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 at my current surgery clearly under went some training about a year after I joined. They went from being hostile and rude to pleasant but in a calm but firm way. However they don't know what they are talking about medically wise if I tell them what my appointment is for as they direct me to the wrong person.

At my previous surgery they had a receptionist who sounded like she was having a break down on the phone every time I rang for an appointment. I actually felt very sorry for her especially as some of the GPs were horrible. She was replaced by a pleasant temp who gave me a load of my medical records so I could complain about the horrible GPs and leave.

I think the problem is that they come at you from the perspective of not wanting to give you an appointment. It's fine for them to ask what it's about so they can triage you, but they are not qualified to tell you that you don't need an appointment.

On the other side, patients are rude and annoying.

Interesting that a pp said that their receptionists were young lads. I've never seen one who wasn't a lady of a certain age!

Ours are a mixture of really nice and really, breathtakingly, vile. The nastiest one is so unkind and rude that I have been reduced to staring at her open mouthed, wondering did someone really just behave like that in their place of work?

I changed GP surgeries a few years ago because I could no longer stand the attitude of the receptionists.

The reception staff at my current GP are great. But it can be difficult getting them to answer the phone.

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

Oooh that's probably the reason I never get an interview for a job then, too nice and helpful! That's made me feel a lot better!!!

The receptionists are my GPs are brilliant - always helpful and friendly.

The GPs themselves, on the other hand, are all arrogant, rude, and shite at their jobs. Patient presents with sudden onset of neuro symptoms that could indicate any number of serious conditions, plus a history of optic neuritis? Tell them that it's fine, totally normal to be so dizzy you can't stand, have incredibly loud tinnitus, and have lost feeling all fingertips. Absolutely normal. Refuse to carry out any tests. Then tell the patient that you're the doctor, not them, and that they shouldn't dare google any symptoms. Then refuse to refer to a neurologist. Continue refusing and instead tell the patient that they're just anxious and the (non-existent) anxiety is causing their symptoms.

(I eventually got referred via a different service I was seeing for knee problems. I have suspected MS and waiting for one more appointment to confirm. I am seriously considering bringing legal action against them.)

In my gp practice it depends on who you see as to weather they are ok or not.

They also seem to not to be able to understand notes left on patient files.

Last time I went to get my medication from a nurse/sister whatever I was told I HAD to see a Dr next time.
So I phone up to be told by the receptionist that I don't NEED to see a Dr the nurse can do my pills despite me saying no I was advised to see a Dr back and forth until I asked her to check my files where it DID say I need to see a Dr next time.

A pp mentioned about asking at the pharmacy but it's just not private and I don't want to ask to go in the private room.
If they made pharmacies more private then I think alot more people would use them instead of gps.

I never said I was rude to her. I take the attitude of sweetness and light pisses cunts off more.

Doesn't stop me from feeling like punching her in the face though.

And I hope she fucking reads MN.

I didn't even want a Dr appt, I just need to see the nurse for some swabs to be taken, a 5-10min job.

I saw a Dr at the hospital today who told me to get all my tests done asap and to go straight to the GP's to ask them to do this particular one as she'd given me the form last time (4m ago) and they've been fucking me about since then.

Surely if the dr at the hospital wanted swabs doing then he should have sorted them! Especially if so quick!

@Bluelongrose everytime I've asked a pharmacist about something they have referred me to a GP. So I now don't bother.

One also had difficulty with working out decimal points when I was sorting out a prescription. Though he was helpful in telling me why I had to wait so long to get it approved.

Yes, too many seem to think that they are sword wielding gatekeepers of the secret portal that leads to the inner sanctum of Asclepius .

They are on a different system so can't book me appts at the gp.

They've sent me away with all the tests as they are all for different times in my cycle so I have to ring for appts when I can have stuff done.

@Sirzy the hospital doctor wants it to come out of the GP's budget rather than theirs.

I feel your pain OP. Some receptionists are brilliant. Many are rude and seem to act as though they are more qualified than they are. So the actual nurses and GPs are “humble” iyswim but (some) receptionists act as though they know all about everything and are flipping rude sometimes. I try to imagine they’re having days with loads of people shouting at them so I just plunge ahead and ignore them for the most part, but it is hard.

Do you know my heart rate actually went up just when I read the title of the thread. There are a few lovely GP receptionists out there but there's a hell of a lot of them who shouldn't be dealing with the public. I know how toxic stress in a job can turn people from being genuinely nice into total arseholes but if you find yourself getting that way, it's time to get out and do something else.

To those who say "they never answer the phone". This is the set up in the surgery I work in.
3 Receptionists, 2 all day, 1 who works mornings who finishes at 1.15pm.
Between 11.15 and 1.15pm only 2 members of staff on duty because of lunch breaks.
3 jobs to be done, prescription phone ordering, Reception phone on for booking appointments and queries, people coming in at the front reception desk to pick up scripts, book appointments, book in for appointments, queries. We can only do one job at a time so sorry that we can't answer the phone when it's ringing and you have to wait your turn because 2 people can't do the job of 3.

