Staff training at our Doctors’ surgery.

I wouldn’t like that job Doodledog I’m sure many patients get so frustrated that they snap back at the staff.

Just as an add on, this idea that pharmacists will pick up work usually done by doctors may not work. The pharmacists in both the chemists in our small town are rushed off their feet. I wonder if they will be paid more.

Also, I was in my surgery yesterday waiting to be seen, and a man came to the reception desk. I wasn’t listening to what he was saying but he was attended to politely and made to leave, at which point he caught my eye and smiled, so I was tuned in. Then he asked about another appointment and was told to use the online form. At this he got shirty and said he didn’t bother with the Internet (he was maybe 65). The receptionist calmly told him that if he phoned in someone would make the appointment for him, but he wasn’t happy with that either. She explained again that his follow up appointment was too far ahead for the system, but if he rang in nearer the time one would be made for him. She asked if that was alright and he snarled that it would have to be, wouldn’t it, and again caught my eye to look for support. I felt sorry for the receptionist, who was only doing her job.

The ‘care navigator’ thing is a new government initiative that allows receptionists to triage patients to a range of ‘care providers’. It won’t make up for the shortage of GPS, but it will massage the figures.

Most receptionists are on minimum wage and get a lot af abuse. I would like to think that this extra role would mean that they were paid more, but I’ll be surprised if that happens.

If anyone is interested there is a thread on Mumsnet on which a practice manager is answering questions about how things work. It’s very interesting.

www.mumsnet.com/talk/AMA/4801047-im-a-gp-practice-manager-ama?page=7&reply=126062518

The latest at our surgery is that Receptionists are now to be known as Care Navigators it gets more absurd everyday.

DH has a rare face to face appointment today. I do dope they don’t ask him what pronoun he uses or if he is pregnant, his answer could get him banned 😳

Riggie

Surgeries in my area started closing ine afternoon a week several decades ago. Ots supposed to be time for GPs to do training, go to meetings or the popular rumour is play golf. Some now open on that afternoon, mine doesn't and often has staff training on other days too. You just have to call 111 if you need help.

What percentage of appointments are so urgent that patients need to be seen immediately? Quite honestly, if the need really is that urgent, dialling 111 (or even 999) is probably the best option anyway.

Coco51

Cold

Hobbs1

My GP surgery has a Practice Manager, an IT “ expert” and 6 admin/ reception staff. I don’t know how many GPs as I have never been lucky enough to get an appointment, only a telephone consultation during lockdown. the one and only time my telephone call has been answered by a receptionist and the GP called back, they no longer do repeat prescriptions over the counter, the patients have to request on line, all patient records are on the computer so very little filing or paperwork as it’s all instantly available so how do they spend their working hours I wonder………

How do you think that your medical records get to be "online"?

Where I live doctors usually dictate records for speed and then admin staff types them into the online system so it's a pretty substantial workload but means that all clinical staff can access your full records - so the hospital can see the GP records and vice versa.

Documents can be scanned in these days.

And who does the scanning? That magic fairy who obviously hovers around all GP surgeries?

Cold

Hobbs1

My GP surgery has a Practice Manager, an IT “ expert” and 6 admin/ reception staff. I don’t know how many GPs as I have never been lucky enough to get an appointment, only a telephone consultation during lockdown. the one and only time my telephone call has been answered by a receptionist and the GP called back, they no longer do repeat prescriptions over the counter, the patients have to request on line, all patient records are on the computer so very little filing or paperwork as it’s all instantly available so how do they spend their working hours I wonder………

How do you think that your medical records get to be "online"?

Where I live doctors usually dictate records for speed and then admin staff types them into the online system so it's a pretty substantial workload but means that all clinical staff can access your full records - so the hospital can see the GP records and vice versa.

Presumably some kind of magic fairy miraculously produces online records.

Kamiso

During lockdown we were told our reception staff did a two week course and were now to be accepted as the equivalent to doctors. That came from the new finance manager who has wrecked what was a reasonably good surgery. The message did disappear after protests (and sniggering).

In what ways would they be the equivalent of doctors?

volver3

Yes of course.

Can't have them having fun, can we?

By all means, in their own time, not when they should be working and simply doing their job!

During lockdown we were told our reception staff did a two week course and were now to be accepted as the equivalent to doctors. That came from the new finance manager who has wrecked what was a reasonably good surgery. The message did disappear after protests (and sniggering).

Staff at GP surgeries should not have a leaving do. Then they could be getting on with ensuring that the health service is not going to the dogs!

Yes of course.

