To be annoyed at the GP receptionist for being arsey about this?

[SneakyGremlin]

Had a GP phone appointment booked for 13:10 today, for something that needs sorting today (think medication review/replacement). Took my break at work from 13:00-13:30. 13:35 came, still no call, so I went back to work.

Finished work at 4:00 p.m, checked my phone and saw a missed call at 13:41 - so I rang back asking could I possibly get the GP to call me now as I'm not longer in work.

GP receptionist huffs, says she'll try but I should have kept an eye on my phone as they can't always help when it's the patients who missed the appointments. When I then point out to her that actually they rang half an hour after my scheduled appointment, which is why I missed it, she said that that shouldn't be relevant and I should always be by the phone because it's known that GPs run late sometimes.

AIBU to want to complain, or at least mention to the GP who I'm still waiting to call that some of us can't stop doing our jobs and wait for a call just because THEY are running late? If they'd sent a text or something that they were running behind I could have taken my break later and probably kept the appointment.

It feels like I'm being told off like a naughty child because THEY were late.

I've learned to do this several times the week of an appointment now

I suppose you have to think that if this was ten years ago, before they really started doing phone appointments, you’d have been in the surgery waiting room for your appointment. If the GP had been running late then, would you have left and gone back to work or home - or would your have waited?

I'd have left cause I'd be in the same position of being unable to wait all day.

This is a practice management issue and if it were me I'd complain politely to the practice manager. As the OP has also said above, it's not the doctor's fault and not their issue if the systems they have aren't suitable for many people who have to work.

I have a dog who has to be walked (she won't even wee in the garden) and twice now I've been left explaining personal medical issues in the street have waited hours and eventually had to go out. I've also had the situation where the doctor finished at 12 and there wasn't a system in place to notify me so I waited til 5 when I rang only to be told he'd gone 5 hours earlier.

These are all easily solvable issues that would give everyone an equal chance to access their GPs services which they've paid for with their taxes. I imagine it might also reduce the stress for the GPs.

So frustrating but glad the GP called again

I had a phone appointment a few weeks ago, no time given just told to make sure my phone is on and available all day from 8am. Luckily I can have my phone with me at work but that day I was working in the oven a lot and there's no signal inside it (all that metal and insulation I guess) so of course the doctor called while I was in the oven. Tried calling 3 times in fact which is good but unfortunately each time was while I was in the oven!
I called back and explained about the oven situation and they made a new appointment and they asked if the doctor could possibly aim to call within a two hour window so I could organise my work so I wouldn't be in the oven then and he did and it all worked out great (because the original doctor that was supposed to call me isn't very helpful if I remember her right, whereas the one who did end up calling me was really helpful)

These telephone appointments are ridiculous. I had a morning appointment for something urgent. By 1pm I hadn’t had a call. As getting through on the phone takes forever, i.e. “you are 34th in the call queue”, I drove to the practice. The receptionist said, “ah yes, you’re down for a morning telephone appointment” I pointedly looked at my watch, and then she said “it will probably be later this afternoon now”.

I finally got my urgent morning appointment call at 3.20 pm. I’m retired so yes I can hang around all day waiting for a call. When I was at work phones were left in your locker.

They did back her up because the time of arrival was on the computer system- computer says no scenario. They graciously agreed to not mark it on my record (three lates and you’re off their list) as a concession “this time”. The fact that the dentist wasn’t there either was irrelevant apparently 🙄.

How generous of them

YANBU! I feel bad for overloaded GPs but the system is ridiculous. I've had some worrying blood test results back recently, and had to push for an appointment to go over them and change my medication concerning one of the results (seriously undertreated thyroid). Earliest they could schedule me was with a phone appointment almost two weeks after the results came back, so this Wednesday.

The practice texted me this morning saying I was going to be called by the GP between 9-12 today "as requested" - I only realised this when I managed to check my phone after 13.15, on lunch, when I had 3 missed calls and had been teaching the entire morning.

Rang back and the receptionist said I'd now missed this appointment and my original one on Wednesday had been canceled for some reason, so she could offer me next Thursday...

Luckily she did listen to the situation and managed to fit me in this Thursday but what a bloody ridiculous pallava.

That is ridiculous! NHS dentist I assume?

Glad you managed to get the phonecall in the end.

I can see both sides.

