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View Full Version : Doctors Receptionists....any tips?



katwoman
04-11-2010, 11:14 AM
So how do you deal with receptionist that rules the surgery?

A couple of months back I developed a cough that was so bad I was coughing until I vomited and couldn't speak because it aggravated the cough, I went and saw my ENT who put me on antibiotics and told me if it wasn't better by the end of the course to come back and he would arrange a x-ray as he didn't know if it was medication caused (methotrexate) or severe flu....the cough didn't get better and when I phoned the receptionist to get another appointment, she told me 'think its best you see your GP about this', anyway I said 'no Rhuemi wanted to see me again (in between coughing my lungs up), and I asked to leave a message for him to speak with me, so after alot of huffing and puffing she said she would.

Afternoon came and no reply, so I called again, another lot of huffing and puffing from her and then she said hold on, came back and said she got him to do a form for a chest x-ray, got the x-ray done and then I phoned to get the results, you know she wouldn't even put me through to him she said 'I'll read the results to you' and then proceeded to do so...I was so mad, but what do you do?

As it was chest was clear, but cough remained, it was so bad one night i was beside the toilet seat coughing and throwing up and was having trouble catching my breathe - the next day i just went to my GP because it wasn't worth the hassle to try and see Rheumi, as it was it took 3 lots of different antibiotics to clear (and 4 weeks later).

Lightwarrior
04-11-2010, 11:52 AM
Tell him that you can not get through. Ask him if he has a pager or a cell phone were you can leave him a message directly. It may take a bit if he is in a patient's room. One of the things I teach nurses is that Docs think in bullet points and we (nurses and most likely patients) think in stories. Be very concise for i.e. "I need to speak to the Doctor, I am stll coughing, throwing up and having trouble catching my breath". Most of the time when I have to intervene between one of our Intensivists and a nurse the nurse is trying to tell the story and the doc gets lost in the story, he needs to hear 1. I need your help now and 2. This is why: facts. I would start by letting him know how that his receptionist is rude to you.

Sangye
04-11-2010, 11:57 AM
Wow, Lightwarrior-- that is excellent advice! Great way to explain it to us. Thank you!

onatreetop
04-11-2010, 12:15 PM
Love it!!! The only other thing I have done and dont do on a regular basis is walk right in to the office and tell them very nicely that I need to be seen or talk to them NOW! Than say I am sorry but cant wait and dont want to get worse. Only three docs have given me there cell #'s but I havent had to call them yet. So frustrating sometimes.

elephant
04-11-2010, 12:26 PM
Lightwarrior excellent advice. So true with doctors. Katwoman, hoping your next call will be successful! That is horrible, what you went through!

katwoman
04-11-2010, 02:52 PM
Thanks Lightwarrior, I will mention (nicely) how difficult it is to get past his receptionist, maybe he needs to communicate with his staff as well, i'm sure they don't know my situation.

Onatreetop, I've had one doctor, my ophthalmologist , give me his mobile number and has told me to call anytime, and I knew he meant it because one day I called him and he was on leave from his clinic and saw me at my bosses house....now that is a a doctor that cares!

Rose
05-31-2011, 03:30 AM
When I was first diagnosed I was under the care of a nephrologist. I was given her cell and told to phone should there be any problems whatsoever. My first call to her was bad nausea following my first Cyclophosphamude IV. She didn't seem too pleased that I phoned. I developed a rash all over my body a few weeks later and it took me quite a while to pick up the courage to phone her after the last experience. When I eventually did I was tiold she was a nephrologist and not a dermatologist and to make an appointment to go and see one. I knew that the rash was likely from the drugs but when your are on high doses of pred and not feeling great I did not argue. Shortly after that I noticed my wee was a bit darker than usual and was I imagining the white of my eyes had a yellow tinge. I knew what that meant and the next time I phoned I insisted on seeing her. At this point I did not tell her on the phone that I suspected jaundice just in case I would be ridiculed after all i am not a doctor. To cut a long story short I was admitted to hosptial that afternoon whith liver enzyme levels through the roof...... I had drug induced hepatitis. She admitted to me that evening that my liver enzymes were so high that I could have died. The rash it turns out was an allergy to the drugs which could have been bactrin or INH Then she told me that I was never to go on any drugs whatsoever without consulting her first. She was very nice and concerned then. Unfortunaltely I started to develop UTI's and that meant a few phone calls to her. The last straw was when, after being on Imuran for over 5 weeks, I started having severe vomiting and abdominal pain. I tolerated it for over a week before I picked up the courage to phone her. She listened to my short few sentences and then said in a very measured voice that I was always complaining. I could not believe it! These were the only times I ever phoned over a 9 month period and each time was for a serious problem. That was the last straw. Needless to say I found a new doctor after that.

pberggren1
05-31-2011, 04:05 AM
My nephrologist, My main Wegs doc, is just the opposite. He always takes my calls and e-mails and will even see me in person on a very short notice. He does not even mind if I track him down at the hospital or his office if it is a concerning matter.

