AIBU to be annoyed at doctors receptionist?

[ihatetheoneshow]

NC because this may out me (I've whinged a lot about this to various friends today)

Called doctors surgery this morning to get an appointment for 6 month old. Obviously wanted one for today so was calling between 8 and 9 am.

Eventually, after an hour on hold (it's a busy surgery so not overly bothered about that), receptionist answers asking how she can help. Conversation went like this:

R: how can I help?
Me: id like an appointment for today please.
R: we only have emergency appts. Is it really an emergency?
Me: yes it's for my 6 month old.
R: okay. (Takes DDs name) and what is wrong with her?

This is where I got annoyed, as that's the reason I'm seeing a doctor. I shouldn't have to list symptoms to the receptionist. She asked with such a patronising tone that I almost snapped back at her that is was the doctors business not hers. However, that is unreasonable so I answered politely whilst seething quietly.

I probably ABU, is it standard practice now for receptionists to ask why you are seeing a doctor? Does it help them decide if it is an emergency? I just don't get why she needed to know.

This apparent "standard practice" is bad practice. I would not disclose to a receptionist why I wished to speak to my GP because it is s private matter s d no business of a jumped-up desk dragon.
You do not have to inform them.

...is a private matter and no business...

It's isn't triage. The receptionist should not be prioritising or otherwise.

What they are doing is clerking- taking a brief history so a gp can triage or prepare appropriately.

It's the same in a&e- the receptionist takes an outline of the issue which is put in your notes. The triaging nurse then uses that infformation treatment to help them prioritise.

jumped-up desk dragon.

Lovely.

Love the way people picked up on my "early pregnancy bleeding people" yes, odd. I was really tired and typing faster then my brain. What I meant to write was "women with early pregnancy bleeding" HTH

Sorry, it just looked really funny the way you put it

Helpful poppy. Super attitude.

If I were a receptionist I would just assume anyone who says 'it's a private matter which I won't discuss with you' to be non-urgent and move them down the list.

Another GP here. When our patients want a same-day appointment, they are put on a triage list by the receptionist, with, hopefully, a 2 or 3 word summary of the problem. As the duty GP I have the list in front of me, growing longer by the second, and I phone these patients in turn to deal with them on the phone, book them a GP appointment, arrange for them to see a nurse, book an appointment on another day, or use appointments that only I, as the GP, have access to, for very specific procedures/ types of appointment.

Generally I work through the list in the order they phoned. But if a patient has said they are breathless/ have chest pain/ something else that may be serious, I can see this information, and I will call them ahead of their turn (often immediately). On the other hand if someone has refused to give details, or said "personal", they are inevitably much lower priority than the 70 or 80 others who have given a reason, any reason, and so it will usually take me longer to get to them.

The system is there for safety and maximum efficiency. Many people call us inappropriately; either because they should actually have called 999, or because they have a problem that we can't help with (eg something not medical!). Most of these can be re-directed safely by our trained receptionists (they receive a lot of training, both formal and informal), but not all. The system helps ensure that people who really do need help get it in a timely manner.

To help yourself, give the receptionist very brief information. No great detail is required, but it can make all the difference to the care you receive.

Hmm. Last time I needed an emergency apt there weren't any. Receptionist asked what the prob was. I explained it was a breast lump that felt different to my usual ones. She asked when I cd het to the surgery and I said after 6. I was the second emergency that afternoon and the receptionist phoned back to say the Dr would be staying to see us and cd I get there by 6.20pm.

Unbelievably helpful because I shared the problem. Sorry but YABU.

Makes note to write thank you to managing partner!

This thread is making me cross. Why deliberately make it harder for other people to do their job and run a practise as efficiently as possible? Surely that's in everyone's interest.
It doesn't have to be your life history, just
'Yes, really urgent, I can't breathe' or
'It's my excema'

YANBU

They are not medically trained and it is none of their business. They're so often rude, insensitive, grumpy, but that goes for plenty of the NHS doctors too to be honest.

I have solved the problem by moving abroad. Private system and because I am now treated as a customer, the receptionists and the doctors are very polite and helpful.

I want - thanks that makes reasonable sense to me.

As embarrassing as it was to have receptionist question why I wanted an urgent appointment for thrush her pointing me in the direction of the nurse was really helpful. If I hadn't given a reason why I needed an appointment, I would have been trying to call back at 8am the next day and needlessly taking up a GP appointment.

I hate this when I am in an open plan office! I have to go with "I'd rather not say" as those around me pretend to work and eves drop loads!.

Jimminy as a paying customer your aren't likely to book appointments needlessly. The down side of a free NHS is people do run to the GP for sniffles or things that the pharmacist can help.

I used to be a nurse in walk in centre (before most of them got closed, sigh) and our receptionists used to ask the patients for what was wrong with them so that the nursing staff could triage. They weren't diagnosing, they were just inputting what the patient said into the computer.