Can't have them having fun, can we?

volver3

I had to wait a few minutes at the hospital for an appointment recently because the nurse was eating her lunch at her desk.

Should I have complained?

No, because she was obviously on her lunch break, and grabbing it at her desk.

Quite different to a leaving do with banners etc.

In work time.

All GPs in Barking, Havering and Redbrige do as well, usually 1st Tuesday in the month it's so clinicians can Zoom to update their skills, nothing to do with admin, we turn our phones off and try at catch up on paperwork

I had to wait a few minutes at the hospital for an appointment recently because the nurse was eating her lunch at her desk.

Should I have complained?

grudging them a slice of cake

Yes, in work hours when the answerphone apparently is saying they are short staffed and can’t answer.

Have your celebration after work.

You don’t expect to go into Tesco and there’s nobody on the till because of some staff member’s leaving do.

Surgeries in my area started closing ine afternoon a week several decades ago. Ots supposed to be time for GPs to do training, go to meetings or the popular rumour is play golf. Some now open on that afternoon, mine doesn't and often has staff training on other days too. You just have to call 111 if you need help.

I suppose that, as suddenly finding a large cohort of instantly trained doctors and nurses isn't likely, things won't get better any time soon.
I'd read that it was the BMA that restricted medical student numbers but I don't know if that's true. I know that nurse training numbers were cut in Scotland.
Workforce planning issues are the main problem.

I have no axe to grind; I don't have any family members in the NHS and no serious illnesses, although I do need to see a doctor every few months for an ongoing problem.

I'm just gobsmacked how many people are blaming the local GP and the people in the surgery who do support roles such as receptionist or IT for what is wrong with the NHS. The NHS used to be the best in the world and it has been starved of funds by the recent government, for ideological (and profit) reasons.

That doesn't mean everybody at your local surgery is a saint. But expecting them not to have training, thinking that you can run the place better than they can, grudging them a slice of cake? It seems to me that the "divide and conquer" strategy adopted by this terrible government is working well.

Cold

Hobbs1

My GP surgery has a Practice Manager, an IT “ expert” and 6 admin/ reception staff. I don’t know how many GPs as I have never been lucky enough to get an appointment, only a telephone consultation during lockdown. the one and only time my telephone call has been answered by a receptionist and the GP called back, they no longer do repeat prescriptions over the counter, the patients have to request on line, all patient records are on the computer so very little filing or paperwork as it’s all instantly available so how do they spend their working hours I wonder………

How do you think that your medical records get to be "online"?

Where I live doctors usually dictate records for speed and then admin staff types them into the online system so it's a pretty substantial workload but means that all clinical staff can access your full records - so the hospital can see the GP records and vice versa.

Documents can be scanned in these days.

Hobbs1

My GP surgery has a Practice Manager, an IT “ expert” and 6 admin/ reception staff. I don’t know how many GPs as I have never been lucky enough to get an appointment, only a telephone consultation during lockdown. the one and only time my telephone call has been answered by a receptionist and the GP called back, they no longer do repeat prescriptions over the counter, the patients have to request on line, all patient records are on the computer so very little filing or paperwork as it’s all instantly available so how do they spend their working hours I wonder………

How do you think that your medical records get to be "online"?

Where I live doctors usually dictate records for speed and then admin staff types them into the online system so it's a pretty substantial workload but means that all clinical staff can access your full records - so the hospital can see the GP records and vice versa.

The problem here isn’t the doctors, who are doing their best under very difficult circumstance. The problem is the government. If you have a problem with the way services are run, you need to speak to your MP. However until more doctors are trained and fed into the system, nothing will change. In fact it will likely get worse, because many doctors are voting with their feet and going abroad to work. That will result in poorer working conditions for doctors and so more will choose to leave. It’s a circle that will only be stopped with more doctors, and the government are in charge of that. Nonetheless there will always be training sessions because training is essential for the running of surgeries and the advancement of staff.

Sadly there will be many bad experiences when there are insufficient doctors. However there is a huge lack of knowledge on this thread about the logistics and manner of running a GP surgery, made evident by some of the comments on here.

So they take on more patients than they can reasonably manage.

What’s the alternative when there aren’t enough GPs? Leave people without a GP at all? Is that what you would like?

Coco51

mumofmadboys

GPs are not paid for each consultation. They are paid for the number of patients registered with the practice. The amount of inaccurate information on these threads is huge

So they take on more patients than they can reasonably manage!!! £££££££
There are too many negative experiences here for there to be a simple lack of understanding.

They have no option but to take on more patients. Yes, they can use the additional money for more staff (if they have the space) but there's a national shortage of staff available.