GP Self Check In

[JurassicBark]

Just used it for the first time at my new surgery - old surgery you were given the entire list of options for day, month and year of birth so you had to get them right to be shown your appointment time and check in. Also it was just first name initial and then surname AFTER you had put in your day, month and year from the full list.

New surgery asks you to select day and month only and then gives you a list of several different years. I misclicliked today and saw a full name, postcode and already had entered their full date of birth.

Do you think that’s quite a big potential to get a lot of personal details belonging to someone else?

Aren’t sick. Or infectious.

They are there for aches and pains, mental health issues, ear infections, skin problems, urine infections, dressings, smears, vaccinations, joint problems, chronic disease reviews, asthma checks, chest pains, dizziness, bowel symptoms, etc etc.

Very very few are properly poorly and if they are actually sick (ie vomiting) they are encouraged not to attend and self treat at home, or receive a home visit if elderly or infirm, or if they must attend they are asked to wait in our side room.

So yeah, the chance of “catching something” at the doctors surgery is pretty slim!

I think you might want to change your words sick/poorly to contagious - you've just listed a lot of people who sound pretty poorly to me!

Not with anything you’d catch from a screen though

Well yes you can feel poorly or rubbish, but you’re not necessarily “sick”.

I was responding to an earlier poster (SnugglySnerd?) who said the screens are used all day by sick people.

I guess it’s all semantics isn’t it? People attending the surgery are sometimes not 100% well, but they’re not really sick!

sick people to me does not mean vomiting people, rather people who are unwell. That's why I misunderstood what you were saying.

I don’t use them. Just walk past them and sign in with the receptionist. Good points made here about GDPR, I’ll mention it next time I’m there. At the least I’ll probably say I don’t want my details input onto it.

Ours used to do the exact same thing. Put in your day and month of birth, get a list of options for the year, click the year and get name, address and postcode. Then you clicked to confirm it was you and it showed your appointment details.
It doesn't do that any more though, I wonder if someone complained or they realised it wasn't necessary. Now it just shows your name and appointment time.

I've had these at three different surgeries and it's always given a small selection of years (presumably just of patients with that birthday) and then just confirms your appointment time and doctor. None of your details are displayed at all (other than your DOB which you enter obviously).

I've become very cynical about the attention to detail in record keeping at our surgery since DP got a letter from them telling them that now he's 16, he can go to the surgery without being accompanied by a parent or guardian.

He's 58.

He has fairly common names, so I suspect that there's a 16 year old registered with the same name, who has no idea he no longer has to take his mum with him when he goes to see the GP.

Ok sick was probably a poor choice of words but there are always plenty of people coughing and spluttering in the waiting room when I visit!

I have identical twin DDs, the check in system doesnt work at all for them and tells them to go to reception. Presumably to stop this happening?

Ok update - I went in and explained and they have taken the self check in off as they agree it’s wrong. They are also speaking to my old GP surgery to see how they get the same set up as there.

They were very nice and very grateful. They did say it was new and no one had raised it yet but they were happy I had!

Yes, Darth, you can uniquely identify anyone in the UK with surprisingly little person information, such as post code and date of birth.

Of course it doesn't work for same sex identical twins who live at the same address.