Fucking GP receptionists

[Eliza9917]

Aibu to think they must train them to be as rude, unhelpful and patronising as possible???

Just left the GP's and I feel like caving the fucking receptionists smug cunting face in.

Yes that's probably an overreaction but they fucking wind me up on a par with dealing with the fucking council.

The receptionists in our surgery are generally lovely, and always eager to help as best they can. I'm actually amazed how they stay so nice, in light of what is thrown at them at times.

There are two exceptions. The first isn't exactly friendly, but she's not rude, just very forthright. The second however, is the devil incarnate, and I've currently got a complaint lodged about her with the practice manager. I had an appointment early last week, and a friend had driven me there, as I wasn't up to driving myself. Another friend was picking me up. I had text friend to say I was ready, and was waiting in the surgery for her to arrive, and overheard this receptionist talking about me with the other receptionist on duty. It wasn't just loud enough for me to hear, a couple in the waiting room (it was just them and me, as it was at the end of the morning session) heard it too, as the woman said to her partner, "she shouldn't be gossiping about another patient like that." I stood up, coughed and said, "I'm still here you know," and walked out. I'm still awaiting a response to my complaint.

The receptionist sat our place are absolutely cracking now. They operate a phone triage system, but ta done pleasantly and everyone who needs to speak to a GP has the chance to do so on the phone.

There used to be a horrendous receptionist (threatened me with a report to social services for having the nerve to allow my 14 year old to see the nurse practitioner about her recurring tonsillitis. Horrid woman), but she either retired or moved jobs. They’ve just got rid of her officiousness on the call direction menu too, so there’s no more snotty condescension every time you have the audacity to call.

The receptionists at my surgery are lovely.

The secretary, however, is a complete and utter witch.

On the whole mine are ok, and do try their best. However I had issues with one a few weeks ago.

I have severe hayfever, like throat closes up, eyes close up, suffocating hayfever and I'm on extremely strong medication for it. If I do not have this over the summer I cannot cope and I have been in hospital before because my allergy is so severe.

Anyway the new rules came out that hayfever isn't covered on the nhs unless severe. I rang to get my prescription ready for my hayfever kicking in and this one receptionist point blank refused to get the prescription request put through. I explained time and time again but she wouldn't listen kept just talking over me saying it's not on the nhs anymore. I begged to speak to a doctor, she refused to put me on the list. I eventually spoke to the practice manager who agreed to put me on the gp call list.

Said GP rang me back half hour later and asked what I wanted. I explained about needing my medication and the receptionist refusing. He was very unhappy as it's all over my notes that I'm a very severe case and it's not the receptionists place to refuse prescriptions. He issued the script and all is well but my husband still thinks I should put in a formal complaint

YANBU. I'm sure there are some who are lovely, but in my experience, it's appalling how they are allowed to treat people and cause harm.

The receptionists at my surgery are amazing, even though they can be brusque and tell people loads of what they don't want to hear. The problem is simply not enough doctors - we should have at least 10 now 2 surgeries have merged, and have only 4 FTEs and a couple locums. Can't get anyone else to apply for a challenging inner-city population.
The lack of continuity makes their lives harder - twice I've had a letter asking me to make an appt, go in asking what it's about, and a new GP says they haven't the faintest bloody idea. Luckily (?) I have enough medical issues I can ask for something while I'm there so it's not a total waste of our time, but the receptionists still had to write a letter and then deal with the GP going wtf?

Just to add a bit of balance...

This week a patient called me a stupid, f*cking bitch - I'd politely asked her to move her car from the only disabled space we had. She'd already confirmed she did not have a badge - but she had a rally important phone call to make...

Then the chap who called me a ,"Stupid, fcling, dumb, fcking stinking c*nt". This was after I explained we did not have XRay facilities at a GP practice and he needed to go to A&E for his suspected broken hand.

GP receptionists get this DAILY. There are not enough doctors so not enough appointments but plenty of demand. Lots of people who've had a cough for 2 days and MUST take an emergency appointment. Or the person who decides it's their day off so the GP must see them on their day off as it's convenient.

This is just for balance. I had 2 awful ladies work for me... not for long as they spoke to patient's appallingly.

Just remember they are doing their best with minimal resource and get just as frustrated as you.

**Arrowfanatic
I didn’t know you couldn’t get hay fever meds on NHS prescription anymore 😮

It mustn’t be all health authorities who are stopping hayfever meds. We are still giving them out, we were told anyone who’d had it in previous years were ok to go ahead and get it this year without an appointment.

Some hayfever medications can't be bought OTC. I'm guessing they're just stopping prescriptions for drugs you can buy in supermarkets and chemists?

Ours will prescribe it for patients with complex health needs or that are on it all year round (like ds). They won't prescribe it for healthy patients who use it during the summer only ( like me) which I think is fair enough.

I was at the GP's a few months ago (with the muscles ripped off my shoulder, just to show I was a genuine patient!) and the GP had a dreadful cold (I was trying not to breathe in!).

He told me that three patients had come in as an emergency that morning with colds .

Our GP practice has no triage system and the receptionists never ask what the appointment is for.

