Love how she raised her voice to let everyone inside and OUTside the office know that the patient has no insurance and would have to pay out of pocket. Yes, now the whole building understands.🤣🤣🤣
This is true, however I think they do it to make people that don't have insurance clearly and indisputably understand that they will be paying an astronomical amount of money out of pocket so they can't complain about it later and say that they were never told.
One time I had to carry around a blindingly hot pink card thing that I couldn’t fit into my purse. Just to make sure EVERYONE knew I paid $100 to have a mandatory chat for 5 seconds so I could keep getting my prescriptions signed.
She forgot how the receptionist ignores you standing there for at least a full minute, as though your being there is completely interfering with whatever else she’s doing. When she finally opens the window, she looks at you like you’re not supposed to be there.
I love how doctors are always running so late and you wait for ages, but if you turn up 5 minutes late you are chastised. And then still wait for ages because they are so far behind.
That's often because doctors lose their shit at staff if they're inconvenienced. At the office I work for, the doctor will be behind by an hour, but this makes him even MORE likely to lose his shit if a patient is roomed on time. Shit rolls down hill, and every chastizing thing you've heard is compounded and doubled toward staff behind closed doors. The doctor gets to smile and be kind to you directly, but his staff reflect the real behaviors.
@@Swordsman99kso are you stating late patients are an inconvenience to the doctor or things the doc's coworkers do can be an inconvenience and they take it out on them? Idk I'm a bit confused by the wording. I struggle with communication often so it could just be me.
I've been blessed to never have had that happen. Except once, because my OBGYN had an emergency birth she needed to go deal with. Understandable. I waited.
It depends on the area, type of doctor, and the reason for a visit. I know a mole removal is about $400 without insurance in my area so a mole being looked at should be less. But once again it all depends.
I'm Deaf, and I feel comforted that receptionists like this are a universal experience. I truly thought I was being treated differently due to my disability.
no, rest assured, sadly they (except rare nice ones) are arsy with everyone - for some reason it's the same in the UK and other European countries too, and I've seen comments from other countries sometimes saying this too.
nope, theyre definitely assholes to everyone. though im sure its even worse for disabled people. ive had my fair share of bad experiences with them as someone with anxiety. very few of them have any patience with you, even if youre as polite and cooperative as you can be, and its beyond me.
@@SingingOwl1 Ditto. Half the time it doesn’t work online, and then they’re going to ask to see your payment, method and insurance anyway, even though you already put it on file with their system…
what when was the tone condescending?? i'm pretty sure doctor receptionists have friendly intentions, but the voices people put on in customer service are always smth to poke fun at lol
If I'm treated that way, I can give it right back. I'm cool, but if you disrespect me for no reason, that's another story. I have mentioned bad behavior to the doctor in charge. The people up front represent the whole clinic and can make everyone look bad.
I've always been struck how there are HIPAA rules protecting a patient's privacy, and then you have these receptionists who ask loudly for all of your personal information in front of the waiting room.
Raising your voice when informing the patient that they will have to pay out of pocket because they don’t have insurance perfectly captures the needlessly cruel humiliation the poor patient must have felt at the time. Doctors, if this is your receptionist, fire them.
I remember this so badly! I was in high school and I wanted to get contacts. My dad took me to our annual optometrist appointment with my two siblings. The lady told us that for contacts, we’d have to pay in cash because Medicaid didn’t cover contacts. I was so mortified! I felt like she honestly said that LOUDER! I was so embarrassed and wanted to cry. I thought I was getting contacts and right before I had the exam she told us to pay for the contacts test. Now that I go to the Dr. without my parents, isn’t is routine to ask for insurance while scheduling an appt or at least before your appointment? We had already gone there, so shouldn’t they have already known that we had Medicaid? I just feel like the lady could have handled it differently.
Doctors are not any different. Pleasssseeee. I did my Master of Public Health and I am not gonna lie, I greatly regret going into healthcare sector. The entitlement and unprofessionalism of those goons drives me nuts. Let’s not even begin with how healthcare is solely business to many if not most of the people in the field (or controlling it).
