Aggression against doctor’s assistants due to uncertainty about corona vaccines: ‘If I get sick, it’s your fault!’

Aggressive and impatient patients who want a corona vaccine without getting a call. Doctor’s assistants get them on the phone every day. The Dutch Association for Doctor’s Assistants (NVDA) is concerned about this.

At the beginning of May, the NVDA conducted a survey among more than 1000 doctor’s assistants. This showed that almost every one of them is bombarded by patients with the same question every day, sometimes even every hour. What those patients want? A vaccine, and fast. But they don’t have an official invitation.

Angry or aggressive patients

While most people are understanding when told they can’t do this without an invitation, two-thirds of the assistants surveyed deal with angry or aggressive patients on a weekly basis. Four out of ten even receive angry or aggressive phone calls on a daily basis.

The research shows that assistants mainly receive questions about who patients should contact for a vaccine: the general practitioner or the GGD. There are also many questions about which vaccine people receive, whether they are on a list and when it is their turn. People think they can claim leftover vaccines and there is a lack of understanding about the vaccination schedule. Some patients make statements like, “If I get sick, it’s your fault!”

‘Hard work’

Doctor’s assistant Alma also experiences this at the practice where she works. “Several of my colleagues say they are more often upset by how people call us names or throw the receiver at us. It is difficult to work like this.”

“I always try to stay professional and I like to help people,” she continues. “But if you continuously get calls like this from 8 to 5, it does something to you.”

Regular care in a pinch

The many phone calls seem to affect not only the doctor’s assistants. “They have to deal with angry patients and have to explain a lot, which puts regular care in a bind,” says Kees Gillis, chairman of the NVDA. “General practitioner care is allocated a limited group that may be vaccinated. Everything that falls outside of that, you can’t do anything with that.”

Yet it is not surprising to Gillis that people find it difficult to follow the policy and have questions about it. “It changes regularly and there are different target groups that have exceptions, try to explain that. Even for us it is very complex, let alone if you are not familiar with vaccination policy. And many people are not.”

In survival mode

According to psychologist Hanan Haddouch, the angry behavior of patients can be explained. “During the pandemic, people can face long-term stress. In addition to anxiety, people tend to behave in order to become more individualistic, they want to save themselves and get into a kind of survival mode,” she explains.

“People know that there is a solution against the virus; the vaccine. They long for it and become greedy. Their patience runs out and they lose control of their own behavior, which can lead to aggressive or angry behavior. blame them for not giving the vaccine and no longer see that the doctors’ assistants are doing the maximum they can.”

Call to be patient

As understandable as it is that people become impatient and worry, aggressive behavior is always wrong, the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport reacts to the outcome of the investigation.

“We are still in the middle of a pandemic and that requires a lot from various parties,” said a spokesperson. “That sometimes creates uncertainty, but we all want to get out of this crisis as soon as possible.”

‘Wait for invitation’

The ministry therefore urgently calls on people to be patient, to remain friendly towards doctor’s assistants and healthcare workers, no matter how difficult it is sometimes. “You get an invitation when it’s your turn, wait for that.”

“There is still a scarcity of vaccines at the moment,” explains the spokesperson. “Only when there are enough vaccines do we have the luxury of choosing which vaccine we want. Take the vaccine that is offered to you anyway, because it is safe for your target group.”

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