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GP Wait Times - your experience please….

folks,

Just trying to get an appreciation of how long in general people are having to wait for their GP appointments nowadays….

Called today and flabbergasted that the quickest I can see my GP is 8 days from today. Which is in diplomatic terms, not good enough … in less diplomatic terms, in a civilised first world country… a load of ********

My GP is an extremely gifted medical professional… but they are involved also directly in politics, very left wing and going by their X, very empathetic towards a certain cause du jour shall we say… 🇺🇦

Ultimately standards in medicine / healthcare are regulated, well supposed to be…. But having to wait that duration for a GP appointment is far below any appropriate standard as I’d perceive it. If you have an issue the quicker you can be seen actually has an impact on the outcome and if you can’t see your GP for over one week…

Before i proceed I’m looking for feedback from other posters as to what their experience has been this year in relation to attaining GP appointments…thanks.

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https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122389286#Comment_122389286

I hope they don't refuse to sign the form for you, as it wasn't "mentioned when booking".

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122389246#Comment_122389246

lol, I’m wan of those wans with a GP visit card, fairly necessary in my case as I have fairly advanced MS with very unpredictable issues going on throughout. That said, it would otherwise cost me €65 a pop.

Somebody who has several doctors in their family said to me that nowadays most qualifying are women, and women tend to go part-time (gaining less experience too through career) so don’t fill the very real need of more full-time GPs. It is a very real issue.

Big Bag of Chips

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122389286#Comment_122389286

If you were sick you'd be seen in a day or two. They ask the reason for the appointment to identify urgent cases and get those in. A routine check up isn't as urgent as a child with an earache, or an adult with chest pains so those people will be given the priority appointments and the routine, non-urgent ones will wait.

I don't often go to the doctor. I have a few children and a husband with various medical issues. Whenever I ring with an immediate issue I will get an apt same day or very latest next afternoon. If I need a routine apt for something it will be a week or two.

Have you tried making a dentist appointment recently?!

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122389246#Comment_122389246

Yes I agree re effect of GP cards etc. I always knew we had a pretty poor service in terms of waiting but surprised to see typical figures of days and at most 2 weeks above. That said, our GPs are good, know you and follow things up. Part of the issue round here is I think the relatively large number of people on medical cards combined with lack of choice. Those with cards tend to be in the waiting room over the years with kids with minor bugs and they just attend as it's free and they've got the time. Whereas we'd always avoid if at all possible, partly due to waits and partly as paying. Only ever went or go now if quite necessary.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058359954/gp-wait-times-your-experience-please

Is needing a form signed/check up with no ailment now considered a long term illness deserving of a prompt appointment? This is a perfect illustration of the benefits of reception asking why an appointment is necessary, screening patients based on medical urgency.

If the form you need signed is a declaration related to your medical health, which we can only assume it does if you need your GPs signature, it would seem logical the GP would need to satisfy him/herself that what they are attesting to, is accurate.

Next day for me.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122389400#Comment_122389400

Not in my surgery. They literally do not GAF.

They literally start their sentence with "we've nothing this week," before they even ask what the issue is.

And receptionist staff should not be "triaging" patients. They are not qualified to do so.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122389538#Comment_122389538

Reception staff assign appointments based on the training/instruction provided by the GPs they work for, without it, appointments would be assigned based on the order in which people call to make them. In effect, that would mean a person needing a form signed would be given an appointment sooner than someone who needs to be seen urgently, by virtue only of phoning first.

My GP doesn't take appointments. It's a walk in service. You will see him in the same day but could be waiting up to 4 hours. Cork area.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122389569#Comment_122389569

I've been down this rabbit hole with you before Dav010 and we didn't agree then, and we won't agree now.

As far as I'm concerned the only people qualified to triage patients are medical staff, not admin staff.

I've also heard of a number on incidences in my surgery where people have ended up seriously ill in hospital, having been refused appointments by the GPs reception staff.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122389446#Comment_122389446

I don’t want a prompt appointment but I do not want to be put on the long finger… :)

No ailment ? Why did you come to that deduction ? :)

according to you Dav only a LTI deserves a prompt appointment…ok 🤦🏻‍♂️

The GP doesn’t need to satisfy anything….. he has the most recent hospital report from my consultant… he doesn’t have any MRI or similar diagnostic equipment or indeed experience or qualifications to challenge what the consultant tells him. Nice try Dav ;). He will be attesting as to what he has been told by my consultants. His signature on the document I give him will have a letter confirming, I know as I am now in physical possession of the same letter. He just needs to sign my document, but I need to wait for the privilege. 🤷🏻

be good to get a check up too.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122389631#Comment_122389631

I get the sense that you believe a medical receptionist is some jobs worth taken in to answer the phone, that is simply not the case. They are given training and instruction by GPs on how to receive the necessary information, and then follow guidelines put in place by each GP Clinic.

