Doctor's appointments

I do understand the urgency for so many people who need to talk to a doctor and hope those in great need get appointments in good time. But there are not enough GPs - there needed to be planning years ago to make sure we trained enough doctors, and there wasn't. Apparently lots of GPs and their staff are leaving because patients get angry with them and that, combined with the pressures of work, is leading to stress and resignations. Its not their fault that there are not enough doctors - lets tell them we value them!

I know of a locum GP that believes many Drs are using Covid as an excuse not to see patients. Even if you manage to see a medical person - Dr or nurse - can you be sure that the medical notes are correct ? just before his death my brother had an appointment at a diabetic clinic. The nurse said his weight had changed from 6 months ago - he never attended that appointment as he was ill. She said he needed his pnuemonia vaccine - he had already had it. She changed his medication and that combined with other factors meant he died. What was not picked up in his appointments were other medical issues that could have saved his life

am i angry? you bet i am

The receptionists are very nice at my gps, and that is what makes all the difference.
If there are no appointments for weeks, at least they have the good grace to say "I'm sorry, but...."
It's not difficult to do, but it makes it much easier for the poor sod on the end of the phone.

Our doctors are excellent. We have received a letter today apologizing for any short comings during the past 18 months and explaining the way forward. They do sound as if they are doing all that they can. We are neither of us in need of urgent medical attention but we have never had a problem in th epast 30 years with our doctors.

I don't to the Dr unless urgent, nor been for a few years. Couple months ago had a problem and due to past history rang up Drs. First told to push several different buttons on my phone then told to hang up and wait. 20 mins later a call and lots of questions from receptionist who was very short tempered and sighed a lot. Next an email asking me to send photos. Then a call from Dr, another chat and then I was asked if I could be at the practice in half an hour! Fortunately I drive so off I went. As soon as seen x rays booked. I also tried to tell Dr about another issue but was told to ring in a gas in and go they ough same rigmarole. As it happened a few days later I was taken by ambulance to A&E where the ambulance service personnel and the overworked hospital staff complained about Dr's not sering patients and them ending up like me very unwell and needing to be rushed in. The hospital staff were lovely despite it being really busy and I was discharged next day after a couple of x rays and some meds and told to contact Dr ASAP. I did call Dr's and was told I could only have a telephone consultation despite having been rushed to hospital. I called in when next near the surgery to try and book an appointment and after much huffing and sighing had an appointment card thrown at me! The Dr got pinged on the day of my appt do rang me and I've yet to get a face to face. The surgeries still get paid per patient whether you attend or not, really do think things need to change as not all people are able to send photos by email or deal with phone consultations. Only one receptionist at my Dr is nice and she's leaving sadly.

Well, anyone who was in the main entrance of the Bristol royal infirmary at 1100 last Monday, sorry you had to hear all about my desperate itchy rash caused by an allergic reaction to canesten cream - I had to take disabled person to hospital and couldn't abandon them in their wheelchair, plus where would I go as even the loos had a queue... At least I spoke to a GP and got invited in for a face to face but hey, not knowing when the telephone consultation is going to happen, only which half of the day, can be a bit tricky. However, mostly I prefer not having to go in. My GP is doing their best with more demand and fewer doctors, they look exhausted.

I go to my doctors when he sends for me . Diabetes review or medication review . Other than this I’ve always wondered how people know that they are going to be ill ten days in advance ? Surely if you need to see a doctor it’s today , while you are unwell, not at the end of next week .

GagaJo, I've never been rude or aggressive with staff - but I will stick up for myself when necessary. No way am I going to phone at 8 am - as it's always engaged!

While I agree with all of your comments, having had this experience with my DGS a couple of times when he was very ill, I think we need to be very careful.

NHS GP care is hanging by a thread. GPs, practice nurses, practice admin staff, are leaving in droves, forced out by the aggression and hostility they are facing from patients. The system isn't coping now and if we continue to take out our ire on the Practice staff, we'll end up with no GP care at all.

