How important do you think it is to be on time for a GP appt

[Ireolu]

Just that really.

Do you think it is important to turn up on time or early for a GP appt? Do you think you shd still be seen when you are 10 mins or more late for a 10 minute appt.

This is just for adults over 18 not for children. TIA for thoughts.

Why would a therapist bollock you about anything?
Why would a therapist have no privacy set up for their patient?
Why would a therapist not schedule a gap for note writing between patients?

Sounds like a shite therapist. Bollocking a new patient, not having seperate waiting and therapy areas, not leaving time between patients.

I've never been seen on time at the GP, they are always - even if I have the first appointment of the day - at least 15 mins late, usually 30-60 mins. So while I still arrive on time, I don't think they would really notice if I didn't

I think if someone is more than 5 minutes late then it’s ok to cancel .

@AvocadotoastORahouse maybe job related? I lose all my commission if I'm late twice in a month. Late is after my start time so...
I'm early for everything out of habit

my GP surgery always run on time so very important

Ha this reminds me of a job I had as a teenager:

"To be early is to be on time, to be on time is to be late and to be late is UNACCEPTABLE!"

🤣

I was 10 mins early for a recent appointment and the lady in the queue in front of me argued with the receptionist for EIGHT minutes about how she had to be seen today, even though it was nearly midday and all the appointments were long gone. Receptionists get a bad rep sometimes, but that lady had the patience of a saint.

Anyway, I'm always early because I don't know what's going to pop up.

I'm always 5-10 mins early but rarely get in at appointed time.
Once when I was seeing a consultant I arrives at 8.50, his clinic started at 9. On the board was a sign saying his clinic was running 30 mins late ie he hadn't gotten in yet. I said something to the nurse and she said 'oh he's often late'.
Annoying because Id changed school run and work start to ensure I wasn't late!

I aim to arrive a few minutes early as there's always the faff with checking in, and if there's a queue or something that gets tricky etc. Our GP is largely on time - maybe a few minutes behind now and again, but nothing crazy and I think it would be ridiculous to expect to be seen if you're late.

At least 10 minutes early. That means if the person before you doesn’t show up you get to go in early. At least 3 times out of 5 the person before you doesn’t show up. It’s nuts how many people miss appointments. Showing up late for a doctors appointment without a good reason (and I appreciate there are good reasons) is a shitty selfish thing to do - both to the doctor and to other sick people who could have booked that appointment.

I arrive on time but with a book to read during the 30 mins or so that I'm waiting around

Yes it's important. Expect to be turned away if more than 5 minutes late. They're in short supply.

Used to work in a gp practice.
If you were more than 5 mins late then it was at the drs discretion as to whether youd be seen or not.
E.g Betty who needs regular treatment and is rarely late will probably be seen.
Peter who is regularly late with varied excuses may not be.

Totally up to the doctor.

There's little point in making any effort to turn up on time as they are always running late. If they had better discipline in kicking out the malingerers who just go in there to chat...

I’m always just on time for everything, I don’t see the point of being early, if my appointments at 10 I will walk through the door at 9.59.

I think it's very important. The wait at my GPs is often 60-90mins after the appointment time, so it seems a bit irrelevant. The earliest I've ever been seen is 45 mins later.

I arrive on time - as in checked in before the appointment time. Not too early, because I can guarantee to be kept waiting 20 mins or so.
If the practice can't run to schedule, why should I be there 5 or 10 mins early?

They would because the computer system would flag it up with reception

My current surgery, they run to time more often than not. There is no parking at all so sometimes people are late. The receptionist just sends the next person on the list in and slots in the late person to maintain the running order.
But then they are the most sensible people on earth!

Essential to be on time.

My surgery always text to confirm the appointment and its always 5 minutes earlier than the original appointment.
I am sure this is to get you in on time.
In France you need to be 20 minutes early for hospital appointments as you have to take your health card to a desk and they print off the id labels for you to take to your department.

I’m a GP. I’m sad to say I often run up to 45 minutes late. Not because I want to (definitely not, I’d love to go home on time!) or because I arrived late to work but because 10 minutes is not long enough to see someone who, for example, is acutely depressed and suicidal and walks in and bursts into tears, or to sort out someone who’s having chest pain and needs admission to hospital or who has joint pain and abdominal pain and a change in bowel habit etc etc. 10 minutes is just about long enough to sort out someone with tonsillitis or conjunctivitis etc but the nurse practitioner sees almost all of these patients now. We could lengthen appointment times but then we’d definitely not have enough appointments. So in the meantime we suck it up.
So please just bear in mind your GP doesn’t want to run late. We’re just trying to do our best for our patients with an under resourced service.

I used to work in a dental hospital. Our policy was we wouldn't see pts if they were 20 mins late, it was ridiculous imo. Some apps were only 10 mins long anyway! I think 10 mins absolutely maximum. And you won't get seen if you just waltz in and say you have an app without apologising for being late. Used to wind me up so so much

No, it doesn't work like that. You turn up on time for your appointment even if you think you won't be seen on time.

I always aim to get there 5-10 mins early but I'm lucky that I can walk to the GP (or DH drops me off if I'm too ill to walk there). Would probably aim for earlier if I had to drive as parking isn't always guaranteed. However, my GP is nearly always on time (and always within 5-10 mins of appointment time).

My old GP I would get there on time but would worry less about it as I frequently had to wait an hour past my appointment time to be seen