Thank you card for GP

[TheOrigRightsofwomen]

I am changing surgery and want to thank the GP. I've no problem with what to write in a card (keep it simple!), but what I want to know is whether it will be opened by reception staff who deal with all the post?
Obv they'll pass it over to my GP and think nothing of it, but is there a way for me to get a card to him directly (other than handing it to him in an appt, which I haven't got)?

I think this is a lovely idea.

If you don't want the reception staff to read your note, just write private and confidential on the envelope.

But surely most post is marked as such, what with it being medical etc?

I wrote a thank you card for my GP. I dropped it off at the reception desk, asked them to pass it on to the doctor and told them it was only a thank you card so the receptionist knew they didn't need to open it. If I was posting I might have just written "private" on the envelope.

That's what I'll do (I probably could have worked that out for myself really!). I'll go on a day the GP isn't there. We have a very good doctor/patient relationship but sending a card seems to cross a boundary and I'm a bit embarrassed. But he has supported me through some very difficult times.

Does that make any sense?

Yes, as PP suggested I'd drop it in in person and tell the staff "This is just a thank you card for doctor X, I'd appreciate it if you'd pass it to him".

If you happened to have a packet of biscuits for the staff in hand at the time you said this, you are guaranteed to a) have your wishes executed quickly, b) be the hero of the health centre all day.

I don't think you are crossing a boundary or have anything to be embarrassed about @TheOrigRightsofwomen People don't say thank you enough and I'm sure your doctor will be thrilled to know how much you have appreciated their support.

I’m a GP
Thank you cards make my whole week and frequently make me cry a little bit.
I pretty much always get them unopened. It’s generally fairly obvious they aren’t medical correspondence

I took in a thank you card and a box of chocolates for my doctor. She spotted I had Sepsis and saved my life. It was well received and I was thanked for it when I next had an appointment. I just dropped them off at the surgery in person.

It certainly isn't crossing a boundary, many doctors keep patient thank yous for their appraisals and I am sure it will be much appreciated in general.

Just FYI, at the doctor’s surgery I work at, any letter handed into reception, no matter what is written on the envelope (private & confidential and the like) is put on the secretary’s desk and opened by them immediately, not by the doctor it is addressed to.

The secretary then judges what needs to be done with it.

Because sometimes it’s a medical request that needs to be processed the same day (and if we put it in the doctor’s tray, they may ignore it for some time, or they may be on annual leave so won’t see it for a few weeks).

Or sometimes, it’s something that really doesn’t need to be acted on by a GP (e.g. a repeat prescription request).

On discovering a thank you card, the card would then be placed back in the envelope and put in the relevant doctor’s tray.

If you want correspondence to be opened only by the person it's addressed to, put 'Personal' on the envelope, not 'Private and Confidential'.

Secretaries are traditionally taught that it's OK to open P&C correspondence as they are in a position of trust, but they shouldn't open anything marked Personal.

Buy a present and stick it to that.

Do you fancy him? poo

Ha ha no idea why it wrote poo 😂

I would write "PERSONAL: To be opened by addressee only", clearly on the envelope. I was a Receptionist in a Medical Practice until recently and this would have assured your card would only be opened by the person you intended.

I think this is a lovely thought - I also have a wonderful GP and would do the same if she or I were to move to a different Practice.

Thanks all. I will write Personal on it, hand it to the reception staff and just say it's a card.

No, I don't fancy him (he wears orange trousers)!

I'm not taking biscuits (sorry).

When I was a gp receptionist we would just pop it into their labelled draw in rec if it was a card so they would get it when they next check the draw usually end of day or start of morning. Like other people have said write personal on it. It's such a lovely gesture.

I wrote my GP a thank you card when I moved. He was a fantastic GP with a lot of wisdom and it’s nice to thank people we’re too quick to complain and slow to praise

Card delivered. It's clearly a card and the reception guy popped it in a basket for the GP.