Gps Receptionists To Decide Whether You Are Ill Enough To See The Doctor.

[pattricia 574]

Yes that’s right ! It’s not happened yet but with the shortage of GPs this may happen in the near future. If a patient tells a receptionist  they have chest pains for example, it’s impossible to tell whether that person has indigestion or having a heart attack. It’s not as if those receptionist on the front desk have enough to do. I just hope this idea never happens !

[Janus 28]

What is the origin of this information? I know that receptionists at my local surgery ask  why you want to see the doc.

[gene 10]

Already happening at my surgery. Even an electronic letter from a consultant to a GP is checked by the responsible receptionist and is unlikely to be seen by my GP until a week after it has been sent. Plus we have Physicians' Associates in place of seeing a GP too.  

[pattricia 574]

3 hours ago, Janus said:

What is the origin of this information? I know that receptionists at my local surgery ask  why you want to see the doc.

The Daily Mail

[Jomie 30]

Haven’t read the article but it sounds as if it might be the same, or similar to Care Navigation which some surgeries are now using.
 

Care Navigation 

A member of the reception team will ask for a brief outline of the problem when the patient calls to make an appointment at the practice. 

Through specialist training, the team can offer more choice on who to see in the practice and help them to get to the right health professional fast. The receptionists never offer clinical advice or triage; it is about offering the choice to see other specialists in the practice team if they have the expertise to deal with the problem; often it is quicker and without the need to see the GP each time.

Examples are calls that can be dealt with by a physiotherapist, the pharmacist, sometimes even the secretaries. 

This helps to free up time for GPs to care for patients with complex or serious health conditions. It also means that the patient sees the staff member who is  best placed to deal with the problem. 

[ECCOnoob 1,016]

Good.  A triage system is hardly a new concept. 

 

A whole part of a GP 'receptionist' job is to be gatekeeper and scheduler for their doctors.

 

The administrative title really does not do it justice.  It's common sense for them to have power to refer queries to other staff members if required.  

 

Despite the inevitable Daily mail hysteria the reality is not everything requires attendance with the doctor.

Edited December 25, 2019 by ECCOnoob

[gene 10]

Sometimes continuity with the same doctor is beneficial to the patient though when there are ongoing problems.

[El Cid 210]

3 hours ago, ECCOnoob said:

Good.  A triage system is hardly a new concept.

Just the same as at A+E

[ads36 213]

6 hours ago, pattricia said:

The Daily Mail

Please consider not reading that dreadful rubbish.

[pattricia 574]

7 hours ago, ads36 said:

Please consider not reading that dreadful rubbish.

Shall I go upmarket with The Sun then ?

[hauxwell 242]

My Doctors uses the care navigation system, a recorded message is played before being put through to reception, you tell the receptionist your problem and  in some cases she will offer you an appointment with an advanced nurse practitioner, you can normally get an appointment within days. If you want to see a Doctor it’s  about 2 weeks waiting time.

 

I do think that if someone fails to attend there Doctor’s appointment they should be fined if they don’t have a valid explanation.  In my old surgery at Grenoside they would put the number of missed appointments each month on the notice board, and there was a lot. 

 

 

 

[pattricia 574]

1 hour ago, hauxwell said:

My Doctors uses the care navigation system, a recorded message is played before being put through to reception, you tell the receptionist your problem and  in some cases she will offer you an appointment with an advanced nurse practitioner, you can normally get an appointment within days. If you want to see a Doctor it’s  about 2 weeks waiting time.

 

I do think that if someone fails to attend there Doctor’s appointment they should be fined if they don’t have a valid explanation.  In my old surgery at Grenoside they would put the number of missed appointments each month on the notice board, and there was a lot. 

 

 

 

My docs also put the number of missed appointments up on a notice board. We do not have the advanced  nurse practitioner, but think this is an excellent idea, as she could pass any urgent cases onto the GP. She will certainly have more medical knowledge than the receptionist.