Omg. This is so disturbingly accurate, I can't even handle it. I had a receptionist yell at me for not having insurance when I was 19, even though I had already called and showed up completely ready to pay out of pocket. It was a $100 physical and she literally said, "The appointment is $100 and since you don't have insurance, you will have to pay that right now. How exactly do you expect to pay $100?!" as if it was some especially obscene amount that no person could possibly prepare for and I was about to ruin her day
Oh my god I hate it 😄 it’s like she’s a baby squishing food against her teeth or something but it’s so accurate like she’s passive aggressively eating an orange
as a delivery driver who delivers to business and doctor's offices all day every day, each receptionist is... an experience lol she nailed the energy lmao
I used to enjoy deliveries. It was like a happy visitor from the outside world bringing fresh air in. It gets depressing interacting with people on only their worst days.
@@disgruntledunicorn007 That is a great way to explain that about being a "happy visitor". I was front desk at a hotel for years and we LOVED the couriers!
I’ve been a receptionist for many years when I was in my twenties,I was never like this lady lol. I’ve sat next to many,many coworkers like this and always wondered what makes them this way. I concluded it’s kinda like a power thing for them. Like they realize they have control over people,most who are pretty sick which makes them feel important, it’s most likely the highest position they’ve reached in life and they took it straight to their heads. I don’t care if you’re the President of the country,be kind and humble, it’s not hard.
It's 100% a power dynamic thing. They know there's no haggling, no going somewhere else to get it done cheaper (probably cause you'll have to wait months for a new appointment anyway), nothing to be done about the long wait time, and it's a problem that you need solved right then and there. So subconsciously, they realize the patient is completely at their mercy.
Roaring out to the whole room that this person is without insurance is so accurate. I usually find that they speak at a normal volume until it's time to mention what medications you're on--then they go up a few decibels. Hard to believe they don't get off on the power and control aspect and delight in making you uncomfortable/embarrassed. Caitlin is so spot on with these impressions, so funny.
I work as a receptionist in a doctors office and we never do that 😂 we don't ask patients what meds they're on bc we're not clinical staff so we can't unless we are sending back a refill request then we ask the patient what med they're requesting. We have white noise machines above our desks and although it doesn't appear to the patient that we aren't being that loud, we really aren't. Majority of the time other people can't hear. Where I work I mean lol of course
I once had a receptionist do this to me and start interrogating me about my job. I had just left my job and moved home because I’d found out someone who was a parent to me was dying.
I’ve been a receptionist at a human doctor’s office as well as a receptionist at veterinary hospitals. Being on the spectrum, I’ve had so many interactions like this that’ve left me feeling AWFUL, which is why I took up the role. I never want to make any Patient or Client feel the way I’ve been made to feel if I can help it
@@skycaptain95 Working for low pay or even for nothing (say, volunteering) isn't "wasting your life." People have all sorts of reasons to do it and some even like it. Service jobs are essential and I'd much rather have kind people like the OP doing them, if they so wish.
So accurate. In the UK we don’t have the insurance section but have the added joy of the receptionist demanding to know what you’re going into see the doctor for and then repeating it LOUDLY across the waiting room.
Oh god I HATE IT! Hospitals aren't much better... If I had a penny every time I've told a receptionist I'm here for endocrine I'd have so many pennies... I love using the self check in when I can. I don't want these middle age women knowing what I'm at the doctors for!
I’ve been having some pretty gnarly issues going on with my health the past few months/year and if ever anyone asked me these kinds of questions 😳😳 I would’ve had to confirm that fact they are Not The Doctor .. that’s so personal! Edit: I’m so sorry that you all had to endure that ludicrous behavior ♥️
No Sh*t worked at an optometrist office once and had to give a lady the Heimlich because she was choking on salad trying to get it down with no lunch time before the next patient💁🏻♀️🤷🏻♀️. I’ve just learned not to eat in any industry you are in period. Ppl and corporations cannot be bothered to give you break so I just don’t bother-
Fr especially since I have a doctor's appointment today that I have to get ready for in a bit. My anxiety is nowhere near as bad as it used to be but moments like this can be triggering
@Andie L. You ain't lyin'! Ever since I left the medical field and got a regular ol' office job, I've been living the good life. I can eat snacks at my desk whenever I want and nobody makes me cry.
