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Original poster

Is this my GP surgery being ridiculous or are all of them operating this way?

121 replies

bookstearocknroll · 27/10/2020 14:08

I got a text to say I should go for my flu appointment at 10.15am last Saturday.

I drove to the doctors and found a queue snaking around the carpark with at least 40-50 people in it who, judging from the conversations around me, had all been given the same appointment time.

It was freezing, raining and there's no shelter or seating in the car park.

I'm disabled so can't stand for long and I imagine the entire queue was full of similarly vulnerable people, given it was for the flu jab. In the end, I had to give up and go home before I got anywhere near the front of the queue because I was so exhausted.

I'm incredibly frustrated as a result and wondering if this is standard protocol now or whether this is just my doctors' surgery making odd decisions. Due to a few issues recently, I'm already considering changing surgeries but wanted to see if I was being unreasonable to feel even more like I should, or whether this is another example of the new normal I should suck up and try to understand.

For further background on how they've been operating since covid broke out, they've had the waiting rooms closed since March and for ordinary appointments, you have to report to reception, which is now an office window facing the car park manned by just one person. Every time I've been since March (I'm disabled and have prem babies so have been a few times), I've turned up on time and been made to wait in the car park to be called in, no matter what the weather is. There are no seats or shelter and frequently a little crowd of patients, many probably quite vulnerable. Doctors frequently run late - I've been left to shiver outside the back door waiting to be let in for up to half an hour after my appointment time, even with baby in tow.

OP posts:
SpaceOP · 27/10/2020 15:36

@vickibee

Our gp misdiagnosed my son from a photo, it was an ingrown toenail that had gone sceptic, he dished our antibiotics but he needed urgent nail surgery, podiatry services were shut, this went on for weeks and I took him to a and e, the doctor there was shocked that he could not be seen. He was close to getting sepsis because the GP would not see him face to face. You can’t really get the full story from a photo

In the end I paid privately because the poor lad was in agony.
Perhaps it is the Tory way of privatisation by the back door, people getting private treatment when the nhs is shut. Shocking

Absolutely. Which is why my GP told me to call back by no later than Thursday if we saw no improvement and to call back immediately if things got worse and they would then decide on what to do to escalate..... quality of GP surgeries and processes vary.
MereDintofPandiculation · 27/10/2020 15:37

OP, your post sounds almost identical to one on a local facebook group recently. In that case, it sounded a bit of a one-off - my DH had had his flu jab at the same surgery a day earlier, with no wait at all.

GirlCrush · 27/10/2020 15:37

its the same here....queues....but aren't we all getting used to queue now?

2bazookas · 27/10/2020 15:39

I had my flu jab at Dr surgery by appointment. In the car park there were staff with clipboards , greeting checking and directing a steady, socially spaced stream of patients through two separate and very efficient no-hands circuits through the building. I was asked to enter and expose my arm, nurse checked my address and ID, asked the usual health questions, jab and out again. As I exited by second door , the next patient was coming in the first door.

my whole visit took less than 5 minutes, they were very busy but there were no delays (mid morning).. I've been having autumn flu jabs for 8 years and have never seen so many patients being processed so fast.

Sirzy · 27/10/2020 15:41

Flu jabs seem to be the only thing efficient at our GP. I have been to two clinics (mine and Ds) and both times it was temperature check, join short queue and in. Probably helped that they aren’t seeing anyone else!

Feedingthebirds1 · 27/10/2020 15:42

I prefer to have mice at Tesco

Waitrose have a better class of rodents.

(I'll get me coat)

thenightsky · 27/10/2020 15:49

@Ernieshere

I queued for 50 mins outside in April to get meds, as our surgery has a pharmacy. I had Pneumonia and it was absolutely awful, and probably the coldest windy day!
Sounds like our rural practice too. I have to go pick up meds once a month (they won't give out more than a month at a time). I should have gone today but last time I waited outside for 30 mins and today it's raining.

The door to the building is barred with a picnic table and yellow/black hazard tape. You have to ring a bell then wait up to 10 mins for someone to stick their head out of the inner door.

CheeseCakeSunflowers · 27/10/2020 15:49

I had mine recently, I had a 2 minute appointment, one person ticked me off on a clipboard in the carpark, I walked in the open fire exit, sanitised hands, another person directed me to stand in a marked spot in the doorway to the doctors room, he confirmed my name then jabbed my arm, I continued down the corrider and left via the main door, I was in and out in less than a minute and didn't come into contact with any other patients, I was very impressed.

ProfessionalWeirdo · 27/10/2020 15:58

The biggest problem with our surgery is the receptionists. They spend all their time in a back office, leaving the reception desk unstaffed and with no means of attracting their attention.

That was pre-Covid. Now it's even worse - the waiting room is closed, and when you arrive for an appointment you have to phone from the car park to say you've arrived. You then have to listen to about three minutes of recorded message telling you to use the website wherever possible, in order to leave the phone line clear for emergencies! I kid you not...

Coffeeandcocopops · 27/10/2020 16:03

I helped man the doors at our flu clinic on Saturday. We had three clinics and patients had a set time. There were no queues snaking round the car park and it worked very efficiently.

Coffeeandcocopops · 27/10/2020 16:06

Have you tried using an online pharmacy to get your medication? I use pharmacy2u and can’t rate them high enough. All through lockdown they delivered my regular orders and it was easy to add ad-hoc stuff. Never again will I ever queue up to get a repeat prescription dispensed.

Mamamia456 · 27/10/2020 16:08

I had my flu jab done at my local pharmacy. I booked the appointment on line and when I went there was no one else waiting, much quicker than the GP surgery. You don't have to pay either if you're exempt.

