Doctors receptionist??

[godpikachu]

just a quickie here..

 

Does a doctors receptionist have the right to ask you what ailment you are suffering from?, as i have just tried to make an appointment with my doctor to get some sleeping tablets/anti depressants and the receptionist said that unless i described my symptoms to her she would not be able to give me an appointment.

 

i wouldnt normally mind but i dont want people knowing that im having trouble with depression again.

[Bookworm]

Simple answer is: "no".

 

Complicated answer is: If they have a system of triage to distribute appointment, then they can ask, but you don't have to go into details, and if you say you are not comfortable with discussing it with a non-dr, she should accept that.

 

And the other thing is this: Depression is really hard to come to term with. I know. I have just turned 46 and it's only now that I am capable of admitting it openly, I used to hide it and and only tell people when I absolutely had to. The anxiety this caused me made it worse. I was ashamed of what I saw as a weakness, and even typing this is a big effort as I am still not used to lying it wide open. But the first step is accepting that you have it and no longer being ashamed by it.

 

You have a chemical imbalance. If you were a diabetic, you'd take insulin injections. If you had cancer, you'd have chemo. If you're a depressive/bipolar, then sometimes you need help to get you over the bump. It's normal, that's the way it is, and you are far from alone.

 

Take care.

[godpikachu]

Simple answer is: "no".

 

Complicated answer is: If they have a system of triage to distribute appointment, then they can ask, but you don't have to go into details, and if you say you are not comfortable with discussing it with a non-dr, she should accept that.

 

well, i did tell her that i would only discuss my problems with my doctor, but she replied by stating that she has to screen the appointments to make best use of his time.

 

And the other thing is this: Depression is really hard to come to term with. I know. I have just turned 46 and it's only now that I am capable of admitting it openly, I used to hide it and and only tell people when I absolutely had to. The anxiety this caused me made it worse. I was ashamed of what I saw as a weakness, and even typing this is a big effort as I am still not used to lying it wide open. But the first step is accepting that you have it and no longer being ashamed by it.

 

You have a chemical imbalance. If you were a diabetic, you'd take insulin injections. If you had cancer, you'd have chemo. If you're a depressive/bipolar, then sometimes you need help to get you over the bump. It's normal, that's the way it is, and you are far from alone.

 

Take care.

 

Ive suffered from depression/nervous breakdown before, wont go into the gory details but i know from this past experience that unless i do something sharpish im going to end up as bad as what i was before (and it was VERY bad).

Im not really ashamed of it, but the problem is is where i live is a very narrow minded group of people, stuff like depression etc is regarded as being "weird" and i already have enough problems without some ignorant idiots pointing the finger at me yet again and saying "hes a ****ing weirdo".

 

point in question:- i went out this morning to sign on, and whilst in the dole office i started having a panic attack because of all the people there, due to being skint at the moment i have spent the past fortnight or so cooped up in the house (leaving the house always ends up costing money), so i dunno wether this is just plain old anxiety or a mild form of agrophobia, bt either way i haent had a decent nights sleep for nearly a month now which isnt helping much.

 

ill give the doctors a ring again, see wether i get someone different.

[IdaInFife]

i would refuse as well.

 

I know that we can see a nurse that day if no dr avail or busy but the receptionist normally asks if the nurse would be ok or do we need a doctor. I find this good as simple things or scripts can be given by the nurse and donlt have to wait for a day or 2 for a dr.

 

But a receptoinist does not have the right to screen you, they are not medically trained.

 

Ida x

[Rabbi Burns]

If they ask me what is wrong, I usually say to them are you medically qualified to diagnose, this usually shuts them up

 

If you don't want to say that, all you have to say is I would rather discuss this with the doctor, it's a private matter. You are entitled to confidentiality you can always make a complaint to the Practice Manager.

[godpikachu]

thanks to everyone who has replied, i managed to get an appointment this morning no questions asked, the doctor says im suffering from stress, as my blood pressure is through the roof and this is what is causign me to not be able to sleep properly.

hes givin me soem medication to try and bring my blood pressure down, and has also given me something to help me sleep if i need it.

He says the anxiety attacks are probably caused by the lack of sleep playing tricks on my mind and at the moment its nothign to be worried about, but i have to go back next week if im still having problems.

[Bookworm]

Good to hear.

 

Take care of yourself.

[Fuzzgin]

I wish I'd seen this before. I had depression as a side effect of fatigue /sleepiness. and attitudes about depression are still causing problems. The thing is that you have a right to only tell people when you want, people who will be understanding. I'm glad you got through to see the Dr.

[Johnny Holmes]

What's the point in not discussing one's ailment with a doctors receptionist?

 

They have access to your records as soon as you ring up!

 

Pretty pointless.

 

In any case, depression is just a weak state of mind that can be overcome with a tough approach.

 

It is what my doctor did to me and I subsequently discovered I was just feeling sorry for myself and should snap out of it.

 

Which is what I did and he said 99% of these complaints are rubbish.

[godpikachu]

What's the point in not discussing one's ailment with a doctors receptionist?