Bro something like this happened to a patient that came after me once, from what i saw i think he was a foreigner so he took a little extra second to process what was being said but his language is pretty good, he came in because his baby had a fever and i heard the receptionist asked how many months the baby is which he did answered pretty clearly, but then after some other questions the receptionist asked it again with a VERY loud and irritated tone like “HOW OLD IS THE BABY” like bro was perplexed and started stuttering it was horrible to see
I love how they treat you like a "problem patient" when you arrive early for your appointment, but when you're late, they're so polite and understanding. I'm ALWAYS early for any appointments I've made, and I can't count the number of times I've had this exact same exchange with doctors'/dentists' receptionists. And no matter the question, they always ask "Do you understand?" while nodding encouragingly, as if they're talking to a five year old. It's so annoying, and feels a bit like I'm being condescended to.
The 'do you understand' is sooo fucking annoying. Like sorry i didn't get what you mumbled behind your mask and the plexiglas separator because the other receptionist is having a phonecall and it's LOUD, not because i'm too dumb to understand the concept of sitting in a waiting room -_-
Nailed it. I thought it was just me. Wondering what did I do to piss them off. Thank you so much for this one. Makes me feel better next time I have to deal with this situation. ☮️🇺🇸
Bullied to do…what? Were they forcing her to pay for them? Giving her a hard time, I can see. Being demeaning and demanding, very possibly. Bullying? Don’t know that that term applies here.
I love how you tried to frame this as a generational thing in the hope that it would rally support. Except that in my experience, elderly people are the most polite demographic to deal with.
For me, it’s the reaction to how early the patient is. That 3 pm appointment means that person is likely going to be waiting for an hour. The response of the receptionist as she stares as the computer clock wondering how to prepare this person for a long, drawn out waiting room experience killed me. So funny and so accurate.
Spot on! Especially the big sigh after hearing there is no insurance. Every time a receptionist sighs I want to say, "you can always quit if you can't stand to do this job anymore". Gonna do one about the nurses and the p.a.'s. They ain't much better. No wonder the naturopaths are growing in number.
You are so good at playing the subtly condescending and passive-aggressive type characters in a way that few can pull off. You always nail it without ever going ovr-the-top. Bravo!
I've been taking care of family members for over 10 years now and as an introvert one of the most difficult things has been dealing with health care workers. I was starting to think that there was something wrong with me as many times I felt passive aggressive energy from them. Thanks for clearing it up for me. This video is scarily accurate.
I work as a hotel receptionist and I feel called out for constantly being caught while eating. We don't get a lunch break! And yes the suppressed irritability is real on a whole level.
@@natureloversadventures7335 not necessarily. Where I live adults are not legally obligated to a break of any kind. Most of the companies I’ve worked with have their own policies on breaks though.
I’m a tech for an ophthalmologist, and receptionists can be super hit or miss. They’re either great and love to help patients however they can, or they’re just there to punch in and out while doing as little work as possible. A bad receptionist can kill a good practice faster than a bad doctor can.
TRUE. I love love love my neurologist. But for about 6 months he had this terrible receptionist and I told him at one of my appts "you either fire your receptionist, or I find another neuro." Thr receptionist wasn't there at my next appointment.
Literally just today made a whole appointment for my daughter and based off the receptionists attitude on the phone, immediately scheduled at another place. I’m also in the medical world and it is so true that professional front office staff are vital to a business.
I once went to urgent care to get treated for gonorrhea. The receptionist asked me what I was there for and I said “a gonorrhea shot” very quietly, but I leaned in, and I know she heard me. But she proceeded to announce it to the already packed waiting room and then proceeded to ask me very loudly if I needed to be tested for any other STDs that day. I was so humiliated. I had just found out my boyfriend of 2 years cheated and gave me gonorrhea. I already wanted to die. I say down at the only open seat, the one directly facing the receptionist and sobbed. It was cruel.
Leave a bad review to places like that. Receptionists like that need to be fired, and the only way they’ll be fired is if you impact the income of the doctors office by leaving a review
They are notorious for violating HIPAA laws by doing this. I have several chronic illnesses and I see my specialists regularly every month so they can evaluate the progress of the diseases. Every single time I go in they ask "why are you here today?" And I'll explain that i have lupus/RA/APS and I'm here to see the DR for evaluation. They always say something stupid like "Well, everyone that comes here has lupus, what is the reason for your visit?" They say it very loudly, enough so their coworkers can hear her "roast" me, just to embarrass me. I hate talking to medical receptionists because they treat sick people like subhumans and they are always so incredibly rude. Without us sick people you would not have a job..i just hate it.
