Do GPs judge based on how often you attend?

[glovely]

Historically I haven't been to the GP much, but in the last year or so I have been multiple times. I have parasthesia on my right hand side which I'm under neurology for, also went in for blood tests because of this, once because my ankles were swollen (GP noted herself they were both hot and swollen - never got to the bottom of it!), once for a blood test (linked to swollen ankles), once for an ECG so I could be prescribed medication safely for an ongoing condition, once because I was having panic attacks every night (I had one and it was terrifying, which led to me having them all the time - it was awful) and was prescribed propranolol, and once for a smear test. Each of these things on its own I feel warrants a GP appointment, but put together seems like an awful lot and I'm concerned that I'm going to be seen as a regular!

I have had pain in my calf for three weeks, which is totally unexplained. It's tender and painful to walk on. I've booked a GP appointment today but just feel very anxious that I have attended far too regularly.

Does anyone else get this anxiety? Am I being daft?

No - if generally you don't over attend they aren't going to think anything if you have a run of bad luck, or get a chronic disease or get old and need to come more regularly.

There is a group of people, I believe, who are problematic because they are in and out regularly for years with nowt wrong with them, but their records are going to look completely different from yours.

Just edited my post because we have a relative in hospital at the moment who we've been told has both viruses.

In hospitals yes we do an extended respiratory swab that goes to the lab and takes 24 hours to process.

That's why I was confused about being able to test at home.

It's a discussion forum.

Dual tests do exist according to Google

https://altruan.uk/products/fluorecare-sars-cov-2-influenza-a-b-rsv-antigen-kombi-test-1-piece-pack-1-test

Mine too. I now pay for private health care because of the legendary (locally) atrocious service of our surgery.
I wouldn't worry about it OP. You are using the service as it should be used.

Every day is a school day

I was at the GP monthly for a reoccurring UTI with multiple other symptoms of exhaustion, extreme brain fog, heart palpitations etc…

I was basically fobbed off with antibiotics ,l was told I was perimenopausal, mostly 9/10 times I was there as blood and protein in urine samples, I had multiple blood tests as well.

Ended up in resus with a thyroid storm, literally on deaths door, as well as kidney damage due to the excessive use of antibiotics, which caused me to have life long overactive bladder syndrome.

Fore reference your thyroid is supposed to lower than 4.0, mine was 280 on admission and on the hospital looking at my records id been excessively high for over 2.5 years and my GP ignored the results and advised I was within normal range.

The GP no longer practices, as my PALS complaint was upheld.

If your ill and worrying about medical issues, frankly I couldn’t give a toss if the GP thought I was a nuisance, I’m lucky now I have a wonderful GP who I only see and she takes my health seriously with professionalism and advocates for me.

My gp judges, but I judge him for dismissing me so much that I had to keep going back and back with worsening symptoms so judgement all around!

Our workplace [gave] us dual flu and COVID tests.

Wow, didn't know those existed at an affordable cost point. Every day's a school day... Does anyone know how reliable they are, what are the type1 & type2 error rates?

NB: I imagine OP means resentment or criticism, when she says "judge",

Still confused that OP works in healthcare but leans into thinking that healthcare providers "judge" "regular" patients : does that mean that judgy is how OP feels about her service users, is why she assumes that?

The most common things that GPs might feel when they notice frequent attenders (assuming they personally even see the same individual patient enough to notice) are either 1) frustration that they haven't helped that person prevent their problems or 2) compassion that their problems couldn't be prevented. GPs don't have the spare energy to resent or criticise people who might manage their problems better (not managing perfectly is true of all of us, anyway).

OP I get it - I recently had some private blood tests because I didn't want my GP to think I'm a hypochondriac! I feel like I go a lot - but they are genuine reasons.
But you're absolutely being daft, as you have clear symptoms and if this was by chance a DVT, it's very serious. Hope it's all ok!

Indeed! I think it would be good to check next time before essentially accusing someone of lying?

I work with immunocompromised people and we are expected to test if we are showing signs of COVID, flu etc. these viruses could kill our patients following a stem cell transplant.

Every day is a school day if you're showing signs. If.
Not before every shift though?

Don’t worry about what they think - just about whether you’re getting reasonable, professional, courteous treatment.

You can still get a whiff of them thinking you’re a time waster even if you hardly ever go! I don’t think most GPs have time to scrutinise your records to see when they last saw you.

Having been to my GP only once before in a decade ( re gall bladder removal) I went with an incredibly painful throat infection because I thought that I could see a white mass. I thought I had - and I did - have a quinsy requiring antibiotics. The initially dismissive doctor said ‘good god’ when looking down my throat and said he ‘couldn’t understand why I didn’t feel more ill’. I then pointed out that I was at the doctor and didn’t have a track record of coming with anything trivial.

They definitely do and I think the more you go about various things the less you get taken seriously especially if you ask a lot of questions or seem anxious. How do you see a GP so often though? I haven't seen a GP for the whole of 2025, they give appts with the nurse practitioner every single time no matter what the issue is.

I work at a GP surgery - and no you don't get judged.

We used to get regulars and really didn't think that much about it. I think we were only very aware of 4 particular patients (out of a list of over 12000). They were very regular users and also frequent users of 111 and the ambulance service. We all knew their names and faces and two of them had to be put through to a manager before they could get an appointment. They were very extreme though (one young woman would only want to see a female GP - no problem there - but then would become fixated on them and the other was just very, very odd!)

Everyone else we just assumed that they had an ongoing problem and needed to see the GP.

And if your surgery do judge you - so what! If you need to see your GP you need to see your GP.

Oh no, not before every shift. I think it's to stop all these people who are like "oh I'll work through it and soldier on" types putting patients at risk. I will add though, still goes on your sickness record unlike in COVID times, so some people just deny symptoms because of this, so not really a system that works tbh.

I do OP. For me, it comes from my parents who came from a time before the NHS came into being, and you had to pay to see a doctor. My mum would hesitate to book any kind of doctor’s appointment for us as kids, even when I broke my arm and she left it three days rather than take me to the doctor (A&E or ‘Casualty’ didn’t seem so much of an option then). In her mind, seeing the doctor was a sort of extravagance/indulgence not to be partaken of too often.

But in reality, you could go for years without having a health condition, or several could come along at once, just like buses lol. So if you’ve seen your doctor for several conditions recently and another one has come along (which you’ve waited to see if it would resolve), then you go.