# Fees for doctors certificate



## hendo (22 May 2008)

Due to the illness of a family member it was necessary for them to cancel a holiday. We had insurance which should cover some of the costs.Had to obtain a Medical Cert from the GP to effect patient was ill at the time and could not travel.Form from Ins. Co. could easily be completed in 3 to 5 minutes. But was charged E45 for the cert.Some E9 a minute!Any other posters experience this rip off? And can anything be done about it?Who to complain to?


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## ClubMan (22 May 2008)

hendo said:


> And can anything be done about it?Who to complain to?


Er - how about the _GP _himself/herself? 

How much do you think was a reasonable fee?


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## z103 (22 May 2008)

> How much do you think was a reasonable fee?


I would say certainly not more than €10.


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## sandrat (22 May 2008)

I've spent less than a minute in a doctors surgery before and paid 50 euro. (repeat prescription) 9 euro a minute isn't bad when my fella gets 50 a minute.

My sister needed to get a form filled in for college to say she didn't have any illnesses (catering course involving sharp knives they don;t want you dropping them or having a seizure etc) and she got charged 50 quid. 

Will the insurance claim not cover the cost of doctor?


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## sam h (22 May 2008)

My doctor once told me (after a wee grumble about costs), that due to the fact I could claim tax back, I really wasn't paying €50...only about €26

Same doc charged full whack for a repeat prescription for my child...no need for an exam...just had to print out the same script as the week before. When I complained I got a nominal discount! 

Lucky we don't get sick very often!!


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## MOB (23 May 2008)

While I am not defending doctors fees in general (nor am I attacking them), there is a touch of unreality about the argument that the fee is €45 for 3-5 minutes.   the doctor has to pay support staff; He has to get out the patient's file; details which the patient might know instantly (name, address, date of birth, gender, existing health defects if any etc.etc.)  may have to be checked on the patient file.  Then when the form is filled, a copy has to  be kept on the GP file for a period - actually more or less for ever.   The banks have all given up offering free storage of records.  In city premises, with their high rents, record keeping space is not an insignificant overhead.

As I say, I am making no comment good or bad on the actual level of the fee charged in this case - simply saying that it is overly simplistic to call this 3-5 minutes work.

In general, doctors do seem to be able to charge plenty in Ireland; but in any given area, (anecdotally)  there is often a doctor who charges a bit less.  I don't notice that this results in increased business for such doctors.  The reality is that as consumers, we are not very price sensitive.


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## ubiquitous (23 May 2008)

Hands up please anyone who has ever managed to write a letter in 3-5 minutes in the course of their work ...


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## Purple (23 May 2008)

Mrs Purple is a GP. I think it's great that they can charge so much


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## ClubMan (23 May 2008)

Purple said:


> Mrs Purple is a GP. I think it's great that they can charge so much


No wonder you can afford to be so magnanimous!

People should not be afraid to complain to any service provider if they feel that the charges are unjustified and to haggle if necessary. May get you nowhere but nothing ventured...


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## Welfarite (23 May 2008)

I had the misfortune to break a leg a couple of years ago. This entailed getting weekly certs from GP for four months. I collected then 4 at a time for the paltry fee of €20 (€5 per cert).


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## Purple (23 May 2008)

ClubMan said:


> No wonder you can afford to be so magnanimous!


That's it  
In fairness the same thing has happened in the past when Mrs. Purple was not earning.


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## ClubMan (23 May 2008)

Purple said:


> That's it
> In fairness the same thing has happened in the past when Mrs. Purple was not earning.


You mean you "ripped people off"?


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## noname (27 May 2008)

I am very lucky with my Dr, last year I had to get some blood test's done, he agreed to see me @ 8am before work & only charged me €10, also no charge for repeat precription.


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## Purple (27 May 2008)

ClubMan said:


> You mean you "ripped people off"?



You've lost me...


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## ClubMan (27 May 2008)

Purple said:


> You've lost me...


Does this help?


hendo said:


> was charged E45 for the cert.Some E9 a minute!Any other posters experience this rip off?





Purple said:


> Mrs Purple is a GP. I think it's great that they can charge so much





Purple said:


> In fairness the same thing has happened in the past when Mrs. Purple was not earning.


I think jokes lose a lot when you have to prove them mathematically.


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## Purple (27 May 2008)

ClubMan said:


> I think jokes lose a lot when you have to prove them mathematically.


 Sorry, I was talking about me cutting my income before I asked anyone who works for me to do the same; I did so before Mrs Purple was ripping people off


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## Seagull (27 May 2008)

Last time I needed a doctor's cert, I got it as part of the consultation at no extra cost. Doctor said I should stay home for a week, did I need a cert? I said yes, and he wrote it out on the spot.


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## z103 (27 May 2008)

> While I am not defending doctors fees in general (nor am I attacking them), there is a touch of unreality about the argument that the fee is €45 for 3-5 minutes. the doctor has to pay support staff; He has to get out the patient's file; details which the patient might know instantly (name, address, date of birth, gender, existing health defects if any etc.etc.) may have to be checked on the patient file. Then when the form is filled, a copy has to be kept on the GP file for a period - actually more or less for ever. The banks have all given up offering free storage of records. In city premises, with their high rents, record keeping space is not an insignificant overhead.


What business wouldn't have overheads?



> As I say, I am making no comment good or bad on the actual level of the fee charged in this case - simply saying that it is overly simplistic to call this 3-5 minutes work.


I still don't understand why this isn't 3-5 minutes work. Every surgery must surely be computerised by now (even in Ireland!), so it should take seconds to bring up a patient record, and minutes to print out note and sign it.


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## Purple (27 May 2008)

leghorn said:


> I still don't understand why this isn't 3-5 minutes work. Every surgery must surely be computerised by now (even in Ireland!), so it should take seconds to bring up a patient record, and minutes to print out note and sign it.



 Many are not computerised and the computer does not write the note. Computers are not sentient beings; they are (in these cases) data storage devices. Therefore the doctor still has to write (or type) the note. I do agree that €45 is a lot for a sick note though. I do not understand why more people do not simply move to a different GP.


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## z103 (28 May 2008)

> Many are not computerised and the computer does not write the note. Computers are not sentient beings; they are (in these cases) data storage devices


If there really are some doctors operating in Ireland that are that backward, then the patients certainly shouldn't be subsidising them, and should, as you've suggested, so elsewhere.
Is it not the case that there are templates for notes, many of them being pretty much the same?
eg;
XXXX has to take XX days off from work because of XXX
signed
A Doctor.


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## sam h (28 May 2008)

> I do agree that €45 is a lot for a sick note though. I do not understand why more people do not simply move to a different GP.


 
Any chance you'll share what Mrs Purple charges for a sick note / repeat perscription?


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## Purple (28 May 2008)

sam h said:


> Any chance you'll share what Mrs Purple charges for a sick note / repeat perscription?



To be honest I don't know (but I hope it's high)


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## sam h (28 May 2008)

Purple said:


> To be honest I don't know (but I hope it's high)


 

to keep you in the manner to which you have become accustomed


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## Gordanus (28 May 2008)

my doctor has a pile of sick certs to do every day.  If it's an hour a day then no wonder he charges and I don't mind, I think his fee is reasonable.


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## Purple (28 May 2008)

sam h said:


> to keep you in the manner to which you have become accustomed


 Indeed.
If she keeps it up she will earn as much as me


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