To not want to disclose a further reason

[SquarePegRoundHole]

.... for requesting change of day of hospital appointment.

Consultant referred me to another department for tests. Received an automated phone call asking if I could attend on a particular day. Press 1 for yes, press 2 for no. I pressed 2. The automated service then said it wasn't actually cancelled and I would need to ring the number on my letter.

The said letter arrived 2 days later detailing the appointment which I had already said I could not attend. I rang the number on the letter and I spoke to a real person.

I said I was unable to attend that day and could I please have another appointment. I was asked what the reason was I could not attend. I said I was unable to get there that day. This led to being asked a further 2 times.

The operative then stated I will cancel it but I can't make you another one as the person whose job that it is isn't here. He sounded stroppy. I let it go, said ok and bye etc.

9:00 am this morning same person telephoned me and reiterated that I had cancelled an appointment and was I sure that I could not make it. Yes I said I was sure. He said there wasn't any other appointments available for the foreseeable further so was I SURE I could not attend. WTAF.

I remained calm and unruffled and said I was a 'fellow professional' and be assured if I could attend on said day I would but I couldn't. They then offered me 1 of 3 other appointment times/days.

I'm perturbed on several levels. Their continual need to keep asking why I was unable attend, asking me on two separate occasions several times 'if I was sure I was unable to attend', them with holding appointments and brow beating me to attend etc.

AIBU or where they?

[Verbena37]

ninon have you ever seen a hospital appointment letter?
It gives you the date and time and then tells you to call a number to rearrange if that date isn't suitable.
It doesn't state you need to give them your personal reason as to why you can't make it.
Obviously some departments might have much fewer slots than others due to very specialist staff only being there on certain days, however, that is less common and usually there is an option of seeing another consultant or their registrar etc.
The people you should really be having a go at are the ones who simply don't bother turning up to an appointment.....that could save the NHS millions every year.....not people like the OP who was simply trying to rearrange.

[NinonDeLanclos]

I WAS MATURE AND I DID TELL THE TRUTH!

You withheld the full truth in a weirdly cagey way, when you had a perfectly valid reason, which likely made the NHS worker think you didn't.

If you'd been open and honest, you wouldn't have had a shirty response or had to write a thread about it.

[NinonDeLanclos]

have you ever seen a hospital appointment letter?

No, I've never had one in my life.

The thread isn't about a letter. When you speak to NHS secretaries on the phone and they're trying to fit you and a zillion other patients in, ime if you can't make it they generally ask why. My recent MRI scan was one example, but I have many others.

It's a massive organisation, everyone knows it's in financial crisis, appointments are scarce, and re-arranging them takes time and money.
I've accepted appointments around which I've had to rearrange my whole day, because I know I'm lucky to have one at all, and if I rearrange I may not get another one for at least a couple of months. So we need to use its resources responsibly. The secretary in this case was just trying to ensure that.

[TeatimeForTheSoul]

Please let the hospital PALS service know. I too work in NHS and while it would be fine to ask once for a reason if someone doesn't want to disclose there is usually a reason and they shouldn't be harangued. (Sorry if already suggested but haven't read whole thread). PALS can gently remind people of their duty to show respect.

Early in my 1srpt oregnancy I had to cancel a procedure as it was no longer advisable. The receptionist kept on insisting I told her why so I eventually said "because I've just found out I'm pregnant'. So, after me and DH, the 3rd to 10th people to know were strangers in the queue behind me. A lovely lady came up and said "Congatulations, and sorry you were made to announce it like that".

[frazzledbutcalm]

WOW!! I can't believe all these nasty posts! What's with everyone??

OP ... I'm with you ...

If you can't attend an appointment, FOR ANY REASON, there is a phone number provided to ring and rearrange! Why is everyone so against rearranging appointments??
I'm struggling to believe that everyone is always given appointments that absolutely suit them and are always able to attend ...

I've had to rearrange many appointments over the years ... NEVER have I been asked to give a reason, NEVER have I been asked if I'm sure, ALWAYS I've been given a new appointment.