GP could run late for lots of reasons. I don't know how easy it would be to notify everyone they were running late. Also, what would happen of they then had appointments not take as long, and they caught up.
However, there are a lot of jobs where people can't have their phone with them at work.

I am fortunate in that I would from home most days. It means it is easier to answer a GP call. Our gp gives a time frame eg after 2pm. It could be anytime between 2pm and 6pm when they close. If i have a call i try to ve at home.
Not as easy in the office, in an open plan room. I could take the call to a meeting room, but my phone signal isn't great in and around the office, so I could loose the call before getting there.

My GP told me that 80% of the diagnosis is in the history - hence phone calls can be very effective.

There is also a shortage of GPs and GPs will be able to fit more patients in with phone calls because there’s no time wasted with the GP waiting for the patient to get to their consulting room. Elderly people often move ever so slowly. I would imagine that they can fit in one extra patient per hour by having telephone appointments.

Forgot the letter like yours! Yes, everything said telephone. What a waste of everyone's time and a substantial amount of money.

Correct!

It's also that I don't necessarily want to discuss everything in my workplace....

Annoying but can’t be helped.

The GP was likely running late because other people’s needs were greater than yours.

You’ve got it sorted and have been able to provide feedback which is great.

The surgeries I’m with have always been very busy with pre Covid F2F often running an hour late, just sitting in the waiting room.

I now treat timed phone appointments as I did F2F. I can work until the appointment time and after that not work unless I can take a call. it’s great if it’s on time and I’m back at work, but as in the old days it might hours wait or more. I know this has a privilege of an understanding employer.

Years ago I was also the cause of a delay. I only went because I had to for a fit note. thought I would just say I felt low and they would refer me or give me anti depressants. Instead they talked and found out I was seriously ill, but it took time.

🤨😤🤯🤬

Agree, somethings are ok to discuss, you may not say much for people to hear, other things aren't appropriate.
I forgot tp say earlier - the attitude that you missed the appointment was also wrong if the call was out of the expected time.
The GP didn't speak to you, so could move on to the next person, whose call wouldn't be quite as late as it would have been if you had been able to take the call.

Probably. I got cancelled three times a row by mine in 2020, and then found I’d been de-registered for three ‘DNAs’. They refused to take me back or even put me on their waiting list. And I’d prepaid a Band 2 and they kept the money for work they didn’t do.

So that was nice.

These fake NHS stats are harmful to patients.

Then you really need to be proactive! Speak to your practice, explain your circumstances to your GP. They cannot help you with things they don't know about.

I voted "not unreasonable" on the poll, but I do think you are being very unreasonable if you are just going to complain here and not think about ways that you can solve this particular problem.

Do you honestly think that the GP is indifferent? Wants you to miss your appointment? See you go without the care and medicine you need? Of course not! They are the one making calls after hours (unpaid!) to make sure that you are looked after. Please, stop whining on here, have a think, take some adult responsibility for your own situation and work with them!

It's so annoying. At my surgery they refuse to give you a time (or even let you know whether it will be am or pm) for a phone consultation, as if you have nothing better to do than sit by the phone all day. I now insist on a face to face appointment.

The whole thing is absolutely pathetic but we're supposed to lap it all up gratefully because the NHS is amazing.

I would point out to the practice manager that the practice was at fault here and it is unrealistic to expect working people to hang on the phone forever waiting.
Saying " go private if you want that personalised attention" is disgraceful. The government allowed these phone appointments as part of the NHS contract because it was supposed to be more efficient and reduced the loss in national productivity when people previously had to take half a day off work for a doctor's appointment to allow for delays.
The whole system is shambolic. I was called in for my "aged 60 MOT". An appointment date and time was agreed, but then I got a phonecall 4 hours before from them to cancel it. No reason was given. I lost 1/2 days work. I was promised a phonecall with alternative dates but that was a month ago, so I'm not holding my breath.
Similarly I was given an appointment for a mammogram without any consultation on the time / date. I had to move mountains to get it rearranged. When I turned up at the clinic, there was only me there and 4 nurses. No other patients despite the fact that there were 8 slots per hour.The nurses were complaining that all these people had missed their appointments as they drank tea and dossed about. These missing patients were probably at work and pissed off at the inability to choose their appointment times!
It's time that NHS services were held more accountable for their bookings and follow ups.

I work in the NHS and can’t just drop everything for a call, it’s ridiculous. I call people when I say I will as I know people need to schedule it in!