude to members of the public but I have never heard a member of the public be rude to them. Do you think that if the people who worked for the NHS were a little more polite, the public might be a little more respectful. I know it isn't every practice because I changed practices at Christmas time (we moved) and am constantly amazed at the professionalism and pleasantness of the new one in comparison to the old.

I am always polite to patients and only get thanks from about 20%. I could earn more working in tesco. I had to speak to a boy on the phone whose alcoholic mother was naked and urinating everywhere, I have to speak to people whose spouses have just died, people who've just been diagnosed with cancer, call consultants at home because the dr really needs to speak with them, give people their blood results, call ambulances for people who've phoned in having a heart attack. Receptionists have a really hard job and I get so, so angry with everyone saying how horrible drs receptionists are.

Spotty I do appreciate what you are saying but not all doctor's receptionists are like you. At my last practice they were horrific: miserable, rude, surly, unhelpful, everything was too much trouble. At the new practice they are polite and professional. People can only speak as they have found. My old practice had the LCD appointment board installed and they stopped even looking up and saying good morning as people walked in. I even heard them being quite horrid to a very elderly lady who couldn't understand what to do.

Whilst it makes you cross that people complain about Doctor's receptionists it makes me cross that so many are so rude. The last time I phoned for blood results I was barked at because I phoned before 2pm. When I phoned back I was told there was indeed a problem with my liver function and to make an appointment with the doctor; I explained I hadn't had that tested. Whats yer name again then. Oh right that was Mrs xxxxx's and they gave me the lady's name . They couldn't give my results though because they couldn't find them. No apology for wasting my time or making mistakes. It's very difficult to remain polite at times.

So glad I changed practices.

Retropear I can't speak for your son of course but in many children a nocturnal cough can be the only sign of asthma, sometimes with vague non-specific symptoms such as a slightly tight chest or occasional shortness of breath when running around. Wheeze can be inaudible (only heard with a stethoscope) and an asthma attack is a sign that things have gone Badly Wrong. Using regular preventer inhalers can avoid an attack, and mean that the child has no symptoms.

Certainly if you're unhappy with the nurse's management then make a GP appointment. I appreciate not all GPs and nurses are infallible - except me of course

I agree windymill. I have experienced similar.

Spotty- I have to say your job isn't easy, and you are an exception to what most people experience. Good on you for remaining professional. It is a thankless job (I have been a receptionist before- albeit not a medical one). However you need to appreciate that a good majority of GP receptionists - as proved by the numerous testimonies here, are not polite, not professional and not a pleasure to interact with. I'm sure they could say the same for the patients, but the general public aren't being paid (yes noted- poorly paid) to be polite. You are.

I often feel GP receptionist are as over worked as the GP's and can be rude but also very helpful.

I've often found explaining to receptionist what the issue is often helps them offer me the best solution.

Often they have arranged for a dr to call rather than an appointment to discuss whether the Dr needs to be involved.

My worst though was 2 weeks after a c section HV thought my wound might be infected and told me to call the dr's for an appointment. Receptionist said only appointment was 2 weeks away I booked it - told Dp who instantly called back and demanded that I was seen sooner as if wound was infected then 'i probably wouldn't have lasted 2 weeks' I was in such a new baby sleep trying to BF haze I didn't think.

However you need to appreciate that a good majority of GP receptionists - as proved by the numerous testimonies here, are not polite, not professional and not a pleasure to interact with.

You are of course quite right, I can't excuse or deny the experiences you have faced as patients from receptionists, nurses, HCAs & GPs. It's not defendable or in any way acceptable but as health care professionals we are also confronted with rude, verbally and on occasion physically abusive patients which is also unacceptable.

I don't know how to fix it but maybe if we could all work a little more harmoniously together maybe we could improve this imploding system that the government appear intent on destroying.

It would help if all HCPs would stop blaming the patient, and making out we are all greedy time-wasters. We're really not.

What Sidge said above: People often lack common sense - they wake up with a sore throat and a headache but instead of having some paracetamol and a glass of water and seeing how it goes they pick up the phone and call for an appointment.

^That is because of constant very high cost ad campaigns telling us to see our GP. And media campaigns that similarly cost thousands. For example, the lung cancer one - if you've got a cough, see your GP.

HCPs should be complaining at the top of their voice about these ridiculous and expensive campaigns, rather than making out that all patients are nasty time-wasters.