It’s when you walk up to the receptionist and they don’t even look at you or acknowledge you at all so you just stand awkwardly at the counter until they decide you are worthy of their attention.
I have this occur at my mental health clinic. So I sit down and just call them to tell them I'm there...then to reschedule I do it through email. I actually never approach the counter anymore.
@@Recklooseranch But it's an MH clinic, there are lots of ways to get creative and have fun with this scenario and get away with it. I don't go there anymore, but I used to get about 3 inches from the glass and do a frozen, manic, jack nicholson smile that everybody in the waiting room would laugh at.
weirdly this is one of caitlins most painful videos for me. I recently had a medical emergency where ive needed to have a couple appointments with a bunch of different places, and the constant anxiety and frustration with these gross, incompetent receptionists who were the most judgemental, self absorbed people ever got to me. everyone talks abt high school mean girls who decide to become nurses, but man, medical receptionists aren't too far behind those girls.
Last time I went for an eye check, not only the receptionist but even the doctor was so rude. Infact i haven't encountered many nice docs. I think medical workers are mostly stuck up people. Idk why. The rare kind ones do seem like angels tho.
"For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast." Ephesians 2:8-9 "for, 'Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.'" Romans 10:13
I worked as a receptionist and the literal WORST was cheerfully telling people their balance when you know good and well the care didn’t match up to the charges. “Would you like to pay part or all of that exorbitant bill from your last appointment where we had the audacity to reschedule you because you were 5 minutes late for follow up on your ✨sniffles✨ but this time you checked in 5 minutes early, but had to wait for 30 minutes before going back to the room then waited for another 30 minutes for the doc to come in and say “Hi how’s it going? Nose dried up yet? Okay great see you in 6 months.” 💀💀
Not to mention loudly proclaiming that you’re here to have a mole looked at so that everyone in the waiting room can hear, ignoring any consideration for privacy really hit the nail on the head.
Why would anyone care if they had insurance or not. I know I wouldn’t act that way. None of my business. Publicly embarrassing someone accomplishes nothing unless you have a superiority complex.
I live in France where the health system is very different and yet I've had to be on the phone several times with my GP's receptionists this week to set up an appointment and it made me think of this video immediately.
You NAILED this to the T! Wow! MOST clinic's in Oahu..... to be sure!!!!! Its rare if their actually NICE and considerate!!!!!! Thank you for for depicting this so vividly! This is raw & real folks!!
I honestly think it's just a side effect of working with the public. They switch to a louder voice to explain things (e.g. a script) so they can be beard more clearly. You do have to explain things a certain way to people, otherwise they tend to throw fit. But, this could just be them being a dick. Idk.
That was NEVER ME!!!! I was Receptionist for 4 Allergy/Asthma doctors- and one of them was a Rheumatologist. I made absolutely SURE that those Patients were treated with the utmost respect, care and civility!🤗 Even the Pharmacists noticed when I was gone- and the nurses and business office staff had to call in prescriptions. Everyone asked- “WHERE have You been- We missed You?!”😏 I first came to the office as a Kelly Temporary- I was asked to take the job on a permanent basis THAT VERY SAME MORNING!😁
@@KG-gg5pj Are you addressing me or the op? I don't work as a receptionist anymore and stop saying that as if it was so easy. Plus someone has to do the job anyway
We had a receptionist like this. She was full of drama and ended up taking medical leave for a month due to her Facebook being hacked. She’s no longer employed with us. 😂
She took medical leave because her Facebook was hacked 🤦🏼♀️ How did she even get approved for medical leave? I guess she would have had to state anxiety or something. Good lord. Try going to work everyday with a 50% chance of getting a migraine.
As a doctor myself, i genuinely dont understand why some hospital staffs (nurses, receptionist, doctors, etc) are rude to the patients. It boggles my mind. The only nice person in the hospital is usually the janitor.
As a hospital pharmacy tech we have to deal almost daily with RN's on the units bcz we want a co-sig to put some narcs in their Pyxis machines. I remember one RN got up from her chair at the ward station and ran away into the bathroom in order to avoid you.