Psyborg
08-27-2011, 04:36 AM
So I'm having issues with this. It's almost to the point that I want to get another doctor. Dr Villa Forte is great, but the secretary acts like she is angry with me every time i talk to her. I don't know if I've managed to say the wrong thing at some point to her or what. I'm waiting all week to find out about treatment, while the whole time feeling worse. SO I call in today to ask and the Secretary says, oh you need to call scheduling. I call scheduling and they have no clue what I'm asking about. So I call back and say, "sorry, I may not be clear" and explained again that I wanted an update. At this point she says its scheduling, I say they don't have a clue in scheduling, and she says "I don't either" and proceeds to get snippy with me. All I want is the doctor to call me back at her convenience and I'm getting made to feel like I'm imposing on someone's time. I'm at work and feeling worse every day but I don't have the option of treating people that way.

DEE
08-27-2011, 05:00 AM
Been there done that . but it was not only the secertary in was the doctor I was with he just would not listen. I booked the next appointment with the senior doctor and told him what was happening . Now i only see him and regards the sec I just looked her straight in the face the next time I saw her when she was been difficult.and said" have you got a problem with me."
Her face was a picture," No "she said but she never did it again .Something I would not have done before wg .:smile1:

Kami
08-27-2011, 05:50 AM
Does your doctor have a specific nurse he works with, may try and call and ask to speak to his nurse and go thru him/her to get your message to the doctor?? This is how I do it and he always calls me back or his nurse does with whatever I am asking for. I would tell your doctor your issue with the receptionist next time you go visit (unless it is his wife) :) and ask him how he would like you handle it but definetly try the nurse route.

pberggren1
08-27-2011, 07:02 AM
I had to tune in my last Wegs doctor's nurse/secretary. She was always very snippy to me. Then one day I just snapped at her and said for Pete's sake would you grow up and just relay the frigging message because I have a rare and dangerous disease that I don't feel comfortable with and I need some support. After that she was good to me and would always get things done right away for me. I even had to tune my old doc in a few times as well. I had to tune in some nurses in the hospital here last year too. Just the older ones. The younger ones were good. But I did have one about my age that I had to tune in as well. She came in all grumpy one day and was muttering and I could not understand her. I told her no muttering and no bad attitudes in this room please. I then proceded to get out of bed, it was midnight, and then shoved her out of the room. She always spoke up after that and was always very nice to me.

Psyborg
08-27-2011, 08:43 AM
I'm seriously a person that just tries to keep people happy. This has really upset me as I don't know what the problem is. This is not the first incident, and I really don't like dealing with it. I'm close to saying forget it to dealing with CC over this. Being "A MAJOR VASCULITIS CENTER" doesn't mean squat if you are getting blocked from even getting basic answers. Heck this is the same person that told me I shouldn't be bothering them about rashes.

The doctor doesn't have her own nurse, just a secretary. I called up and left a message with the main Rheumatology desk, but of course I haven't heard anything back.

Barry
08-27-2011, 11:23 AM
Wow, I feel spoiled. My Rheumy doc will call me personally on the months I am not scheduled for an appointment. Ask how I am doing, any issues with med, and if I have any questions. My cardiac doc's nurse will call and follow up with me also. If I call in. the nurse will take my message and I will have a call back from either the doc or the nurse in a couple of hours or less. I thought this was normal.

Sangye
08-27-2011, 01:13 PM
I understand, Bob. My first (lousy) rheumy had a horrible receptionist that actually hung up on me when I called to say I had repeat blood clots. I tried explaining my situation, etc... but truly there was no working with her. So I gave up trying to communicate my feelings and just started communicating without any emotion. It was awful. I hated that office. The doctor was just as bad in that case, though.