I don't think all HCPs are blaming the patients at all.

The majority of my patients are delightful and certainly not time wasters (although I would question a few).

I've never seen an ad that tells you to see a GP if you wake up with a sore throat and you're absolutely right f there is one out there we should be complaining about it.

I have seen one that says if you have a cough for more than 3 weeks you should quite rightly seek a medical opinion.

Why is always the government destroying it though? I had my children in in between 1994 and 1998 and the government were destroying the system then. Oddly enough the worst period of service, due to what the government said had to happen, was between about 1998 and 2009. That's when the same day or 24 hour grossly inflexible appointment rule came in and that's when 28 day prescribing came in. It was also the period during which the Primary Care Trusts were introduced as a cash draining additional layer of bureacracy. They did nothing to improve care. I remember the GPs welcoming them with open arms possibly because they were a labour party initiative. In 1994 when I had my first baby midwives and health visitors where complaining hard about how bad things were and how stretched they were and how things couldn't get worse (they had plenty of time to chat about the weather); they were still doing it in 1998; from threads on here they seem to still be doing it now.

So, was it bad in 1994? Was it bad in 1998? Is it worse now? Did it get better between 1997 and 2010? I somehow doubt it. The problem is I think rather like the hypochondriac patient, when the health professionals cry wolf and there is a wolf we are a little tired of the refrain and tend to ignore them.

The GPs only agreed to the NHS in the first place because Bevan stuffed their mouths with gold. They may now have a little less gold but last year 700 GPs earned more than £200,000 and more than 16,000 GPs are earning more than £100,000. I think you will find that most people who earn that sort of money don't work a 35 hour week but closer to the 12 hour days quoted by many GPs.

YANBU and it is political. to all the embattled HCPs on here, and something less attractive for those whose eyes are shut and think they'll be OK.

Ooooh, semantics...OK, it would help if all HCPs from all areas of the NHS who currently blame the patient and absolve themselves of any responsibility would stop doing it.

And if their colleagues would pull them up on it when they see it happening.

I have seen far more patients be rude aggressive and demanding to our poor receptionists than the other wayround, ssuch that it is not uncommon to have one in tears at least once a week. Nice.

Windymill were are your stats from I don't know any GPs that earn close to 100k and as for 35 hrs don't make me laugh. I am so called part time (60%) and I work 40-45 hrs every week. And I don't earn close to 100k. You are falling for the clever spin, that will dress up virgin and serco as cheaper, we shall see ...trust me if I am salaried for less money I will clock on and off and do not a second more, the NHS will lose all it's goodwill. I wonder whether it doesnt rather deserve it.

Nobody on this thread has said that all patients are time wasters unless I missed something. Some patients are time wasters and they do impact on the ability of others to get appointments. Just as many are scared of being time wasters that they avoid asking for help even when seriously ill as I explained in my earlier post. Dnas also impact on appointment availability.

The other reason is like it or not JCP can only see one person at a time, we need more but that costs money. I'm sorry but we're only human.

As for adverts the cough one doesn't say see your GP if you have a cough it says see your GP for a long lasting cough ie weeks. The bowel cancer one promotes the use of self test kits which are posted off. There's an ask your pharmacist ad campaign (I'm very pissed off with the actions of some individual pharmacists on here). There's a colds are self limiting you don't need antibiotics campaign. Ask your midwife campaign etc. So no they don't all tell you to see your GP.

Oh and I have tried to pull up colleagues being ruse to patients. I got reported for unprofessional conduct because we're not allowed to. Be reassured of one thing though, if you overheard some of the conversations we have in private you'd realise we get angry at poor service at least as much as you do if not more so.

www.telegraph.co.uk/health/nhs/10595090/GPs-pay-Number-of-doctors-earning-100000-has-quadrupled-report-shows

www.theguardian.com/society/2013/sep/25/fall-number-gps-earn-200000

Do excuse me I wasn't suggesting doctors were working 35 hours pw to earn that; merely pointing out that most high earners work extremely long hours and it isn't confined to GPs.

Ah of course the guardian and the telegraph those well known bastions of accurate factual reporting :-D

apologies link fail

www.nationalheadlines.co.uk/gps-pay-number-of-doctors-earning-100000-has-quadrupled-report-shows/22476/

Hopefully this one will work.