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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Doctor's fucking punctuality

314 replies

AnotherTimeMaybe · 20/04/2016 18:37

So went to doctor today and he was late again! Previous patient came late so he couldn't just chuck him out and he took me half hour later ,I was late for school pick up ended up paying late care
I don't get it, why are they allowed to be late we are supposed to accept it or leave and miss the appointment for which I had to take day off! And if we are late they wait for 5 minutes and then you go back to the bottom of the queue
AIBU ? Is this a life sentence?

OP posts:
unlucky83 · 21/04/2016 15:06

I will never complain about a GP running late...because I've been the patient who caused a massive delay.
Routine appt for a serious ongoing health issue, GP was already running maybe 20 min late. At the end of the appt, just as I was at the door leaving, she asked me how I was in myself (guess she had sensed something not quite right) - it caught me off guard, I let my mask slip and said I want to die. I was suicidally depressed, had been covering it up, keeping it secret, whilst planning the best way of killing myself. She didn't let me leave until she knew I was 'safe', had arranged for me to get counselling, etc etc. I was in there for more than 40 mins (then I had to walk out, tear stained, past all the patients who I had kept waiting)
But I really don't think I would be alive now without her asking me that question and then taking the time to get me immediate help.

GraysAnalogy · 21/04/2016 15:12

unlucky I'm glad you got a doctor who sensed what was going on and gave you the time you needed and deserved. I feel terrible that there must be people who don;t get that time because of pressures.

I hope you're doing okay now Flowers

TheGhostOfBarryFairbrother · 21/04/2016 15:25

I too have been that patient. I had self harmed badly and they called an ambulance to take me to A&E. A doctor and a nurse sat with me until it arrived, holding my hand and keeping me safe. It was probably one of the most vulnerable times of my life. By the time I left, they were an hour late.

My GP always takes the time to really listen to me, and recently after being discharged from hospital where I'd been under section, he spent 45 minutes talking through my suicidal thoughts and helped me to avoid a further inpatient stay.

I am so lucky that these health professionals put patient care first or I might not be here.

PortiaCastis · 21/04/2016 15:34

FuckSanta Complain to PALS if your GP is starting late and is known for it. All surgeries are subject to CQC inspections so I'm sure something can be done

bluecarpet · 21/04/2016 16:01

Complain to PALS if your GP is starting late and is known for it

PALS will politely tell you to get lost, they are a hospital service. You complain to the practice and if you aren't happy with the response to NHS England.

Sidge · 21/04/2016 16:29

PALS have nothing to do with GP services...

I can't speak for all GPs obviously, but the ones I work for do occasional home visits before clinics, especially for patients that are terminally ill and death is imminent. Also my GPs have to do a quick ward round for their patients that are in the GP ward at our local community hospital. Very occasionally there is a problem and they are late in to the surgery.

Our partners also had a contract to provide care for residents at our local immigration detention centre and did a rolling rota covering the morning visits, so patients might see "their" GP come in late on those days.

I can't understand why people think the GP/NP/practice nurse is happy to run late constantly - we also have homes and families to get back to and an accumulated late running clinic means we're late home too! It's not like we sit in the consulting room fannying about on Facebook eating biscuits.

PortiaCastis · 21/04/2016 16:40

Sorry I was wrong. We have a patient liason group at our surgery so I was getting muddled. I presume that a complaint can be made to the NHS trust or what about the practice manager?

FuckSanta · 21/04/2016 16:44

You complain to the practice and if you aren't happy with the response to NHS England.

Not if you're not in England you don't. Wink

Sidge · 21/04/2016 16:50

If you want to make a complaint you initially make it to the practice manager - if necessary, depending on the basis of the complaint it may be escalated to another organisation such as NHS England (it is different in Scotland and Wales).

As far as I am aware patient liaison groups do not have anything to do with complaints. They do not have access to patient information.

PortiaCastis · 21/04/2016 17:35

Thank you sidge

GraysAnalogy · 21/04/2016 17:58

What annoys me is more complaints = less funding. When a lot of the time a place that has the most complaints needs the most funding (not sure about GP specifically but wards etc)

AliceInUnderpants · 21/04/2016 18:00

Those who complain the GPs arrive late in the morning, or are late to see patients.

If my GP has been called out during the night, or is late to work due to signing off on a death, organising someone to attend hospital (because GP have far more to do than just seeing patients in surgery), then you can bet I damn well don't mind if they are late or if ^god forbid* they need to take 10 minutes to wipe a few tears, phone their spouse or reload with a cup of coffee before they see me.

GPs aren't late to piss you off.

MammaTJ · 21/04/2016 18:09

I was half an hour late going in to see my GP the other day.

When I book an appointment, I know that is going to happen and I accept it. He is very thourough and gives all if his patients more time than allocated. As he did me.

I never feel rushed by him and always feel properly looked after. I prefer a wait and have that kind of treatment, than to know he is being quick and slapdash!

Itsmine · 21/04/2016 18:10

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

2rebecca · 21/04/2016 18:10

Complaints over trivia are one reason many doctors are keen to retire as soon as possible.
"my doctor saw me late" is a trivial reason for a complaint.

