Medical Receptionist RANT

[luceeloo]

Gah!

When selecting an appropriate receptionist for the job, do Dr's actually go looking for the least helpful jobsworths around?

I had my first H1abc on Friday, along with thyroid, liver, kidneys, and a few other bits and pieces.
I had a call from my surgery today, but missed the call on my mobile - they went to the extent of calling my next of kin to get hold of me whilst I was at work, and asked me to call asap.
I did, and was promptly told that my results are back but they need me to go in at the earliest opportunity. The Receptionist told me Nurse has reviewed my results and asked her to call me immediately to get me in. I told her that yes of course, I could come in for the next available appointment, and she even went to the extent of asking if I could possibly go to one of their other surgeries because the next available appointment is there. Of course, this wasn't a problem and I agreed to it.
Then she said "That's great, we'll see you next Tuesday 3rd december at 11am". I asked her if there were no appointments before, to which I was told that it IS flu season and they ARE busy!

What???? It's urgent, need to see me immediately, there's problem on my blood results.... but I have to wait a whole week for an urgent, immediate, next available appointment.
I'm sure that they do this on purpose just for fun!!!

 

[Brandon1*]

Phone and asked for a gp call back and complain to them about the receptionist they think they are un charge if it is urgent they have so many emergency appointments they gave to keep for on the day

Sent from the Diabetes Forum App

 

[dumpy222]

Don't even get me started on my doctor's receptionist 's I'm sure they have to go on a course in being a complete moron!!

 

[hanadr]

Gah!

When selecting an appropriate receptionist for the job, do Dr's actually go looking for the least helpful jobsworths around?

I had my first H1abc on Friday, along with thyroid, liver, kidneys, and a few other bits and pieces.
I had a call from my surgery today, but missed the call on my mobile - they went to the extent of calling my next of kin to get hold of me whilst I was at work, and asked me to call asap.
I did, and was promptly told that my results are back but they need me to go in at the earliest opportunity. The Receptionist told me Nurse has reviewed my results and asked her to call me immediately to get me in. I told her that yes of course, I could come in for the next available appointment, and she even went to the extent of asking if I could possibly go to one of their other surgeries because the next available appointment is there. Of course, this wasn't a problem and I agreed to it.
Then she said "That's great, we'll see you next Tuesday 3rd december at 11am". I asked her if there were no appointments before, to which I was told that it IS flu season and they ARE busy!

What???? It's urgent, need to see me immediately, there's problem on my blood results.... but I have to wait a whole week for an urgent, immediate, next available appointment.
I'm sure that they do this on purpose just for fun!!!

Contact the practice manager!
Hana

 

[luceeloo]

Contact the practice manager!
Hana

I did and to cut a long story short I've now moved to another practice within the same group. Ironically, I have the same GP, the same DSN, I just go to a different building in a more convenient part of town on a different day, and the receptionist seems wonderfully competent!

 

[vkchev74]

I did and to cut a long story short I've now moved to another practice within the same group. Ironically, I have the same GP, the same DSN, I just go to a different building in a more convenient part of town on a different day, and the receptionist seems wonderfully competent!

Speaking as a medical receptionist sometimes the urgency varies Sometimes the dr will say it can wait a day or 2. But if they tried you and then your next of kin straight away I would assume you needed to be seen that day. Our nurse does all our recalls. And if there is an urgent one we fit the person in. Who wants to wait for a week for urgent results! But I've had the same thing done to me, urgent results but my dr couldn't see me for 2 weeks. He called me 2 days after the receptionist called and asked why I wasn't coming in for 2 weeks. He got me in that day. Some receptionists are not nice but I kind of understand how they get like that with the **** they have to deal with from patients and drs and other surgeries and specialists as well. But that doesn't excuse them being rude.

 

[2christine]

Hi Vkchev, you 1 in a million, good luck in your work and try not to get like the ones ground down, by ****** patients.
have you got a sign over your reception saying ` ABUSIVE BEHAVIOR WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED AT THIS SURGERY`
or `you are welcome to our surgery and our staff will do all that they can to help you`

 

[carty]

I had a problem with my vision on a friday and rang to see if I could book an appointment on Monday The receptionist asked if I would be ok over the w/e then told me to hold on a moment and then came back and said a GP would see me at 3 pm that day.
So some receptionists are great !!
PS the GP was one I hadnt seen before and looked about as old as my grand daughter!! But she was very good
CAROL

 

[TonyTruthful]

Don't get me started kiddoooooo....

in a fit of rage I once said to the Dr's receptionist "Why do you even work in a bloody a customer service job"

She keeps on forgetting to put my prescription through now....can't for the life of me think why....