JHU's Vasculitis Center is set up the same as CC's. No nurse, just a receptionist. Dr Seo's receptionist can be very hard to deal with but I've had some long talks with her (in person) and we're okay now. I've spent a lot of time educating her about our lives and why patients might be anxious, etc.... You'd think they would know a lot about Wegs since they deal with Weggies all day. But often they just deal with patients like they're a number, not a human being with needs.

I think if you're happy with Dr Villa Forte it's worth discussing the problem with her. And also consider sitting down with the receptionist and explain where you're at. My therapists have taught me a lot about communicating my needs better than I used to. If you get stuck maybe I can share some of what I've learned.

Psyborg
08-27-2011, 08:16 PM
I'm less angry this morning, but still pretty disappointed. I'm thinking I'll have to switch from any emotive speaking with yer, and focus on relaying my points. I will talk to Dr Villa-Forte when I have a chance. I had considered trying to talk to the lady, but I hadn't had any luck getting to see her.

drz
08-28-2011, 02:25 AM
Been there done that . but it was not only the secertary in was the doctor I was with he just would not listen. I booked the next appointment with the senior doctor and told him what was happening . Now i only see him and regards the sec I just looked her straight in the face the next time I saw her when she was been difficult.and said" have you got a problem with me."
Her face was a picture," No "she said but she never did it again .Something I would not have done before wg .:smile1:

Is there any way to by pass her and get connected to the doctor's nurse? I have found them to always be more helpful that the front desk people. I can email the doctor or nurse or call in and leave a message for them to call me and they will call me back.

freakyschizogirl
08-29-2011, 08:25 PM
I had similar problems with my Rheumy's secretary. Next time i saw him i told him about it and he rang her whilst i was still in the room and i could hear her arguing down the phone with him. She said she didnt remember most of it. But she is a jobs worth or simply too busy. No one is ever too busy to be polite or attentive to patient care.

I also had a funny episode when i rang to cancel an appointment with my chest doc, the receptionist on the other end of the phone said, "so, you're all better then?" in a cherpy tone. Its not her fault but thats a really very insensitive thing to say.

Psyborg
08-31-2011, 09:24 AM
Finally calmed down enough to call back today. And she was just fine today. It could have been a bad day, but it's still not great that that happens.

Anyway, the Doctor called me back tonight and told me I was approved today for RTX. Now I'm just not sure how soon I can get in to get it. I'm a bit concerned as my sinuses are bugging me and feels like a sinus infection...crappy timing if so.

delorisdoe
08-31-2011, 09:32 PM
One time...on 100mg of prednisone...I had missed my second appointment-I was medicaly irresponsible back then but with that much pred who would not feel great-I had a secretary tell me "if you miss another appt he will refuse to see you again". I replied " oh really??? he will just let me die will he?"-remember 100mg of prednisone. My tone was terribly rude and she looked as if i had slapped her. Her reply was " well, no..." I fee bad about it now but from that incident we both learned how to interact. I hear people in the office complain about her all the time and I think to myself clearly they are not on enough pred to deal with this lady. I also have never missed an appointment since.

we both learned

Sangye
09-01-2011, 12:04 AM
Bob, do you think your sinus symptoms could be due to Wegs?

Psyborg
09-01-2011, 03:38 AM
Bob, do you think your sinus symptoms could be due to Wegs?

It could be, but I've not had any sinus issues up to this point. Not sure I'd know if it was sinus related until it go bad enough to be obvious. But then again I hadn't had any rashes till this flare either :)

There is a little bit of a nasal burning at the back of my throat, and sinuses. No discoloration or crusting at this point.

Sangye
09-01-2011, 07:43 AM
Hopefully a simple sputum sample can reveal if it's infection or not.

Psyborg
09-01-2011, 08:32 AM
I've always had a susceptibility to sinus issues. Quite honestly I was shocked that I didn't get any sinus activity the first time around given that.

Psyborg
09-06-2011, 11:49 PM
So I complained about the secretary. Now I'm getting syrupy fake friendliness with an underlying nastiness lol. I called today because I didn't remember if I was to keep taking the MTX now that I've had the first infusion.

She called back all sweet and happy and told me the Doctor had already discussed it with me. Which, obviously, I didn't remember. So then she tells me I'm supposed to continue taking the MTX as the doctor described. Then she proceeds to ask me if I should write it down. Geez. I don't remember the original conversation, that doesn't mean I won't remember the specific questions I ask.

/sigh :p

DEE
09-07-2011, 12:14 AM
I think the only writing down I would be doing is an offical compliant on paper. I think this dieases is hard enough to deal without people like her .