I recently changed my doctor - or, to be more precise - my doctors's surgery, as my doctor retired. There were other reasons, too - I did not fancy the two remaining practitioners one little bit, and the reception and admin staff were from Hell.
Getting an appointment while still alive could be well-nigh impossible, and then some genius had an idea; don't bother to ring up for an appointment, because surgery policy is 'No'. Far better to have a 'Drop-In Surgery' where you turn up at 8 am, when someone may grudgingly open the door. You then form an orderly queue, leave your name at reception, and wait..........and wait...........and wait..........you know what I mean, I'm sure.
One of the biggest problems with this (apart from the interminable wait) was the fact that - in order to be seen at all - it was necessary to turn up at 7.30 am at the latest, which of course was half an hour before they opened the doors. This was bad news for an elderly person who felt ill on a winter's morning, and I'm sure I don't have to draw you a picture. I pointed this out to the Surgery Manager (who is probably undeserving of the capitals), who replied that the system worked well, and more patients could be 'processed' - I noted that word. I pointed out that many patients must have felt a good deal worse (or have died) by the time some smug bitch opened the door at 8 o'clock, and anyone who thought that queue was a good thing had never stood in it - I then left - in high dudgeon and a Ford Mondeo - never to return.
My new surgery is light -years away from this shambles, with a spacious surgery offering a walk-in facility, blood-tests, ECG tests, and a choice of seeing a nurse or a doctor - and all that is for people who aren't registered with them! I can be seen by a doctor from 7am until 10 pm, seven days a week, and every day of the year. I may not always get the same one, it's true, but when they're all so capable and charming, who cares? The receptionists are a complete joy, and this has not previously been my experience.
My last set of receptionists (I believe the collective noun for receptionists of the medical variety is 'a bitching' of receptionists) were, as I have said, from Hell. No matter how polite I was (and I can, surprisingly, be very polite), I was clearly as welcome as diarrhoea in a swimming-pool, and the very audacity of requesting an appointment................well, I mean!
All is now well, and as I was chatting to my doctor a while ago, she explained why it all worked so well. As doctors, she said, they were well aware of the 'grumpy' - nay, negative, attitude of some medical support staff, and this appeared to be endemic throughout the NHS. For this reason, they had been particularly careful to recruit all their support staff from commerce and business, where high levels of customer care were the norm - and, indeed, essential.
This simple idea has ensured that they have people, she hoped, to whom the patient (customer) is important, and they are made to feel that they matter. They are there to solve problems, and bring about a successful conclusion - as they would in commerce, with the result that people are much happier - and probably get better quicker.
It's so simple, it's a wonder they don't all do it.
Which would allow all those self-important old ratbags with an attitude-adjustment requirement to go back to Tesco.
No comments:
Post a Comment