It costs €60 (£52gbp) in my GP's surgery for an appointment which you usually get within a day or two. People on benefits may be entitled to a medical card to cover the cost of the visit.

From 8am- 10am its a walk in slot so first come first served with priority/emergency cases taking precedence.

I think the fee, plus having to pay for any antibiotics or other prescriptions puts a lot of the hypochondriacs and malingerers off wasting GP time.

I had to describe my dayglow discharge to someone who essentially answers phones for a living before I actually got to a dr

I'm sure there are receptionists out there who do overstep the mark, but why the snobbery about someone who answers phones for a living?

When I worked for Fire And Rescue we had a call from someone who had flipped his car onto its roof and had ended up trapped in it, upside down, in a field. He'd been unconscious and could barely remember his own name, let alone what road he'd been on. The call handler got an idea of where he might be from his mobile phone. She then mobilised the nearest available vehicles to go and look for him. She kept him on the phone, partly to keep him calm and conscious, partly to gain more information about where he was - what was growing in the field? Could he see the road? Did it have any road markings on it? Could he see any telegraph poles? All of this was information which helped narrow down where he was so the people on the ground could get to him.

It took them 15 minutes to locate him - pretty good going in one of the largest, most rural counties in England with the longest road network. But you know, the call handler just answers phones for a living, it's not like she's helping to save lives.

When I was call handling for an out of hours GP service we would have people who were completely asymptomatic and not in a high risk group demand to speak to a GP about the current flu scare. This despite the fact that anything the GP was likely to say to someone with no symptoms had been made extensively available. It meant people who were actually ill had their treatment delayed. But then again, we had people call and say "I don't want to cause any trouble, but my husband's turning blue and I don't think he's breathing."

Really, people find it incredibly difficult to work out how important, or not, their call is. With a few basic details, receptionists and call handlers can just help streamline things so GPs are saved time and can prioritise. Don't underestimate what it takes to "just answer phones".

I'm a doctors receptionist. I really don't mind getting flamed on here.
But the reason we need to ask to workout what the issue is, I've had someone with chest pains call asking for a appointment for the afternoon, 30secs into the phone call my colleague was calling 999 for him when I had him on the phone.

The flip side to that is we get an AWFUL amount of patients asking for a emergency appointment to just order medication, when we can sort that even if they have run out. If everyone who called had a emergency appointment then there wouldn't be enough emergency appointments left for people who NEED them

We do a sit and wait service as well but you do need to call to book on, I would certainly much rather on come and wait in the doctors for things like regular meditation myself, if it can go straight to the pharmacy to be ready whenever I want to collect it.

I do think that we should be trained more in more medical ways, the amount of things I need to know to actually help save people's lives, yes they are going small things but they do add up. Plus we only get paid 10p above min wage. I would get a lot more pay stacking boxes with a lot less stress.

Right with you Tweed.

Thanks wanking 12 hours at work today and brain is still not working properly.

The only thing that annoys me is,when I politely ask for a non urgent appointment, happy to wait as I work full time but needs to be beg or end of day and receptionist goes into the "got one tomorrow at 3.40, oh well there's one next Tuesday at 11.30.

I live one hour from my workplace. That I don't understand. Yes, I'm happy to wait for an early or late apt - as long as it takes - for things like medication reviews, etc.

Thanks wanking 12 hours at work today and brain is still not working properly.

That's not very professional...

Okay thoughts, I'll come clean. It wasn't sniffles. It was something much worse...she sneezed shock. If that's not a reason for an urgent appointment, what is??!

what? I don't know what point you're trying to sarcastically make? From what I gather, your baby has a cold. Is that correct?

When ds1 was about four months I thought he had a sniffly cold and didn't think it was an emergency and I was an uber fussy new mummy and didn't want the Dr to think I was over reacting. I called and asked for a non urgent apt for a sniffly baby. The receptionist said she'd fit us in as he was only a wee baby. The Dr examined carefully, said he was wheezing, showed me hus bottom ribs sucking in, wrote a letter for a&e and told me to take him straight there after packing a little bag. A,week later we were home. He had bronchiolitis! I had no idea .

At my doctors you need an appointment if you want a repeat prescription. You can't get one otherwise.

Unfortunately when you phone them and are waiting, they repeat EVERY 7 seconds that they know that you are waiting, which just means that you are feeling murderous by the time that the receptionist picks up the phone. You are also then told that you cannot book an appointment, ANY appointment and you will have to try again tomorrow. Like work is going to let you spend half hour every morning trying to book a doctor's appointment, because the surgery doesn't open before 9am.

I don't mind telling receptionists the issue, unless it's to do with mental health and then I find it hard to tell the doctor, let alone the receptionist.