When you visit your GP, you may have noticed a common occurrence.
Each visit seems to involve a lengthy wait before you’re seen. Even after the previous patient has left, you find yourself waiting for your name to be called.
This delay between appointments is not uncommon, and an NHS doctor has shed light on why this happens. Doctor Shireen, who goes by @doctorshireen on TikTok, is known for her health advice online. Recently, she addressed a question many patients have – why does it take so long for the GP to call you in for your appointment?
In a revealing video, she explained that if the previous patient has been seen and you’re still waiting, there’s a straightforward reason for this. Doctors have several tasks to complete between seeing patients.
One of which is documenting the notes from the patient they’ve just seen. This must be done before they can proceed to the next patient.
Doctor Shireen revealed: “We might take emergency calls from community services, such as ambulances, paramedics – wanting to know about our patients. We might be helping another GP with an issue that they’re having.
“Reception might be calling us with a query, we might be reading the notes – your notes – the next patient’s notes. We might be going to the toilet because, believe it or not, in our three hour clinic there is no toilet time allocated.
“The previous patient may have upset us. We may be composing ourselves, having a little cry, getting our mind ready for the next patient.”
The medical professional also touched on other duties they have to attend to, such as changing sheets and cleaning up after appointments.
When you witness the person before you leaving, the GP wanted to make it clear – your doctor isn’t just kicking back and relaxing. They’re engaged in various tasks that must be completed before inviting you into their office.
Since going viral, the video has garnered more than 1,000 views, sparking a flurry of comments from viewers. It seems many are quick to express their disgruntlement with the system.
One individual said: “What annoys me is I book an appointment for a time never to be seen close to that time. Normally about 20 to 30 minutes after the time.”
Joining the discussion, someone else expressed: “Last time, the receptionist forgot to tell the doctor I’d arrived. She spotted me an hour later when she was about to go on break.”
In response, another doctor added their perspective by sharing: “In my clinic last week, I had a man who has progressive loss of legs over 10 days. He took a long time to organise. Turns out he has progressive, aggressive cancer. My other patients were understanding.”