While my DH was in the waiting room he heard a receptionist saying ‘what do you mean he’s turned blue? It’s not an emergency if he’s still conscious’

Bluebug I've never tried myself it's just an observation but that's interesting.

I just know our pharmacy is always packed so privacy just wouldn't happen.

They are by no means the worse customer facing staff in my opinion, my favourites are the post office parcel collection staff. Rude, ignorant and incompetent..even though most people are there to collect deliveries that were not attempted in the first place.. Ha ha I got the magic card and went to our sorting office, the girl disappeared for ages then asked me what the package looked like 🤷🏻‍♀️ Well as I haven’t seen it love I wouldn’t know. So she took my number to —throw away— call if she found it. No call and DH picked it up easily 2 days later

The one who, when I phoned to get her to re-fax my hospital referral letter as it hadn't been received by the hospital, snapped at me "we can't follow up every referral fax to see if it's been sent, you know." Eh, I didn't say you could... although, actually, why can't you? Do you need 50p for the paper for the "fax successfully sent" message or what?

The one at the early pregnancy clinic whose care I was supposed to be under, who refused to book me in for an appointment or let me speak to a nurse when I phoned up to tell them that I'd just had a private scan and the baby had died.

The one who, when I asked how long my request for my medical records would take to process, told me "well our KPI is 35 days". Thanks I don't work for the Care Quality Commission, I'm a patient, how about you tell me in English?

The one who wouldn't book me an appointment in a downstairs consulting room ("you're not disabled, are you?") when I brought my twins in for their 6 week checkup, and then wouldn't carry one of them up the narrow stairs for me (I ended up putting them top-to-tail in one carricot and carrying that up, luckily I hadn't had a C section)

Then we moved to Germany. They also have scary GP receptionists but they tend to be scarily efficient as well, which helps.

It's not a job I'd like to do, they cop so much flak from the general public. Admittedly I've had some really rude and unhelpful ones but I've also had some kind and lovely ones.

The receptionist at my mums surgery cut the the number of pills on my mothers repeat prescription, yes a receptionist not a fucking medical practitioner. My mum asked if the dr had cut them as she has to take them every day seeing that if she doesn’t she might die. The receptionist said ‘no that is my decision you do not need so many’ my Mum the tried to top up the prescription early and the stupid boot blocked it as she had ‘already said’my mum doesn’t need so many pills. Obviously mums symptoms ramped up without the right dosage so shebsaw her GP and he asked if she had been taking the medicine every day and gave her a massive lecture. My mum told him what had happened (unfortunately she doesn’t stand up for herself). The gp was absolutely furious, got her prescription and disappeared from the room. He then said ‘I am so sorry. That will never ever happen again!’ When I found out I was fizzing and called up the surgery and the silly boot tried getting uppity until I said who’s daughter I was and she tried to be all smarmy. She has been at that surgery since I was a child and has always been a nightmare.

I am one and I hate how we always get slated why is it ok to be horrible about all receptionists just because some are not nice that's the same in any job. I've never had a single complaint in all the years I've done the job people regularly tell me I'm helpful , I've had cards / letters written and I've never been rude to anyone no matter how they have acted towards me. All our calls at my practice are listened to any regularly reviewed , we are only asking why you need a appointment because the doctors ( who are out bosses ) tell us to. This is because sometimes it is say a medication query and we have a pharmacy technician so instead of using a urgent appointment because asking a question about medication we can ask the pharmacy tech to speak with them and sort it all out. Also they have 5 min appointments for things like sore throats ECT so we can book into correct slots. I fully agree with anyone complaining if receptionists are giving medical advice as we are not trained to do that. If you feel they are rude to you that is not acceptable and you should put it in writing to your practice manager. Mostly everyone where I work is very helpful and always tries their best to help and will go out of their way to help people. We regularly get good feedback I've also never had any of the receptionist at the surgery I'm at be rude they are all lovley and helpful. Some people are incredibly rude and i have colleagues that have been threatened with violence. We can't give you a appointment if they are none I understand it's frustrating it often is for us aswell but we are not allowed to book you into a doctors clinic when they are no appointments left we can pass details over to the on call doctor .

Ours were lovely until they joined with another surgery and have to stay open longer. I made the mistake of going in the longer hours and my God couldn’t have been more obstructive and unhelpful if they’d tried, and then compounded it when I had to return for the second part of my appointment.
I feel your pain....

Ours vary from being nice to a complete dragon. Dh prefers to go down to the doctors to make appointments because you can see which one it is and if it is the dragon they can't just put the phone down on you when they have finished being unreasonable.