I'd probably leave this thread OP as most here seem to just want an argumentative Monday.

You were very right earlier ... all round.

[parrots]

Slightly confusing thread, but it does read to me as though OP was - for some reason - reluctant to disclose her reasons for being able to attend - perhaps embarrassed about inability to drive herself or to afford a taxi? Is that it?

So she reiterated that she 'couldn't get there' but without volunteering the explanation as to why. Hence the AIBU about whether she should be compelled to disclose these additional reasons, or not?

[SquarePegRoundHole]

Thank you Frazzled'. I leave the page then I am strangely compelled to keep revisiting the thread just to see if the nest of vipers can get any nastier


Just what is it that turns the tide one way or the other? I think it could be that if the initial responses are poster bashing, then that sets the tone and everyone follows suit.

I think I will go make a nice cup of tea and get on with my day now. Everyone, it's over, there's no drama here. Thanks to everyone who responded, even the not so nice posters.

[scottishdiem]

SquarePegRoundHole

I dont doubt that shopping was the last thing on your mind. All I was pointing out that being a professional doesnt mean anything in that conversation. After all, these are people who work day in and out with nurses, doctors and consultants so see professionals act in bad faith on a regular basis. It was a pointless thing to say.

They are doing what they are paid to do which includes minimising cancellations and rearrangements.

[ThisThingCalledLove]

Do you know squarepeg I think it was the "fellow professional" comment that did for you It is a bit eye roll inducing, go on, admit it

In all seriousness, if you had worded the OP slightly differently "I didn't like this persons tone or lack of professionalism" we wouldn't have been so vipery, whereas your OP came across as "I don't have to justify myself, I am a professional".

We have all done it. I once got my arse properly handed to me on a smacking thread. This was probably about 8 years ago and at the time I was convinced I was NBU, now I think I was probably a sanctimonious smug twat

[graciestocksfield]

Whatever the circumstances, it's a big fat waste of time sending you an automated message about an appointment, you say you can't attend it, then they send you a letter saying you are still having the appointment when you said you couldn't go, then having to phone someone to sort it out. Three processes instead of one where you could just phone and make an appointment.

[Silvercatowner]

This thread is weird. I've had loads of clinic appts at hospital and I don't think any one of them is the original appointment I've been sent. I phone up and rearrange, never been asked for a reason, never been frowned at. Although I've never claimed to be a 'fellow professional' - that is a very strange thing to say.

[lalalalyra]

I'm amazed that it's the OP that's getting so much stick on this thread when it's the person on the phone who pushed and harrassed so much about a changed appointment then they changed their tone when the OP felt the need to point out she knows exactly why it's a hassle to change appointments so would only do it out of necessity.

[SomethingBorrowed]

Enough with the "professional" comments, isn't it fairly obvious that all OP wanted to point out was that they were both responsible adults, and that if she was capable of working as a professional then she should be capable of deciding if her reason for rescheduling an appt was good enough.

Anyway, the NHS is not some kind of great gift that we are given and we should't have to accept everything from it with no questions, it is a service paid for with our taxes, re-scheduling one appointment is acceptable!
Not acceptable would be not to turn up at all.

[melj1213]

I disagree. We are not school age children needing to justify ourselves.
I don't belive the NHS employee in charge of appointments has special skills allowing him to judge if my reason is worthy enough.

And I disagree with this, we may not be school aged children but you are getting free healthcare from a very overstretched system. The amount of appointments that are missed or not attended every day amounts to huge wastes of money and time, so if you need the services, the onus is on you to fit in with the available appointments, especially when the appointment in question is for a clinic/consultant with very limited appointments and a long waiting list.

If you don't want to drop your kids off with your family for one day or would rather prioritise drinks after work over a medical appointment, that is your decision but then I don't think that the NHS is obligated to go out of their way to find you a new appointment asap, but just put you back to the bottom of the list.