My parents had to get an STI screening to be eligible to adopt, and the receptionist announced to the *entire* waiting room that “The Doctor will see you for your ___ testing now”
The receptionist at my Dr's office doesn't even say hi, she just opens her privacy window and holds her hand out for my health card and does her typy type.
Went to get a blood draw in Oregon. Place was empty and the receptionist was talking to some guy in the back. I walked up and she looked at me and said “you need to wait in line on those circles” (she literally had me stand on a circle, so she could finish her conversation and then call me up) Once she checked me in, I asked where I should sit (there were multiple seating areas for different appointment needs (one area was for xrays, etc): she ignored me. I asked multiple time and she just acted as though I didn’t exist so I just sat wherever. Some people are loathsome creatures.
Maybe she wasnt chatting necessarily, but speaking about something work related? Unfortunately with customer facing jobs, you can develop certain pet peeves, usually rooted in some prior valid frustration that likely has little to do with you at all. Especially with how she ignored you. Im inclined to believe that receptionists like these dont act like assholes because of day-to-day frustrations, but more so because belittling sick patients is the only power they have and it went straight to their heads.
Name the office! I also live in Oregon and would want to avoid this person. I guess I’ve been lucky and only encountered awful people like this a few times in my 65 years. Sitting in the waiting room I saw a mom take her two pre-teens in and they only asked the girl to weigh in. I mentioned it to my beloved (15 years she took care of us) doctor that this is how we start teaching girls their weight matters more than anything and that I hoped they’d make a change. She was open to talking about it. Possibly the brother wasn’t actually there for an appointment and the mom didn’t trust him to behave by himself or he was uncomfortable (I hadn’t considered this when I brought it up). If we see or experiences someone acting like an ass in an office I don’t think it hurts to bring it up to the higher ups. They could be losing business because of this person and have no idea why.
I had the same in UK. Rude old cow, when I was in for a worrying internal exam. I literally walked through the full waiting area with my arse showing because they literally explained nothing of the situation to me. That is the beauty of having no sense of shame in life. I got the old bag's attention then.
As some who used to work at receptions, I relate to this horrid woman a lot. The shift in tone at “…no insurance?” is not about her looking down at the uninsured pleb, it’s that him being uninsured means an extra minute of admin for her to do.
@fascinatedbyeverything you already have to chase them down for the other 50 patients you saw that day, now you got to spend another 15ish minutes in total adding the uninsured dude in your pile*
Except for the part where she yelled that the person doesn't have insurance and announced to everyone in the room how much it would be without it but ok
@@potassium8759 I mean I'd love to have insurance so I can stop inconveniencing the receptionist but I promise the $900 bill is a bigger inconvenience to me 😅
she shape shifted her face for this one specific role. Literally how. It’s like she’s using a whole different set of muscle groups to play a receptionist
You forgot the part where you first stand in front of the desk for 30 seconds while they ignore you and type on their computer, and also the part where they answer a phone call in the middle of your conversation! Lmao
@@bibliolov when I worked at 4 star hotels, we were taught to always acknowledge the person in front of you within ten seconds, even if you were currently on the phone. When I get great customer service, I applaud it. When I do not, I have an issue with it.
i don't mind the phone call, it's more that if i'm at a doctor's office for the first time and i don't really know where to go and what to do, it'd be nice not to stand there like an idiot for three minutes before the receptionist finally decides to take a second out of their day and tell you that you actually need go over to the other desk and have their colleague check you in 😭
When I was a teen and my mom would go with to Dr appts she was all so willing to yell out what my issue was to whoever...... as soon as I could drive mom was out of the picture......old bat. Not sorry!
Not a lot of people realize that it can be very difficult for us receptionists to step away from the desk to eat our lunches. When that phone rings, we gotta answer it. Sometimes we don't get the chance to step away at all. So yeah, we have to eat where we work. Especially in smaller offices that might not have a break room, or have fewer staff. We make do by bringing little finger foods or trail mixes, something that can soak up the stomach acid. And in smaller offices, we might be doing the work of two people. So even if the day ends at 4, or 3, or 5, or whenever, sometimes we can't get away until 15 to 20 minutes after our shift ends. So, please, be patient with us. We're working our tails off.