 

 

Doctors receptionists are not medically qualified to give, or even have, a medical opinion, and are certainly not able to accuratly triage patients based on a brief description given over the telephone.

 

In addition, personal privacy, as well as patient confidentiality dictate that medical opinions and diagnosis may only be given between doctor and patient, the receptionist is only there to take bookings and do admin, nothing more.

 

I asked my doctor this when i saw him this morning and he said he would have to have a word with the practice manager as the receptionists are specifically told NOT to ask about symptoms.

 

 

 

 

In any case, depression is just a weak state of mind that can be overcome with a tough approach.

 

It is what my doctor did to me and I subsequently discovered I was just feeling sorry for myself and should snap out of it.

 

Which is what I did and he said 99% of these complaints are rubbish.

 

 

you really have no idea what you are talking about here, so just shut up.

[Johnny Holmes]

C'mon!

 

A child with a rash and fever is more a priority than some bloke who's problem is he feels unable to get out of bed and face the day!

 

Why shouldn't a receptionist try and determine a priority by asking simple questions?

 

More so, why wouldn't you tell her anyway in light of the above?

 

It's sensible.

[godpikachu]

C'mon!

 

A child with a rash and fever is more a priority than some bloke who's problem is he feels unable to get out of bed and face the day!

 

Why shouldn't a receptionist try and determine a priority by asking simple questions?

 

More so, why wouldn't you tell her anyway in light of the above?

 

It's sensible.

 

so some guy complaining of a headache gets put to the bottom of the queue by the minimum wage receptionist, and it turns out he has a brain tumour, some woman complains of excessive defecation, turns out she has bowel cancer.

 

Receptionists are not qualified to have a medical opinion, and neither are you.

If the receptionist is a qualified nurse, then it would be ok to speak to them, but a part time receptionist with an RSA in typing does not have any business trying to do a doctors job.

[skonk]

In any case, depression is just a weak state of mind that can be overcome with a tough approach.

 

It is what my doctor did to me and I subsequently discovered I was just feeling sorry for myself and should snap out of it.

 

Which is what I did and he said 99% of these complaints are rubbish.

 

Well, obviously you didn't have depression then if you just "snapped out of it" when told by your doctor. Depression doesn't mean "some bloke who's problem is he feels unable to get out of bed and face the day!" (your words). Depression is a serious condition that gets easily overlooked and mistaken by people like yourself as laziness, etc. I have depression, and 5-6 days of the week, I'm normally ok, but that 1-2 days i'm not, it's hell. It affects the way you feel, the way your interact with people, everything, and I actually take offence to the way you've generalised everyone with depression.

 

Depression can happen to anyone, in all walks of life. I consider myself a very strong willed and strong minded person, but two years ago, bad things in my life happened, and I could deal with each thing one at a time, but it snowballed and I couldn't handle it anymore. Believe me, I've tried to "snap out of it", but when it gets to the stage that you know it's serious, then you start taking steps into dealing with it.

 

Go read godpikachu's threads/posts. These are the posts of an educated person, who on the surface is just like anyone else, but knows when he's not feeling right, mentally, and tries to understand his condition and seek help, like the majority of people do. Just because he is not sitting in a chair, rocking back and forth, doesn't mean he should "snap out of it".

 

I can honestly say i hope you never get to the stage where you suffer real depression, but only then you will see how offensive your comments are to genuine sufferers of depression.

 

Right, Im off to "snap out of it" and stop rocking in my chair.

Edited March 21, 2009 by skonk

[Johnny Holmes]

Well, I apologise skonk, it appears you are a genuine case.

 

But, I've known of lots of malingerers who put on an act for the doctor to get signed off work or to receive a higher benefit threshold.

 

One is able to hoodwink a GP with 'depression' obviously much easier than to say they have a broken leg!

 

It's no surprise that depression rates have rocketed in recent years as it is very often the shannanigins of the work shy.

[MARTIN3030]

Can I ask JH what qualifications you have to determine genuine cases of depression?

quote;

"It's no surprise that depression rates have rocketed in recent years as it is very often the shannanigins of the work shy."

 

 

I would not agree........The increase in depression is due to many things-one of which is arguably reading the drivel you continually write in your posts.

[Johnny Holmes]

 

I would not agree........The increase in depression is due to many things-one of which is arguably reading the drivel you continually write in your posts.

 

I resent this remark, please take it back.

[MARTIN3030]

Its not restricted to anything personal JH,but can best be supported by the many CAG users who have experienced your comments and reported them.

If you demonstrated some constructive input now and again,perhaps you would have cause to complain.

If you give out so much negatives,then you should be prepared to take them too.

Dont you think thats reasonable ?

[Bookworm]

Well, I can confirm this actually, as I suffer from depression, am currently being treated for a relapse and reading what you wrote upset me and brought a new low today.

 

The fact that there are people like you with no knowledge of the condition who feel qualified to comment makes me feel deeply depressed at the thought that we share the same planet and that sadly you are not the last member of this particular species.

[Fuzzgin]

Ah thank goodness Dr Johnny Holmes told me to snap out of it. I'd never thought of that, all better now! *end sarcasm mode*

 

I should stop feeding the troll too.