I’m a GP receptionist and prepared to be honest about my job.

[TwistedSisterUK]

Hi all, as title says, I’m a Gp receptionist. After reading all the irate, insulting, rude and misinformed threads on here I have made this account!

Please feel free to ask me anything and I promise to answer honestly, even though my opinions and thoughts are likely to make me very unpopular here. I’m prepared for it , having read dozens of previous threads where we are called lazy, rude, power mad, bitches and more…..

I have done this job for 12 years, it’s hard work but can be at times extremely rewarding . I work with a great team. My opinions are only about my job, my day to day dealing at the surgery I work in.

First of all, to the ppl who think we just answer phones and ask patients to please take a seat - I wish!! Lol.

I deal with chemists, pharmacists,hospital secretaries, emails, post, 100s of clinical letters and test reports, arrange all referrals, do all test requests, type all clinicians letters, new patient files are refilled, files from patients leaving must be found and returned, clinical letters received are scanned , coded and actioned, translators requests, letters to be typed up and patients to be called to arrange reviews, Imms,smears etc, the loaning out of medical equipment - there’s lots more but hopefully you are getting the idea that my job involves far more than answering the odd call.

So, the bits you, the patients see and hear are a small bit of my job.

I have to go out today but will be happy to answer any questions any of you may have but I’ll start the ball rolling here about the “ magically appearing appointments “.

I read a lot of complaints here that you call and there are no appointments….then….lo and behold,….after more conversation an appointment is found! This is because I can put it down as an urgent call. If it is NOT an urgent call I will be reprimanded by my manager and if this continues I would possibly lose my job.

I am simply not allowed to continually add more and more patients to be added as “ extras” They are called extras as there genuinely are no appointments left.

When I return I’ll move on to the why we ask the reason for your call! Please be assured I do not think myself in anyway medically trained nor do I even like asking - I have to ask - it’s my job.

I promise any questions or comments will be answered in all honesty! I’m wearing my hard hat…..lol

I’d like echo previous posters and thank you for the job you do. I have a lovely GP practice. It’s very busy and the staff are always pleasant and very helpful, and I have absolutely no complaints.

Being pleasant and polite works both ways though.

You sound wonderful. I hate the abuse receptionists and hcp's get, I'm sure most working in those roles are decent, kind people who are trying their best.

With that said, I've come across a couple of dreadful ones in my time and when you come up against that on a really bad day or when you're dealing with serious health problems, it's awful. It can have a big impact.

GP here, our receptionists do a great job, and they are definitely underpaid for what they do. (I am salaried, ie I am employed by the practice, I don't own it, so I have no power to change that).

I think it is really unfair when people take out their frustrations with the receptionists. They are not trying to make things difficult for you, but they have to work within the systems set up by their employers. If you are not happy with the appointments system, or other aspects of the management of the practice, complain to the practice manager or the partners - they are the people who can change things. If you are still not happy, make a complaint to NHS England.

Surely receptionist can see why people are stressed and a lot of the agro must come from knowing that a problem needs seen yet knowing that you might not get an appointment.

The whole phoning at 8am is blinking stupid, people don't want to be discussing medical issues in front of kids, or on a train to work, even driving trying to concentrate on the busy traffic while dealing with hitting redial on the phone.

Not to mention the stress of do you start heading to work knowing you might need to come back for an appointment.

We have some amazing receptionists at our doctors they are not all bad.

Generally speaking, the receptionists at my GP surgery are very good. I did have an awful experience when my late son was too unwell to get to his appointment. I got him to sign a consent for me to speak to his GP but when I got there the receptionist tried to physically block the doorway to the consulting room. I didn't really get anywhere though. When I came out, it was clear that the receptionist had read my son's records as she made a comment about him.
I do look back and wish that she had been a bit kinder, but I suppose it doesn't make any difference now. I don't think she works there any more.
The other receptionists are very polite and helpful.

Receptionist in general are decent sorts doing there job but you won't find threads about them on the Internet just the ones who expect the doctors to examine a foot over the phone 🙄 or insist that a vaccine appointment be over the phone (even the nurse was baffled the conversation went why am I calling you over a vaccine did you not want it? No I want it she just wouldn't book me one in person well that's a waste of my bloody time not really I'm actually in the car park taking the call well what are you waiting for get in here let me stab you with my stabby stab )

I also had one that didn't want to give me my 8 year old test results over the phone I'm hoping she misheard his date of birth sadly she got overtired me saying can you hear the chicken in the background? That's him do you really think he will understand his own test result 🤔🤣

I've been a Gp receptionist for 5 years now and I think because most people think we just say no appointments and answer the phone we have a stigma. There is so, so much work we actually have to do. Yesterday I was swore at because there was only 2 people on phones first thing in the morning and we couldn't answer as quick as they would like.