 

[catherinecherub]

If receptionist, shop assistants and the like are ever rude to me I always say, in a quiet tone, "Do you work hard at being nasty or does it come naturally?" It usually results in them backing off or shouting and if the latter I say, " I am not deaf". Usually has the desired effect and they start being polite. If not then I ask to see their superior.

 

[TonyTruthful]

I always like the one from ab fab...

"drop the attitude you only work in a shop"

 

[lessci]

I used to work in a motorway service area and get allsorts of abuse from people who had generally had a bad day, or who were upset about the very high prices. Depending on my mood I would agree with everything they said, or "polite" them which can be fun. (The nastier or more verbally abusive they got, the more polite I became, people either realise that they're worked up over nothing and calm down or get angrier as you're not rising to the bait and biting back) Just try and remember that people who work in customer service probably think that the rules/waits/questions are stupid too, but they can't tell you that

 

[Giverny]

PS the GP was one I hadnt seen before and looked about as old as my grand daughter!! But she was very good
CAROL

I know it's a little bit off-topic as it's not about receptionists... but my family also recently had an amazing experience with a very young doctor. My nan had been feeling very ill since March and had been to see quite a few of the more experienced GPs at her surgery. They constantly fobbed her off saying it was nothing but some mind age-related muscular pain. She finally went back but saw a new GP who looked like she wasn't much older than me! Turns out she has multiple myeloma (bone marrow cancer) and if the young GP hadn't sent her off for tests when she did, then she would have died within a few days from kidney failure.

 

[tizzy]

Like you lessci the more horrid people are the more like basil faulty I become(when he sucks up to people) not the angry one its funny how people just melt when they've gone I stick my fingures up to there backs of course it makes me feel better

 

[Yorksman]

When selecting an appropriate receptionist for the job, do Dr's actually go looking for the least helpful jobsworths around?

I'm sure that they do this on purpose just for fun!!!

No, I don't think so. I have a theory that doctor's receptionists are the result of early experiments in genetic cloning. They were badly designed and something obviously went wrong but now there is a conspiracy of silence to cover up the Military's interest in this breed which, afterall, can give any enemy the heebie jeebies. In the west we don't do suicide bombers but we do resort to psycho terrorism.

 

[Nigel Fenton]

My doctor rang me personally with my results, he probably knew better than go through the receptionist!!

Nigel

 

[Mud Island Dweller]

My mum was a dr receptionist for many years loved it apart from the fact she always getting moaned at for fitting people in and being to nice to people. Her attitude was she treated people how she wanted treating.

My present dr receptionist seems ok the ones at my old practice were indifferent

 

[kerrygrant26]

My GP surgery has receptionists just as unhelpful as yours, if it was me I would phone up first thing in the morning and request a ring back off a doctor. By doing this the doctor who calls you can make you an appointment for that same day if he/she feels it is necessary. Don't take your receptionists **** (im learning the hard way not to sit back and accept there are no appointments for such important things), they don't know or care about your medical problems, im convinced they are just there to make patients lives a misery Best of luck with your results x

 

[Scardoc]

As well as making "patients life a misery" it is a receptionists job is to make appointments, not a Doctors. I think the docs generally have more important things to do.

 

[Susan1974]

It's not just doctors receptionists although they are the worst. One of the receptionists at the diabetic clinic in my local hospital was really rude to me one day. He was so bad I actually made an official complaint after about 17 years of attending the clinic. There was no need for his attitude. I understand that sometimes they may have a bad day or they are on the receiving end of rudeness but you can't compare receptionists in GP surgeries or hospitals with customer service or Shop assisstants. They are dealing with very ill people in some cases. They need to remember this and treat people how they would like to be treated or expect to be hit by the karma train at some point. I really hope they never need the compassion and sympathy of a medical receptionist. If they were a receptionist in a private medical clinic they wouldn't get away with treating patients disrespectfully. Sorry. Rant over!