To think if you can only have telephone GP appointments, they shouldn’t call three times in the space of a minute before crossing you off the list?

[AngeloMysterioso]

Had a telephone consultation booked with a GP, had to wait over a week for the appointment. They never give you an exact time, so I was just told it would be after 4pm. Normally they ring once, if there’s no answer ring the next person on the list and then try you again, but not today!

I’ve been by my phone the whole time except for a roughly 90-second window when I was in the bathroom. Of course it had to be then that Dr rang me three times in the space of a minute. I rang back literally a minute later and was told the Dr has taken me off the list and I now have to wait another 8 days for another telephone appointment.

AIBU to think that’s a bit unreasonable?

I also hate this system. I am a teacher and when our lessons were live on Teams, inevitably they'd call then.

Such a toughie. I’ve clicked YANBU as I think you’re not being unreasonable to be annoyed but however you look at it, you did miss the appointment. I assume this was a plug in landline rather than a mobile phone? Such bad luck 👎

YANBU. That's an awful system!

Yanbu. I've read lots of threads about shabby treatment by GP surgeries on Mumsnet today.

When my husband was sick at home with covid last year, we got a call back from 111 (12 hours after our initial call, they were busy I accept that) at 5.30am on our landline on a Sunday morning.

We didn't answer, we didn't hear it. They left a message saying "as you didn't answer we assume you no longer need assessment and we're removing you from the call-back list" so we had to go through the whole process again.

Not good enough.

Ours won't even give a time slot. They will call any time between 9am and 6pm. So I've had to just hope they don't call when I have a work meeting.
No idea why they think it's acceptable and we'll probably move practice over this and other patient unfriendly practices but not sure others are any better.

Yep, completely agree with you! Last week I had to get an appointment for DS. I had to ring about 20 times just after 8 in the morning just to get through to the actual ring tone, then wait in the queue of six callers. I was then given the last appointment of the day 'some time after 3'. This exactly coincides with two school runs. Of course I missed the call, like in your case the doctor tried 3 times in the space of 60 seconds but I was on the school run, so missed it. That was it, appointment missed! No replacement given. It's a ridiculous system.
We ended up going to the packed walk-in centre instead, so much for social distancing!

That's ridiculous. Can you email the practice manager to complain? I would have through they should wait at least 10 minutes (or whenever the next appointment has finished) before they try again.

It was my mobile, but I was dry heaving into the loo at the time (early days pregnant) so I wouldn’t really have been able to answer even if I’d taken it in there.

God knows I’ve been kept waiting a damn sight longer than a minute and a half every time I’ve ever been for a face to face appointment (in the good old days when they were a thing)

I booked an apt for teen DD (period related). They first offered 3.30pm and I said she would not be home by then (neither would i) so they made it 4.30pm. The dr called at 4pm while I was on my way home from work. (I planned to be home by 4.15 in case they were early) I had to speak to the dr on DDs behalf and try to answer questions on her menstrual cycle, to the best of my knowledge, without her present.
DD was actually v relieved because she is v shy and would have hated to speak with them but it wasnt ideal!!

I wonder if we have the same GP. It happened to me too, it's infuriating. Three calls literally a minute apart each. When I submitted the consultation form the response was "we'll get back to you in the next 48 hours". I can't be glued to my phone every minute for two days. When I called back 10 minutes later the receptionist was really pissy with me as well, how dare I be unavailable for 3 minutes. There's no need for that.

however you look at it, you did miss the appointment

Is it really fair to hold people to such a rigid definition of "missing" an appointment if its just a vague time (or a large time frame) though?

If they said "The doctor will call you back between 4-5" then I think its fair to expect people to be available for that 60 minute window but when it is a vague "After 4pm" or "Between 4pm and 10pm" then it is unreasonable to expect people to be available for the entire period without any other distraction at all during that time - whether that's nipping to the loo, having to deal with a family member, make dinner, answer the door etc

OP YANBU, I think that under the circumstances they should have a system of ringing Patient A maybe twice back to back, moving on to Patient B if there is no answer but then calling Patient A a final time after Bs appointment. At that point A has had 3 opportunities to answer and so if they still don't pick up the phone then they should be classed as a "missed appointment" but not before making a genuine effort to get in contact than a single minute of 3 calls.

Yanbu. That's pretty poor.

My GP leaves it 20 mins or so before calling back.

Thats a terrible system. My GP makes phone appointments like regular ones. You get a very definite time. Any appointments I've had they've phoned within 5 mins of the appointment time.

It is disgraceful.

DS "missed" his appointment because the three calls all came in a matter of minutes when he was on a Zoom call with his tutor.

Also it was a withheld number and he does not like answering those.

My own gp is the same. Refuses flatly to give a time. I recently had to sit with a bucket dry heaving (also early pregnancy) just so I wouldn't miss the call. I've often sat in the surgery for a good hour pre covid waiting for my appointment. I think Gps have lost the run of themselves slightly through out this. I've seen the nurse several times but the gps refuse to see anyone in person.

If you don't answer first time they don't bother ringing back, though you are given an appointment (which is usually late)

I didn’t even know that I’d get a callback when I filled in the online form. Someone called, didn’t identify themselves. When they asked if I was free I said ‘I’m teaching online in two minutes’ then they said they thought my symptoms indicated I might have a prolapse. I mean, what was I supposed to do with that information two minutes before teaching?! And I didn’t even know who they were! And I don’t have a prolapse, so imo extremely badly handled, as you can imagine the symptoms I’d been having were fairly distressing.

I feel your pain, OP.

@ArtemisiaGentle

If you don't answer first time they don't bother ringing back, though you are given an appointment (which is usually late)

On DS phone it shows three calls from the same withheld number, spread over seven minutes.

YANBU

Ours has started doing this too. I phoned a week ago and was told I’d get a call back “sometime this morning”. They used to give a time, then it was an hour slot, now it’s just vague. My problem hasn’t got better so I need to call back but I can’t be arsed to be honest because I feel like I’m putting them out.

We must be really lucky. Ours gives a time and they are usually punctual. One rang me early and actually apologised, but as I was fairly immobile I was happy with that. I've also been seen twice in person. I don't understand this not wanting to see people they've got perfectly adequate ppe and handwashing facilities.

That's crazy, I've not discovered what happens if you miss the call with ours. They give you an appointment time (specific time not a time slot) and once they were about 90min late and the other time about 20min early. Luckily I wasn't in a work meeting when they rang and could take the call.

My husband's surgery don't have any appointments to book in advance, at all. The only method of getting an appointment is to call between 8-10am for an on-the-day appointment (when they've run out, they've run out) and they'll call you back any time later that day. So, when you're ill you've to hang on the phone calling repeatedly until you get through, then spend the rest of the day hanging on the phone.

Ours are pretty good, they say they'll ring sometime between say 2 and 5pm but tell you if it's urgent or routine, they call the urgents first then then routines so you can guess from what they tell you roughly when in the time slot you'll be called.

@AngeloMysterioso that is really poor. Our GP’s would keep you on their list and try you again later. Please consider writing and bringing it to the attention of the practice manager so procedures can be changed.
Congratulations & I hope the sickness eases soon

Mines pretty good if I explain that I'm working and will give me a half hour window which is better than nothing.