CovidClara · 27/10/2020 16:11

My Dh drove to Gp was in , out and back in 12 minutes

There was a queue of about 10 people he said but very orderly .

It amazed me as they are a crap GP.

cptartapp · 27/10/2020 16:14

We send appointment times out and ask people not to come early. But they do, in droves, every year, contributing to the situation you describe.
We could certainly extend appointment times to keep people more separate and run bang on time, but then people would still be waiting in February.

CornedBeef451 · 27/10/2020 16:19

No that's not happening everywhere.

I took DD for her flu vaccination and we had to wait for less than 5 mins outside before being called in. It was at 9.30am though so it could have been worse later in the day.

Sirzy · 27/10/2020 16:19

@cptartapp

We send appointment times out and ask people not to come early. But they do, in droves, every year, contributing to the situation you describe. We could certainly extend appointment times to keep people more separate and run bang on time, but then people would still be waiting in February.
I don’t get that this year. I am normally a 10 minute early for every appointment type but this year I have been sitting in the car until the last minute to help reduce cross over time.
SheepandCow · 27/10/2020 16:24

@vickibee

Our gp misdiagnosed my son from a photo, it was an ingrown toenail that had gone sceptic, he dished our antibiotics but he needed urgent nail surgery, podiatry services were shut, this went on for weeks and I took him to a and e, the doctor there was shocked that he could not be seen. He was close to getting sepsis because the GP would not see him face to face. You can’t really get the full story from a photo

In the end I paid privately because the poor lad was in agony.
Perhaps it is the Tory way of privatisation by the back door, people getting private treatment when the nhs is shut. Shocking

Gp surgeries are private. All of them it's been like that from the start (when the NHS was created). The NHS contracts them.

That's why standards vary so much.
Your GP sounds like my previous one. It was terrible. Dismissive GPs, rude receptionists, difficult to get any kind of appointment. And some of my notes went missing! This was pre pandemic.

I changed surgeries a couple of years ago. My current GP surgery couldn't be more different. They're brilliant. I've had several appointments since March including blood tests. All very easy to book with no problems.

I think more people need to realise GP surgeries are all individual private businesses. That's why some are really bad whilst others are so good. This isn't a Covid thing.

JeanClaudeVanDammit · 27/10/2020 16:28

Took DD for hers, waited 2 minutes in waiting room, out the back door afterwards. There isn’t a car park, so wouldn’t be anywhere for people to wait outside. They’re a practice with multiple sites though so I think they probably turned this whole site over to flu jabs for that day and had no other patients there.

Iola4 · 27/10/2020 16:31

The flu jab I had this year was undertook like a military operation...however if you require an appointment it's all done over the phone, some ppl say this is still an appointment...no it's not, you simply cannot convey your concerns over the phone and I'm utterly crap at getting all I need to across in a short window of time (I usually take a little notebook with me for the doc to scan and get a quick gist of what's going on) and it's so much easier to just be brushed off.
Some exercise common sense, others are lacking it to the extreme.

What you described though was how my annual flu jabs have been conducted in non Covid years...massive queues in the cold, I had disabled kids in tow, last year I ended up catching a chill and then an almighty chest infection ensued, November and December were a complete write off for me after that.

Few yrs ago I developed sepsis... spotted early by the most wonderful doctor known! I would have died had it not been for his quick identification and actions...over the phone though I'm sorry but I just couldn't have explained this properly and I would have been to poorly to have gone to A&E...it was only by utter luck the doctor spotted me as I was attending an appointment for my child at the time plus I'm the type of person who would probably die fobbing off the worst pain as something that will pass.

TabbyM · 27/10/2020 16:40

No surgeries doing flu jabs in our area, people normally on the list still waiting for letters and no private ones available from Tesco/Boots/Superdrug local pharmacies. Finally got through to a human on the flu hotline and have one in a sports centre the other side of town which was the only one available.

LondonJax · 27/10/2020 16:54

Our GP surgery used the local church for flu shots. It kept the surgery free for people who needed to see the doctors. Worked very well. Straight in, temperature taken, allocated a nurse who did the shot and out the side door. Lots of praise from the community who were really pleased to see surgery and church working together to keep the vulnerable safe too.

mowbraygirl · 27/10/2020 17:03

Our GP surgery started the flu injections at the beginning of September DH and I had an appointment 2 minutes apart as the weather was so nice set up little cubicles in the car park a receptionist ticked your name off and you proceeded to one of the practice nurses think it took about 2 minutes for both of us. My friend who goes to same surgery was walking past latter that day and they said had she had flu injection if not does she want it done then and there. We have been very happy with the way the surgery has been running during the lock down not like some of the others in the area.

SomeSmotheringDreams · 27/10/2020 17:04

It's ridiculous to expect people to stand outside at this time of year. And as for not staggering appointments, that's even more stupid. I used to organise flu vaccination programmes. Everyone was given a 3 minute slot, and it always ran like clockwork. As an NHS person myself, it's so frustrating when organisations don't take the simplest steps to minimise inconvenience to the public.

Hopoindown31 · 27/10/2020 17:05

I think more people need to realise GP surgeries are all individual private businesses. That's why some are really bad whilst others are so good. This isn't a Covid thing.

But COVID has really shown that this model of delivering primary care is really not working.

SheepandCow · 27/10/2020 17:06

@Hopoindown31

I think more people need to realise GP surgeries are all individual private businesses. That's why some are really bad whilst others are so good. This isn't a Covid thing.

But COVID has really shown that this model of delivering primary care is really not working.

Yes. It's shone a bright light.