I've gone above and beyond for our patients. I've took a patient to the hospital after I've finished work because she needed to go urgently and couldn't get a taxi. I've left my desk and walked another patient home because she was in her 90's & could barely walk so she sat on her seated walking frame and I pushed her home. I've dropped prescriptions off at patients homes after I've finished work. I go into the chemist next door chasing prescriptions for patients who call us because they can't get in touch with the chemist. I HATE being tarred with the same brush a lot of receptionists get. I totally understand you have the absolute shit ones (we have one in our surgery) and we have complained about her to the manager. We've voiced our concerns about Gps not seeing patients until they've had a phone triage but nurses and HCAs can see anyone, as we think it's unfair and want to offer more to patients but it falls on deaf ears. It's not our doing.

When I call my surgery the conversation goes like this.

"What's your name" "Mrs Roses Hellebores"

"What's your date of birth Roses" "xx.xx.xx"

Me "my name is Mrs Hellebores, may I have an appointment with Dr Bloggs or Dr Jones, it's for my review so not urgent but I work full-time so after 6.30pm please"

"I can give you one tomorrow with Dr Smith, alright Roses dahlin"

"No I asked for Dr Bloggs or Jones after 6.30pm and I'm happy to wait and my name is Mrs Hellebores please"

"Well luvvy I can fit you in Friday at 2.30pm"

I'm sorry may I repeat it has to be after 6.30 and I can wait but would like it with Dr Bloggs or Jones.

"Dr Bloggs is doing lates on Monday x April. She can see you at 6.50pm."

"Great, thank you".

OP please can you explain two things:

1. Why Dr's receptionists appear incapable of following my request and instead would rather waste time and frustrate the caller?

1. If the GPs are referred to as title and surname, ie, formally, why do receptionists invariably think they may use my first name or luvvy. Are patients not equal stakeholders in their care? That goes for the GPs too BTW

@RagzRebooted

I'm a GP nurse. Receptionists are the glue that holds general practice together! I would not want to do their job.

absolutely this. For me, both as a patient, carer and ex clinician, they are the ones who ALWAYS have time to help when the wheels are starting to come off.

Do you think that the gatekeeping of appointments by you and your colleagues have ever directly led to severe/patient harm?

What percentage of patients you deal with are frequent flyers?

Why are a lot of GP surgeries so messy looking with tons of random posters put up which are not coherently organised?

Why does my name get shouted out and not a number?

I love the receptionists at my GP surgery
Thank you!

One massive thing that would stop a lot of complaints and anger/frustration would be sorting the appointment system out. Currently lots of places still operate on call at 8am and pray to the gods that:

A) It actually rings and isn't engaged
B) you get in the queue for appointments
C) you don't get randomly disconnected after hanging on for ages.

If you don't succeed you're supposed to repeat this again the next day and the next etc until you win the phone in lottery.

People work, have school runs to deal with and this is probably the most inconvenient moment to be fighting a poorly designed system

@janj2301

I handed my notice in in Feb, can't take the abuse and entitlement from patients anymore. No other job to go to (I am 70) so am staying until they find a replacement. I was absolutle amazed at the patients who never collect their blood or urine tests or their referral or never turn up to hospital appoinments we've arranged for them SO MUCH WASTE I used to think it was all the hospital managers but I now see lots of it is patients at GP level.

Do you mean they never collect their blood or urine test results? I never collect mine, doctor checks them and I get called in if there is a problem. Why would I waste anyone's time getting results that I can't do anything about.

My surgery used to have one nice, helpful receptionist and a few awful ones. Shortly after I joined the practice a few years ago I queried whether my repeats had come through from my old practice only for one of them to yell the names of all my repeat medications across the busy waiting room to me to check them whilst I was sitting at the far end of the room. There was nothing on there that I found sensitive but what terrible practice! All the other patients didn't know where to look.

Luckily the bad ones appear to have all left during the pandemic, leaving the nice one and a few newbies who are much better. Phew.

I've never been treated with anything but friendly respect by any receptionist at any of the surgeries I've used. I guess it goes both ways though, you get back what you give out. Once , when asked why I needed to see the doctor, I knew I'd cry as soon as I said it, (PND) I said "Sorry if I cry" and she immediately said "Don't tell me, it's fine." And gave me a same day appointment.
I was very admiring of a hospital receptionist last month when a man came in, initially very friendly, but asking to see the "Bastard n word doctor who took away my driving licence". She calmly explained that he needed to phone the DVLA, but when he continued to insult the doctor he had seen, she said very calmly, "I do not want to hear you insulting my colleague. I have told you you need to contact DVLA. You are disturbing the other patients and I would like you to leave now".
She didn't raise her voice, and then when he started to protest, she suddenly said "Have you got a hat and gloves? It looks very cold out there. Did you come on the bus?" And he switched back to being friendly, said he'd better get going before the chip shop shut, thanked her and walked out! I think she'd suddenly clicked that he had dementia, and her distraction tactic worked.

I’ve never come across rude receptionists, and I think it is unfair to blame them for the massive inadequacies in the NHS.

Seeing a doctor is, though, a monumental ball ache if you have a job. My heart sinks if one of us develops a symptom that looks like it will need medical care, I’ll try anything (Google, natural remedies, asking on Mumsnet etc) before I start wading into the horrors of the surgery’s phone/online systems. It’s not the receptionist’s fault though, is it? Everything in the NHS moves at a glacial speed and the reasons for that are presumably funding-related…

I guess my question is: if you rely on a call back system like my surgery (i.e. you submit your concern and a dr/nurse phones back anything up to 48 hours later), do you just expect people to be able to answer the phone whenever the call is?

