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"Poor customer service by reception staff"

About: Sale Hospital / Medical Imaging

(as the patient),

After being referred for medical imaging I was told by the reception staff that my scan would be bulk billed. Days after the scan was completed I received an account in the mail for $300.00. When I called to inquire why I was billed I was told that because I was referred by a GP I would have to pay the gap payment. I explained that the scans were requested by the specialist while I was having a joint appointment with both my GP & Specialist Doctor. I called my specialist and they forwarded a copy of the referral to the Medical Imaging Department.

When I was in to have the second part of my scans (ultrasound) the receptionist confronted me about payment for the CT scan and when they told me the cost for the ultrasound would be $185.00, I questioned them as I was again told when booking in it would be a different price. I tried to discuss the issue but I felt the receptionist was very rude and made me feel uncomfortable. They suggested I needed to get on my phone and make the payment. When I told them what the other receptionist told me when I called to book in they replied - you have to pay for it and that's all there is to it. The waiting room was full of people and I felt very embarrassed. I feel the receptionist was a very rude person. 

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Responses

Response from Paul Head, Director Aged & Ambulatory Care, Central Gippsland Health 4 years ago
Paul Head
Director Aged & Ambulatory Care,
Central Gippsland Health
Submitted on 10/05/2019 at 10:06 AM
Published on Care Opinion at 10:15 AM


picture of Paul Head

Dear Scorpisbt63,

My name is Paul Head and I am the Director of Aged & Ambulatory Care at Central Gippsland Health.

Thank you for taking the time and effort to provide us with your feedback pertaining to your recent presentation to our Medical Imaging department.

I am very sorry that this was your experience with us on this occasion. It is certainly not the type of experience we want for our patients. Furthermore, I am sorry that we put you in a situation where you felt uncomfortable and embarrassed at the reception desk.

We are working really hard on our person centred care projects and whilst we are making great progress, we acknowledge that we do not always get it right every time.

We operate under a communication charter that was developed and agreed to by our staff and informs the way we interact with our patients and each other. The Charter reiterates the expected standard of communication across our organisation and I am sorry that these improvements were not evident during your interaction with us.

We will continue to strive for excellence in our patient interactions and your feedback will reiterate the importance of this work to our staff.

I would really like to resolve this billing issue with you and discuss any further supports we can offer you. To this end, I invite you to contact me on (03) 5143 8660 or via email at paul.head@cghs.com.au if you feel comfortable enough to do so.

Kind regards,

Paul Head

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