Those moaning about receptionists quizzing them might find themselves with a true emergency or very sick child stuck behind a queue of people who are there with colds .

I need to get steroids when I have a cold; severe - very severe - asthmatic and also have oxygen and nebuliser at home for emergencies as colds inflame the airways. The doctor has decided this is the best way to manage my colds, and so I go in to get my blood oxygen etc checked when I have a cold and figure out if a&e is needed and if oral steroids will work.
It’s not all clear cut but honestly don’t think I should need to justify this to the receptionist who after all, has no medical degree and therefore should not be responsible for triage. I actually don’t think I would mind explaining it except that the receptionists are rude, patronising and say no straight away, as if they know better (when they clearly don’t). And I’m always polite. I really do think it’s a power trip. Makes them feel important to deny access, because otherwise they wouldn’t be arrogant about it....

Haven’t rtft but I generally feel quite sorry for them. I’m sure there are some awful ones, as there are in any profession, but I imagine with all the abuse and hassle they get it’s a fairly thankless job. I was at my local minor injuries yesterday and the poor receptionist got so much stick for waiting times, available facilities, the lack of medical staff and a number of other things beyond her control. She was frequently hassled by people asking “how long now?!” when they’d been sat there an hour despite being told on arrival it would be a 3-4 hour wait. She was also verbally abused by a man who did not understand why she wouldn’t let him bypass the waiting time to see the triage nurse and just send him straight for an x ray because he “knew he needed one”. Must be frustrating.

That is exactly what it is like most days

It is easy to think people have the power as they are the ones behind the desk but when you have been behind the desk it’s pretty much fire fighting. You already know at the start of your day that demand will outstrip the capacity. You know what you can and cannot do. I think some receptionist make bad decisions - but not because they are loving doing it but because they have been misinformed and not well trained (down to THEIR MANAGER)

You also know everyone is more anxious than usual about getting that medical complaint seen to because they are going on holiday. It is absolutely heaving at this time of year in GP, minor injuries and A&E due to drunk injuries, insect bites, people anxious because they are going on holiday soon and need something, sunburn

People STILL not going to their pharmacist for help, turning up at GP or minor injuries or A&E and expecting a warm welcoming response for their 8 week old ankle sprain or 2 week old insect bite, not having been to a pharmacy - these are the people driving the NHS to it’s knees

So the genuine people on this thread who have medical conditions and need help are getting a crap, underfunded, misinformed, frustrated, understaffed service - THIS IS WHY

I'm appalled at how many people are angry at the receptionist for saying that there is no time left to book them in. What is she supposed to do? Invent a time-stretching machine? She can't cancel other appointments for you.

If you can buy the generic medicine in the supermarket for pennies, then there is no need for the NHS to prescribe them, when the cost of an Rx is so much higher, so yes, this is a sensible allocation of limited resources Wulfie.

I worked as a receptionist at a GP surgery some years ago. I lasted only a couple of months. I was in tears on the way home most days because of the verbal abuse, the final straw being called a dog on the phone because all available appointments had been taken for the day. We were not allowed to book appointments in advance, the computer worked on a day to day system. So please remember - if there are no appointments available there is nothing the receptionists can do. IT'S NOT.THWIR FAULT.
I had no personal interest/fetish in interrogating what a patient may be suffering from, but had been firmly instructed by the practice manager to find out and make a note. If we weren't getting stick from the patients it was from the extremely arrogant and moody GPs. Honestly in many cases I don't think the receptionists are horrible or bitchy, it's the only way to survive in the job. It wasn't for me, I couldn't do it so I quit and found a different job where I wasn't a blubbering mess.

That is not a good experience, annoyed. I honestly think it is the way some practices are run. You get the odd grumpy receptionist like anyone else, but they cannot do a good job if the rest of the practice does not work with them. The ones who can keep smiling through in such circumstances are pretty amazing. I know a practice manager and a pharmacist that walked out of their jobs for similar reasons.

One of our local health centres was recently put on lockdown and Police posted on the doors after a threat was made to come in and cut the receptionist's throat, kill every p*ki doctor in the building and also threatening to come in with a gun. The terrible crime the receptionist committed to earn this? Being unable to issue the patient's prescription herself or put him through to a doctor to do it right there and then! The fact she had offered to put him through to the prescription order line or practice pharmacist was not good enough
That is the sort of shit receptionists have to deal with. That and people like the OP thinking it is acceptable to call them cunts and want to smash their faces in

I never understood the prescription of hayfever medication until it started triggering my asthma. It was a massive relief to get a prescription for a couple of months from my asthma nurse, rather than running around the shops buying up packets of seven and fifteen hayfever tablets when they were in stock.

I was taking two a day (the one-a-day tablets don't actually last 24 hours), so I got through the general sales packets rather quickly.

One refused me an appointment and I said - fine I'll go home and ring an ambulance. I knew it was serious. She backed down.

@Mishappening
Did you end up in hospital?

Yup!

Imagine having to say that to make her actually grasp the seriousness of the situation for you, the patient. Dreadful attitude.