This is due to Tory policy of running down NHS care. (I'm doing my best here to be impartial.) But when we elected them, it was obvious this was the way it was going to go. The opposition told us this and it is coming to pass.

Our surgery was like this pre-Covid. There are lots of patients and not enough GPs. And now it's getting worse, more are leaving, not least because of certain newspapers and their organised attacks on GPs.

On another visit, a young man actually died in the queue. Of course, they got the defibrillator and tried to save him. I went to the wall screen, where we book in - but no option to book out (it was only a checkup).

There was obviously going to be a long delay, so I went to another reception desk and told them I was going.

Now I think about it, two of my doctors have died as well!

This is Exactly why the telephone booking is a travesty, well done you!!

I’ve given up with our surgery now. No face to face appointments without a phone consultation first, and a five week wait for that !! I would recommend everyone to have a look at the NHS phone app. I have it on my iphone and after completing the ID process I now have access to test results and can book appointments much more easily - although no faster unfortunately.

Haven't had any problems with my surgery. Had text about flu jab, rang for appointment and phone answered in 5 minutes. Appointment offered in 7 days with choice of times.
Haven't needed GP appointment for almost 2 years apart from sinus infection and GP rang back 3hrs later and gave me antibiotics.
I usually get chest infection every autumn but not been out much due to covid risk stayed quite healthy

I have finally got a face to face appointment with my doc in two weeks - I'm only able to talk about 1 condition????? Age 77, having not seen a doc for many months if not years, who do they think they are kidding?

Just a hint for those of us who don't like having to tell the receptionist what you're symptoms/problem is.... just tell them it's private They can't pry at that point.
I don't advocate what I'm about to say but in the past a friend of mine had been told there was a six week wait for an appointment, then was asked what was wrong with them, they actually greatly exaggerated their symptoms and was given an appointment (f2f) the following day. I don't agree with this behaviour but when you've been suffering with a problem for weeks and been unable to get seen, then maybe.

Well I applaud the lady for sticking to her guns. We all know reception are just doing job but some of them are ridiculously. I rang few weeks ago and said I need to speak to a dr or a nurse I’d came out suddenly in large lumps and really itchy all over my body. She said ring back at 8 in the morning I said this is not right it’s just covered my body in two hrs she said nothing available quite rudely and hung up. 2 hrs later I was blacking out and I live alone and somehow I managed to ring 111 and apparently from the way I was talking she sent ambulance right out. I opened the door and blackout into ambulance crews arms. I was then blue lighted to hospital. I spent a few days in hospital. Turn out I’d had an allergic reaction to some antibiotics. I also managed to damage my shoulder and broke my ribs. The reason I was blacking out was my blood pressure was crazy high and crazy low. Dr at hospital was happy when I told her I had rang my GPS and I couldn’t speak to anyone she said any doctor seeing me would have had me admitted right away. She also was writing to my dr about it. 2 other woman on my ward were also admitted because couldn’t see a dr.

So very lucky here. If, after a phone conversation with our GP, they think it necessary to be seen, we are given a time for the same day. We don’t have to wait for days on end either if we have a less urgent problem. The whole practice team are kind and try to help whenever they can.

I had a similar surreal experience as Hetty58 when I was trying to handle Mum's health care. Mum had a blood test and was told by the new, inexperienced GP that an appt had been made by her for follow up, in two weeks time. When I confirmed this with the receptionist, she informed me that the results would not be in by then, better to make an appt for 3 weeks time ( this after unprofessional comments and muttering about new GP), we cancelled the 2 week appt and I was then told to ring tomorrow, at 8am, to make another, she would not countenance just shifting the appt a week forward, even though by doing so I was saving a wasted trip. This was the same practice who phoned my Dad to make an appt for the memory clinic, he forgot of course, and they would not discuss it with me due to patient confidentiality. So, before we all fall to the ground praising receptionists, frankly there are many who are not up to the job.

