To ask how can I avoid getting a junior doctor at my appointment tonight?

[Alrueb]

Firstly, I've nothing against junior doctors, not at all!

It's just that I have been dealing with life-altering symptoms for over 2 years now and I have been on a huge waiting list for 18 months - just for a first appointment with a consultant.

I have questions about surgery and would rather speak to the actual surgeon, given how long I've waited.

I am absolutely awful at being assertive. It's from PTSD and it's so bad that it affects many aspects of my life, including my career. I'm having therapy to try overcome this, but it's only taking me so far. It's only recently and rarely I've been able to speak to neighbours or anything!

Does anyone have any tips on what to say or how to word things? Someone said I need to ask at reception, I'm not sure.

Thanks!!

If this is a first appointment they might not get as far as talking about surgery. Will they want to do more tests. As others have said some "junior" doctors are very experienced. You're not going to be seeing someone fresh out of medical school.

Exactly this- I paid to go privately and I got the same specialist surgeon I would have had under the NHS (he does 2 days private, 3 days NHS a week). I saved myself some of the wait time but got the same surgery.

My doctor friend advised private care can actually be more risky, as the private hospitals aren't equipped for emergency care and you will need to be transferred to an NHS hospital, which would be more delayed than if you were having your surgery at the NHS hospital to start with.

I did love the own room and food menu choices though.

Write your questions down in advance and, if you have time and you have the contact details of who you will be meeting (e.g. if you got a letter confirming the appointment, sometimes it will state the name and email address of the Dr's secretary), email them to the secretary in advance. I appreciate that's too late for tonight, but might help next time.

Try not to panic while you're there. If the Dr you see tonight can't answer your questions, ask if there is someone else available to speak to, and, if not, get the name of the relevant person and ask if you can either arrange another meeting or a zoom call.

No - you are likely to be seen by a very qualified and experienced registrar working under the direction of a consultant.

OP can you write your questions down, take someone with you, tell the medic you have PTSD and in advance ask if you could either record the meeting if they are ok with that or to get a transcript of it so that you can process it all?

Junior doctors are fresh out of training on the most up to date stuff, or at least in most cases. They’re more likely to come up with an innovative new idea IME.

You’ll be seen by the most appropriate member of the team . All patients seen by doctors in training are discussed with the named consultant - so don’t worry…
At 41 with specialty exams under my belt and a specialist registration I was still technically a junior doctor but with 17 years experience and independently performing major surgery .
don’t overthink it….

Many excellent doctors don't ever become a consultant.

If you have a specific consultant in mind, see him or her privately and then join the NHS waiting list for treatment. You can’t usually choose whom you see with the NHS, although there are exceptions.

Good luck, I hope you get it all sorted.

@firstlittlebub

I can understand that. explaining that your knowledge of junior doctors means they may actually be a really good option probably would help OP put it into perspective x

God, what an awful attitude!!

OP, prepare your questions in advance. Write down what you would like to know, and share the list of questions.

It's a good idea to take a friend with you to act as note taker because sometimes it is hard to take it all in.

And bear in mind that 'junior' doctors can have 7 or 8 years experience and have broad surgical experience. I'm been through treatment for breast cancer and the 'junior' doctors are great, knowledgeable, thorough and supportive. The consultant oncologist, not so much so.

Why are you assuming you might get a "junior doctor" when you also say you've been waiting for 18 months for a first appointment with a consultant. Isn't this your first appointment with a consultant??

Anyway, you can't wangle whatever doctor you like. If you want to have that choice you will have to pay to have the operation done privately.

In my specialty all new patients have to be seen a Consultant. They may see my registrar first, but I will join them for the end of the consultation.

I’ve never been fobbed off, nor have I had a crappy nurse, in all my years of doctor and hospital appointments! Apart from the one time I saw a consultant gynaecologist in a private hospital who told me I didn't need pain relief when she performed a colposcopy. Reader - she was very wrong!

Hi OP. I hope you get some useful information on here.

My tips going to a surgical clinic.

1. Take a notepad to write down your questions, and if you can write the answers down and the person that you asked. Then you can read the answers at a time when you are calm.
2. Take a book! The time on the clinic letter may not be the time you are seen. This can make you anxiety even worse if the clinic is massively running over. Its no-one fault often doctors can also be responding to other medical situations in the hospital if that is where your appointment is.
3. Private consultation is fine, but it's often the same surgeons in the private and unless you can cover the cost of the surgery you will have to then do at least most of the process again anyway.

Hope that helps.

Junior drs are often better. Their still keen and interested. Their more up to date with new medical literature and still have consultants to fall back on and consult with. A lot of nhs consultants (not all) are grumpy arrogant old men who are very stubborn and usually burnt out. If you want someone to be actively interested in your case a junior dr is better. However an outpatient appointment will most likely be with a consultant. The majority of junior drs are either in a&e, on wards or sat In with the consultant for the appointment

Hi. I'm back. Thanks for all the replies!

So I didn't need to ask, I did see the consultant anyway.

No further forward though. At least they examined me, and confirmed what the problem is. He said not bad enough for surgery, may or may not get worse in future.

I asked my questions, but he kept saying "do not worry about that, you may not even need surgery".. I know that, but I was hoping for some info about it to put my mind at rest.

Think he was trying to be reassuring, but I am pretty much just as clueless as I went in.

This is absolute rubbish.

I had this recently for a long term condition, junior doctor said it was fine, luckily my consultant popped in to see me and declared it was not fine and I should be given the medication I’d just been lectured about not having.

A teachable moment for the trainee.

See the doctor allocated and then if you’re not happy escalate there and then.

Regards all the messages about 'just go private then' - so many people (me included) simply cannot just go private. Does that mean we should just have to accept what we are given? I pay tax too you know!

Well no people shouldn't just assume then make their own backstory maybe if people based decisions more on what is true rather that 'I want' there would be no need

I'm sorry your appointment didn't give you the answers that you hoped for OP. I hope you have scheduled follow up? What speciality is it?

To add to the many voices that have already explained, the term 'junior doctor' is not very helpful. In my speciality (O&G) the absolute minimum number of years from finishing med school to CCT (completion of training - when you can apply to be a consultant) is 9 years AFTER med school - 2 years foundation training then 7 years speciality training. Most people take longer than this due to pursuing specialist interests, years out for a variety of reasons or going LTFT. I've been qualified 10 years and perform surgery. My colleague that I was working alongside today has 20 years experience and she performs surgery. Both of us are junior doctors.

If you came to our gynaecology clinic you could be seen by anything from an FY2 doctor (2 years out of med school) to a GP trainee (3-4 years out of med school) or a speciality doctor of anything from 3-20 years out of med school. Or a consultant. Please be reassured that any doctor should not work or advise beyond their competency and a more senior doctor (possibly still a 'junior doctor', but a more senior one!) will be around to answer their queries or come in and talk to the patient if needed.

Who told you junior? Junior doctors don't do clinic, it's either registrar or consultant? Registrar is in surgery more often than the consultant half the time.

@Yekaterinap a registrar is by definition a junior doctor. Also doctors much more junior than a registrar will be doing clinics. There will be a reg or consultant around, but SHOs, GP trainees etc do plenty of out patient clinics.

I have received treatment in UK & abroad

I have put my faith in the medical experts

My main priority has been to have better health

I don't care who treats me, so long as they treat everyone with dignity & care

Perhaps, you should voice your concerns that you are nervous & anxious & the medical team can assure you. I expect that each medical team has statistics about successful procedures, but this info may not be for public knowledge.

They probably carry out 100s of similar procedures successfully each year