WreckTangled · 21/04/2016 18:21

Some of the reasons doctors might start late:

They're looking at urgent emails/results/tasks
A gp has called in sick and they're trying to arrange cover
A district nurse has caught them before they start to ask for visit for a pertinent who is going to die imminently but hadn't been seen by a gp for two weeks (so trying to avoid in going to coroners)
Their child was sick and they had to sort emergency childcare (yes this has happened!)

SilverDragonfly1 · 21/04/2016 18:42

Regarding overbooking, I think that would be hard to avoid with current staff numbers. I was taken into hospital as an emergency last month and the consultant wanted to see me within 3 weeks of my release. Of course his clinic was completely booked with such short notice, so they could either overbook me or else let me wait for months with a potentially fatal condition in need of surgery. In the event it has been nearly 6 weeks, because the appointment wasn't made when I was discharged or when I called the first time to ask when it would be... but that's another story!

I'm anticipating a looooong wait on Monday, especially as the appointment slot is late afternoon, but I won't be complaining about it Grin

piesoclock · 21/04/2016 19:01

I've had a tell me the appointment was over and I had to leave bc she had other patients to see. It was at a very traumatic time and I had been fighting back tears all appt. She was a bitch.
And I had booked a double appt anyway. Bitch.

GrumpyMummy123 · 21/04/2016 19:08

I had a half hour wait (past appointment time) for appointment the other day. I start to get fidgety as will be late to pick DS up from childminder... I ask as reception and they apologies, think I'm the next one in.

Sure enough a minute or two later I'm called in. Dr is extremely apologetic for keeping me waiting. She was on the phone to a parent whose small child had ingested something they weren't suppose to! Honestly I think that takes priority.

There's a fantastic private hospital close by who do private appointmentsector - very flexible with times, evenings, weekends etc. But it's £90 per appointment. Or I can go to the NHS Dr that is free and wait if an emergency crops up or appointment before me is an old lady who takes longer than the 10mins allocated to get to the room, explain problem undress, redress and ask for clarification of what the Dr said again.

Yes give feedback to the surgery that you find long waits annoying. But chances are its not actually there fault. They could do longer appointmentso so they don't run over time so often but then they can't see as many people so you have more difficulty getting an appointment.

I'm not saying the NHS is perfect. But it bloody amazing to have for free. Dr's are superstars for putting up with the crap they have to deal with.

CountessOfStrathearn · 21/04/2016 19:25

"None of our GPS are called out during the night since the 2004 contract that gives ooh to other providers."

Who do you think staffs the GP OOH at night?

Local GPs!

Itsmine · 21/04/2016 19:55

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

ChickensRideWest · 21/04/2016 19:56

*Today 11:00 SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius

ChickensRideWest - "Probably because I didn't fling the 3 depressed patients in a row out of my room after 10 minutes."

SothatHappened - "Oh god are we that bad...us depressives. Genuine question...."

SoThat - I didn't read that as Chickens thinking we depressives are bad - my understanding of what she said is that she wasn't prepared to cut short the time her patients with depression needed, simply in order to meet the 10 minute appointment time.*

STDG that's exactly what I meant, thanks Flowers. Having suffered severe antenatal and postnatal depression myself once and having horrendous 'care' from my own GP and midwives I understand just how hard it is to seek help and the journey to recovery is a marathon and not a sprint. It requires, amongst many things, an understanding HCP who has the time to be there for you. 10 minutes is just not enough and I refuse to cut corners for my patients, hence why I run late.

ChickensRideWest · 21/04/2016 20:03

itsmine it will depend on the area. In our OOH some doctors will do late evening shifts after a day's work in OOH and have to work the next day. There are also GPs who are 'on call' so not working an OOH shift but may be called in if its dangerously busy or an emergency happens etc. So it can happen.

Other GPs do home visits before coming in. My mum's GP came to verify her when she passed away at home at 8am before she had a 9am surgery. She'd been to see my mum at 9pm the night before to sort out her meds. She could have left it to the OOH service but she didn't.

FeedMyFaceWithJaffaCakes · 21/04/2016 20:10

Ummm how do you know the person before you wasn't given bad news? potential bad news, more scans or even a diagnosis of something for example? Would you want time to discuss that with your GP?
Yes you would.
Maybe the person before you was late because the were helping their disabled wife/mother on and off the toilet before they left and then couldn't get parked. Maybe they've come to the Drs because they're totally at breaking point and need more than ten minutes to discuss it.
Please be kind and considerate.

SoThatHappened · 21/04/2016 21:03

STDG that's exactly what I meant, thanks Flowers. Having suffered severe antenatal and postnatal depression myself once and having horrendous 'care' from my own GP and midwives I understand just how hard it is to seek help and the journey to recovery is a marathon and not a sprint. It requires, amongst many things, an understanding HCP who has the time to be there for you. 10 minutes is just not enough and I refuse to cut corners for my patients, hence why I run late.

Chickens it was just the 3 ina row bit that made me think, oh christ am I being a pain.

One of my GPs didnt give a flying arse fuck and often asked me why I was there. I was BAD with depression and deteriorated very quickly and my GP made me think I cant go back. She told me to go to the gym to perk up endorphins. How can I do that when I dont even want to leave my room and cant get dressed most days?

Then I went back 8 months later (oh yes that long) to talk to someone else and i got a very nice and caring GP. He asked to see me again and was very understanding. I feel like Im not hassling anyone or wasting their time which is how I felt with my old GP.