In our town we had a paramedic attending a patient he needed to talk to their GP the receptionist wanted to give him a telephone appointment for 2 days time Sure the paramedics and the attending ambulance wouldn’t have minded the short wait You really couldn’t make it up

@m0nica

Home visits always seem to presage very serious illness.

This is not always the case, an ex- friend of mine's partner (age 70) is perfectly able to get to the gp surgery around 400m away but insists on the doctor always going out to see him at home.
I've tried to make him aware of the amount of time this takes the doctor away from the surgery and the number of other people they could be seeing. I've told him that if it's an out of hours emergency but not so serious as to require a hospital visit, it's not so bad, but he argued that he's a pensioner and has the 'right' to demand this level of service and will never go to the surgery.
The thing is, his doctor is stupid enough to pander to him!

My grandson was very poorly with what we now believe to be viral meningitis. My poor daughter could not get a GP appointment within 10 days. She phoned 111 and after answering the questions they were told that a duty doctor would call but not until next day. My son in law almost carried my grandson to the car and took him to A&E where he was triaged to be seen immediately and kept in for tests and a lumber puncture to enable diagnosis. The test results are still not back but a diagnosis has been made based on observation. He was there for four days. He has been allowed home with a canula in his arm and has to be taken every evening to the local hospital, which is a short car ride away, for antibiotics. The anxiety now is to get enough petrol to get there.
He is now feeling a little better and appearing in the kitchen asking for food.

GraceQuirrel

Hetty58

On one of my rare visits to the doctors, a few years back, she asked to see me again in two weeks. Unaware of the new system, on the way out, I joined the queue at reception - and tried to book.

The receptionist said 'You book online or by phone now!' - then (rudely) looked past me at the next person. 'But I'm here!' I said 'I want to book in person, now'. 'We don't do that any more' she said.

At that point I got pretty angry (and stubborn) refused to move - said 'Right, OK then!' and phoned her on my mobile. (I did apologise to those waiting behind me but they thought the system was ridiculous too).

She duly booked me in, by phone, realising it was the only possible way to move the queue!

That is absolutely brilliant!!! Great story. Receptionists do sometimes make a rod don’t they?

I very much doubt that it was the receptionist who made the rule about phoning for an appointment.

DGS aged 3 has had a problem with a swollen testicle. He & DIL had a telephone appointment which seemed totally inappropriate but he was referred to a paediatrician. When the appointment came, it was for next June! DIL rang the surgery & got to speak to the dr to ask if he could try & hasten the appointment- the dr told her she should go private! She said the only way she would see DGS was if his condition was worse so DIL said it was and secured an appointment for 3 weeks time. However, his condition did indeed worsen & DS & DIL took him to the surgery again for an emergency appointment. Again, the dr told them they should go private. DS was incensed & somehow got her to phone the hospital to try & get an appointment with the paediatrician before June - he can be very persuasive! The dr said it was very unlikely that anything sooner could be found...they were able to take him straight away, there and then!! Just shows how stubborn one has to be to get seen and heard. I think it's disgraceful that " going private" is seen as the way forward by drs & how judgemental it is. I'm sure DS could afford to take the private route if he wanted to but they may have been a couple on benefits & really struggling who would no doubt have found the suggestion really offensive. I don't know what the NHS is coming to & Covid shouldn't be seen as an excuse.

Hetty58

On one of my rare visits to the doctors, a few years back, she asked to see me again in two weeks. Unaware of the new system, on the way out, I joined the queue at reception - and tried to book.

The receptionist said 'You book online or by phone now!' - then (rudely) looked past me at the next person. 'But I'm here!' I said 'I want to book in person, now'. 'We don't do that any more' she said.

At that point I got pretty angry (and stubborn) refused to move - said 'Right, OK then!' and phoned her on my mobile. (I did apologise to those waiting behind me but they thought the system was ridiculous too).

She duly booked me in, by phone, realising it was the only possible way to move the queue!

That is absolutely brilliant!!! Great story. Receptionists do sometimes make a rod don’t they?