@janj2301

I handed my notice in in Feb, can't take the abuse and entitlement from patients anymore. No other job to go to (I am 70) so am staying until they find a replacement. I was absolutle amazed at the patients who never collect their blood or urine tests or their referral or never turn up to hospital appoinments we've arranged for them SO MUCH WASTE I used to think it was all the hospital managers but I now see lots of it is patients at GP level.

This!! I sort the filing drawer out of blood forms, referral letters etc. There was 100 the other day. I just don't understand people. If they were that concerned they needed an appointment but don't want to take the necessary tests to help them.

I have a question, please,

Is there ever a ‘flag’ put on a patient’s file so you can see that they are (not in so many words, maybe) a troublemaker, or a hypochondriac, or a “frequent flyer”?

Or do you get to know which patients are considered to be any of the above, and if you do, does that affect whether you will be able to grant them one of your extra” appointments?

Thank you for your service, by the way, and for peeking above the parapet with this thread.

Lots of positive comments on this thread, which is good. However many of us have had dreadful experiences at the hands of GP Receptionists. My personal examples include public speculative conversations about a patient’s life limiting health problems (by name, I worked with him), refusing to action appointment requests by GP (told to come back in 2 weeks, receptionist refused to book the appointment, ended up not able to go back for nearly 5 weeks and got a bollocking from the doctor for making my issue worse), repeat prescriptions only available for collection during 1 hour per day (hour changed each day so you had to phone a recorded line in the morning to be told the time for that day), hospital referral letter lost 4 times, etc.

As this is an AMA, can I ask if you recognise these patient experiences and what can be done to fix them?

I phoned once for an emergency appointment for one of my children, they'd had a cold and it had quite obviously turned into a chest infection and baby needed to be seen. Receptionist was very short with me, it was too late in the day and that was that. I asked her if the on call doctor was there and she said he was. I asked her to let him know it was likely to be a crisis by midnight so best for him not to go to bed as I'd be calling him out. She told me to hold on and came back and said I could go and wait at the end of surgery so off I went with sick baby. Doctor frosty as I went in, examined baby and looked at me an apologised that they hadn't immediately given me an appointment.

Receptionist never apologised.

I have worked in customer-facing roles my whole life and I have dealt with some really horrible people phoning up and being rude about everything from the rules of the organisation down to my own name I really respect the work that you do; a lot of people expect the moon on a stick from an already stretched service and you guys are in the line of fire.

I have (thankfully) rarely needed to be seen on the day and can get by fine with scheduled phone appointments for routine issues. However, when I phoned my surgery a few weeks ago and said, "I've had my ADHD medication increased and I feel like I'm dying. Could the doctor phone me later in the week, please?", I was genuinely surprised when the receptionist told me to go up immediately and she would clear a space in the diary. Turns out that all the previous times I'd said "yes, it's urgent" for an on-the-day appointment weren't really, in comparison

Oh yes and confidentiality. So often the GP receptionist has before now refused to allow me to change my daughter's appointment (ages 16-18) when she was at school and couldn’t use her phone (there was a note on her record giving her permission for this - cd only be checked when I said in that case the Dr would have a "no show" - but there is no compunction about bellowing my full name, date of birth and post code across the desk? Notwithstanding the number of occasions someone else's prescription has been folded into mine or their referral letter included with mine.

There seems to be a lot of hiding behind not doing things due to confidentiality but in practice a complete disregard for the patients' personal data.

@RosesAndHellebores

When I call my surgery the conversation goes like this.

"What's your name" "Mrs Roses Hellebores"

"What's your date of birth Roses" "xx.xx.xx"

Me "my name is Mrs Hellebores, may I have an appointment with Dr Bloggs or Dr Jones, it's for my review so not urgent but I work full-time so after 6.30pm please"

"I can give you one tomorrow with Dr Smith, alright Roses dahlin"

"No I asked for Dr Bloggs or Jones after 6.30pm and I'm happy to wait and my name is Mrs Hellebores please"

"Well luvvy I can fit you in Friday at 2.30pm"

I'm sorry may I repeat it has to be after 6.30 and I can wait but would like it with Dr Bloggs or Jones.

"Dr Bloggs is doing lates on Monday x April. She can see you at 6.50pm."

"Great, thank you".

OP please can you explain two things:

1. Why Dr's receptionists appear incapable of following my request and instead would rather waste time and frustrate the caller?

1. If the GPs are referred to as title and surname, ie, formally, why do receptionists invariably think they may use my first name or luvvy. Are patients not equal stakeholders in their care? That goes for the GPs too BTW

I can understand your frustration, but not about your name. I like receptionists to sound friendly, and if they call me luvvy I'm fine with that.

I have to say the doctors at my surgery are absolutely lovely and bend over backwards to be helpful. Same with the nurses and HCA and I've had nurses intervene more than once when receptionist was being unhelpful or unable to actually understand.