You still seem unable to understand the vital role played by reception staff, trained and following policy set by GPs. If you have an issue with how appointments are assigned, take it up with your GP. It is incomprehensible that anyone would expect their GP to spend their day answering phone calls and making appointments, that task must be assigned to a receptionist, who follows the GP’s policies. If you object to sharing why you need an appointment, then the solution is to ask for the first available appointment, whenever that is.

Did you copy and paste that response from the previous time this came up?

As was said then, no one suggested or expects doctors to answer the phones and make appointments themselves.

Not commenting on this point again.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122389715#Comment_122389715

My answer is based on insight and experience, so it will be consistent.

usually 1-3 days, if it's urgent they'll get me in same day. Dublin 7.

I find with reception staff you have to be very specific about symptoms to get an urgent appointment, namely blood appearing where it shouldn’t be, eg, in urine, gets the appointment. Saying you have cystitis won’t get you an urgent appointment; if you have a cough you wont be seen without a Covid test, so always have to make sure I have a kit at home. Then if you have a proven non-Covid chest infection with rusty or purple sputum, and mention these symptoms you might be seen later that day and get your antibiotic for a lung infection.

It even if you can’t get an appointment to see doc, they will usually afford you a phone consultation same day, they send prescription to my local pharmacy. I monitor my own SPO2, peak flow etc during a lung infection so have a good idea if things are getting out of hand.

The last time I made a visit to a GP surgery was 2017, I had changed practice and found the new surgery so bad that I never went back. Obviously covid happened (to everybody else) and I managed to avoid it entirely, I did receive vaccinations at the local vaccination center but my understanding is that gps became no go areas in the years in between.

Last year I attended a&e and needed to get follow up with a gp so managed to get a place in a local practice. Took a week from the point of signing up to getting an appointment but it was a bit of a waste of time as my records hadn't been transferred so had to made another appointment for the following week. I feel like I've been in a coma for 7 years, the second visit I just typed out a thesis on my life story so I wouldn't have to try and explain anything and hope for the best. Haven't been back since and hopefully will be another seven years before I have a need for one again.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122389634#Comment_122389634

You hadn’t provided any indication in your earlier posts that you are unwell, other than you need a form signed, and you “might need” a check up. Your words, not mine.

Based on what you wrote prior to the above post, which I was basing my responses on, and in the absence of any indication about the urgency with which you need the GPs signature, it does appear that you think an appointment for a check up (which is given the level of importance of “be good to get a check up too” ) is deserving of a more prompt appointment, than 8 days. GP clinics are over subscribed, that has been widely reported on, so it stands to reason that those with more urgent needs will be given priority over check ups.

Incidentally, what is the significance of the GPs political views and Ukraine flag in your op?

There is a lot wrong with the Irish health system, of that there is no doubt, but appointments being assigned based on the information given when the person calls, isn’t one of them, there has to be some significance attached to the urgency with which the appointment is needed.

Big Bag of Chips

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122389631#Comment_122389631

I'm not a GP receptionist but I do work in admin in the health service. The consultant I work for trusts me to get a sense of how urgent a person needs to be seen. We have different clinics and as the point of contact for the clinics I am the first (and only) person the patient gets to speak to when arranging an appointment so I am the one deciding when to schedule someone, and into which clinic. I do not bring every phone call to the consultant and ask them when to book the patient.

If I think someone is very urgent I will tell them to go to their GP or ED. If I think someone needs to be seen but isn't an ED case I will schedule them for the next available appointment. My consultant has one general clinic a week so the next available appointment could be in 3-4 weeks. If I think someone needs to talk to the doctor but doesn't need to be physically seen I will schedule them for a phone call appointment in the coming weeks.

You might not like it Ezeoul but that is the truth of it.

10 days to 2 weeks to see GP here. I have been registered with the same practice since birth. When I was a child there were 4 GPs in the practice - we could always get an appointment when needed and had a trusting relationship with the GP who knew our history. About 10 years ago the practice moved to a bigger premises, hired lots of new GPs and called itself a 'Medical centre'. Since then the service has nosedived rapidly. GPs seems to change often so you never get to form a relationship with them. They have to sometimes hire GPS with poor English which leads to communication issues. Even if you have an urgent issue you haven't a hope of getting an appointment soon. Reception staff just keep saying the unhelpful advice of go to And E if the complaint is urgent - so some people could end up clogging up a and e with minor complaints that could easily be dealt with by a GP. I joke that you have to plan ahead to be sick in order to see a GP here when you need to. Getting to speak to a receptionist by phone could be an hour's wait to be told no appointments. They are trying to get people to move to their online appointment system which is poor and some elderly can't use so I fear some some people don't bother even trying to get an appointment and this leads to sicker people or worse death. It's a brutal service. Thankfully we don't need to see a doctor that often but when we do we wait until after 6 and ring out of hours doc or use the service provided by our health insurance provider. I have found both services good but obviously you can't build a relationship with a GP which worries me as I get older. There are no other practices in my area taking on new patients so we are stuck with a bad service that's probably going to only get worse. I envy people who have a GP who knows them, their history and offers a good service.