Some people just assume that if the appointment doesn't suit their schedule, then they can change it but with specialist clinics or departments the "next available appointment" isn't for another 8 months ... so they want to make sure that there is absolutely no way you can make that appointment work before they cancel it, because they will have dealt with people who "really can't make" their given appointment ... but when they find out that the next one available is in 6 months time, suddenly they can make their schedule work to fit the appointment in after all.

This is what the receptionist was clearly trying to do. Yes he might have done it badly/not been as professional as he should have been, but it can be frustrating trying to deal with such a system, the restrictions of that particular clinic's appointment and the general NHS targets they have to work to ... and when you listen to patients excuses day in, day out professionalism can slip when you're stuck with someone who is being obstructive when you're just trying to do your job.

[cansu]

It is pretty outrageous that you had to pull the 'fellow professional' card to be given a choice of their available appointments. Of course there will be times people can't make. The fact that this is the NHS should not be the reason why people can't change a bloody appointment. All this 'this is the NHS you know' really irritates me. There are other appointments; they were simply being awkward which is utterly ridiculous. The person threatening that there will be no other appointments for the forseeable future is out of line.

[SomethingBorrowed]

melj

If you don't want to drop your kids off with your family for one day or would rather prioritise drinks after work over a medical appointment, that is your decision

That wasn't my point at all. I meant, the receptionist has no way of judging if your "work commitment" is drinks (NOT a good reason to reschedule) or a training that can't be re-scheduled (a good reason).

oh and I agree with
I don't think that the NHS is obligated to go out of their way to find you a new appointment asap, but just put you back to the bottom of the list
Rescheduling does mean getting a new appt, not sure who wouldn't expect to wait again.

[bumasbigasthetv]

The system i use to book appointments asks for a reason that the appointment needs to be cancelled and rearranged. We tried the writing to people asking them to ring to arrange an appointment and that led to a lot of people not ringing. I think the staff member was rude the way they spoke to you though. Sometimes (not every service or indeed nhs trust) the doctor or nurse will be running a clinic in different locations so if someone tells me that can't get to the location of the original appointment, i try and see if there is anything available nearer to them or even (in our service) try to arrange a home visit, but to do this i need to be fully aware as to why the person cant attend ie the appointment is at 9.30 but the first bus will only get them to the location at 10 or they are unable to drive etc. We also get a lot of people who rearrange appointments as its not suitable for them, arrange a convenient time and date and then they will ring a few days later insisting to be seen at the original time/date as they have been able to rearrange. Also 2 cancelled appointments would mean the person being discharged from service. If an appointment is outside of the waiting times we have to explain why. Saying that, its not acceptable for the person to have been rude to you.

[melj1213]

That wasn't my point at all. I meant, the receptionist has no way of judging if your "work commitment" is drinks (NOT a good reason to reschedule) or a training that can't be re-scheduled (a good reason).

No they may not have a way to judge, but if someone refuses to elaborate as to why they have a good reason they can't make that specific appointment then they are going to wonder if it is for a genuine reason or just that they don't want to rearrange other things.

If I had said "I can't make it on Tuesday 7th of March at 3, is there another day?" and the receptionist had come back with "The next available appointment after that is for 6 months time?" I'd be then clarifying that it was non-negotiable "Sorry, it's a mandatory training day for the whole department so I know I won't be abe to get out of it".

This happened to me recently - I work Wednesday - Sunday 12-10 andstarted a course of dental treatment last Tuesday, when I left the dentist asked me to schedule the next stage of my treatment within the next 6/8 weeks. I went out to the desk and the next available appointment was Thursday 23rd of March at 2pm ... I said I was working then and was there anything in the morning or on Monday or Tuesday and the next available appointment to fit that criteria wasn't until August! Obviously I couldn't wait till then so I booked the March appt and have had to arrange with work to take the day off. So whilst originally the appointment didn't work for me, once it was shown that the only other suitable appointment was too far away, I could find a way to make that first one work.