Medical attention in Ireland in 2024 is brutal from start to finish be it GP practice or hospital. It's hard to believe but we had a better service years and years ago

Thanks for confirming that consultants are allowing admin staff to make judgement calls on patient urgency with no medical training.

I think that's disgraceful, much as you may not like it.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122390507#Comment_122390507

Good Lord, are you purposely being obtuse?

The “calls” @Big Bag of Chips makes are set by the GP/consultant, the receptionists act based on instruction. The receptionist doesn’t get to walk into a clinic and decide how they perform the tasks assigned. Once policies are established, the GPs/Consultants then trust the Receptionists to carry out their instructions.

One of the attributes absolutely necessary in a good Receptionist, is the ability to deal with, and tolerance for, dealing with people who find it difficult to understand.

I cancelled an appointment with a consultant clinic last week as it clashed with another in the same hospital on the same date. I asked about a new date and was advised my notes would go back to the Consultant at the end of the clinic and they would decide when to reschedule me. Not the admin staff.

So no, not being obtuse. The thought that an admin person is making these decisions on patient priority is actually scary.

Are consultants even reading referrals, or is this confirmation that it left up to an Admin?

But probably explains a lot of the delays patients are experiencing.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122390596#Comment_122390596

Your new appointment will be assigned based on the Consultant’s policy, and related to you by the Receptionist, either verbally by phone, or written via letter. This also applies when you phone to make an appointment, the Receptionist assigns you an appointment, not based on their medical opinion, but rather on how the Consultant has dictated appointments be booked and entrusts the Receptionist to carry out that instruction.

This really shouldn’t be difficult to understand, it certainly explains the challenges faced by Clinic staff.

I'm in Limerick city, I've been at the same GP practice since birth, over 45yrs ago. The only time I've ever needed to wait more than a couple of days for an appt is when my usual GP is off. More often than not l, I get an appt next day.

My GP practice has one of the largest GMS lists outside Dublin and I am astonished that so many other practices are struggling to see patients in a timely manner. I don't know what is being done different in my practice (nor do I believe there is).

GP's are the gate-keeper to the broader health system. Efficient & timely GP services keep people healthier for longer, keep people out of hospitals and A+Es and manage resources and patients better than in-patient services the majority of the time.

We've had years of being told that Slaintécare is coming, that an integrated primary care system will improve service and outcomes for patients. Yet, to do that? We must increase GP numbers and place further services and facilities at their disposal. To see that years into proposed implementation that wait times are growing is incredibly frustrating.

Big Bag of Chips

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122390507#Comment_122390507

One of the judgement calls I made this week:

A GP letter, new referral, had come in for a patient. Consultant triaged it (as they do with all new referrals). Consultant decided patient would be brought to the general clinic in 8-12 weeks.

The patient contacted me to enquire how long they'd be waiting. After speaking with the patient, and getting some further information I made a judgement call and contacted the consultant to tell them the patient would end up coming to a specialist clinic following the general clinic and as such it would be better to just bring them straight to that specialist clinic rather than waiting for the general clinic only to be then given a return appointment to the specialist clinic. The consultant agreed and the patient will now be seen in the next 4 weeks in the specialist clinic rather than 8-12 in the general and then another 4 week wait for the specialist clinic.

So if you consider me making that judgement call and getting the patient seen quicker and in a more appropriate setting as "disgraceful" then there is nothing anyone will ever say to convince you otherwise.

I am not a medical professional. I will not give any sort of medical advice to any patient. But I have an excellent grasp of my job and I know the timeline certain things will need to be seen and dealt with. I know if a person needs to be physically seen in clinic. I know if a phone call is sufficient. I know if a patient just needs to have a chat and reassurance and I know if they need to speak to the consultant rather than a junior doctor. I make those judgement calls every single day based on my years of experience in the role and advice and guidance from the consultant over the years. And patients get a very good service due to that. Anything I am unsure of will be checked with the consultant.

Stop with the insults on my intelligence Dav010.

I understand perfectly, I just do not agree with how it is done.

By the way, aren't you a dentist, not a doctor?

Big Bag of Chips

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122390596#Comment_122390596

Just on this point. If a patient cancels an appointment I will often try put them into the next clinic I have available. However, if the consultant looks at the chart they often write 6/12 (6 months) on it.

So often the secretary will try bring you back sooner than the consultant will.

I also would have tried to arrange that you could have attended both on the same day. Unless one involved you being knocked out for a procedure. But just a simple outpatient clinic in the same hospital at the same time? I'd have arranged for you to attend both.

Off to the vet with my cat now.

Got an appointment within 24 hours.

Animals get better healthcare in this country than humans do.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122390681#Comment_122390681

Both, but a practicing Dentist.