Welcome to our Daily English Listening Practice with this week’s series:
Role Play: At the Doctor’s
Making an Appointment
Get ready for some role plays!
Daily life in English is important! Doctor’s Office Conversation usually starts on the phone with an appointment and then continues later in person at the Doctor’s Office.
These role plays and English dialogues are in pieces, and you can find the full role play at the end of this week, after you feel comfortable with each piece. You’ll find some extra culture notes at the bottom of some of the listening practice clips, enjoy!
Grab the American and British Dialogue Transcripts here:
English Role Play at the Doctor’s Office Transcripts
American Doctor’s Office: at the top
British Doctor’s Office: scroll down
American Doctor’s Office
USA – On the Phone
Making an Appointment – New Patient
[wonderplugin_audio id=”102″]
This American English clip is between a new patient and an office receptionist.
—Transcript—
Receptionist: Hello, Dr’s Office, how can I help you?
Patient: Hiya, I’d like to make an appointment.
Receptionist: Yes, sir, what’s the patient’s name?
Patient: Uh, my name is Bruce Lyons.
Receptionist: Okay, Bruce Lyons, could you spell that for me please?
Patient: Yeah, Lyons is L-Y-O-N-S. And first name is Bruce.
Receptionist: And, what’s your date of birth?
Patient: It’s August 14th, 1988.
Receptionist: Okay, and what are you symptoms?
Patient: Uh, it’s just for a check-up really.
Culture Notes:
This audio clip is for a regular doctor who is probably covered under your insurance plan. They will usually have their own practice with their name listed on the building, and you won’t normally visit them in a hospital. A lot of doctors are in residential areas or in small shopping strips, this isn’t unusual. Hospitals are for surgeries or something very serious, like going to the emergency room. Don’t go to the emergency room if it is not very serious. Most doctors are open Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. however, some doctors aren’t available some days for whatever reason. If you’re a new patient, you will need to have your insurance card ready to give the receptionist some information.
USA – On the Phone
Making an Appointment for Someone Else
[wonderplugin_audio id=”103″]
This American English clip is between a new patient and an office receptionist.
—Transcript—
Receptionist: Good morning, Dr.’s Office, how can I help you?
Patient: Hi there, I’d like to schedule an appointment for my son.
Receptionist: Yes sir, what is the patient’s name?
Patient: His name is Jim Lyons.
Receptionist: Oh, could you spell that please?
Patient: Sure, Jim Lyons, Lyons is L-Y-O-N-S
Receptionist: And, have you ever come into the office before?
Patient: No, we’ll be new patients in this office.
Receptionist: Okay, just give me your son’s date of birth, please.
Patient: It’s January 12th, 2014.
Receptionist: Okay, 01-12-14?
Patient: Yep, that’s right.
Receptionist: Okay great, thank you.
Culture Notes:
If you aren’t a new patient, simply say “We’ve been there before, our last name is Smith, S-M-I-T-H.” You can easily say your date of birth in MM-DD-YY, like 11-20-88 eleven twenty eighty-eight, or simply November 20th, 1988. Don’t forget: 1st 2nd 3rd… 10th… 21st… 31st
For your child: 2000-2009, you’ll probably say: “(born in) two-thousand; two thousand n’ nine” 2010-current “two-thousand ten & twenty-ten” are both acceptable.
USA – On the Phone
Insurance
[wonderplugin_audio id=”104″]
This American English clip is between a new patient and an office receptionist.
—Transcript—
Receptionist: Okay, so you said that this appointment is going to be for your son, Jim. Have you guys ever been in before to see the doctor?
Patient: No, we haven’t been to that practice, yet.
Receptionist: Okay, let me just get a little bit of information from you. Do you have your insurance card ready?
Patient: Uh, yep, hang on a second, okay, I’ve got it here.
Receptionist: Okay, can I just get the first and last name of the policyholder?
Patient: Okay, that’ll be my name, so Bruce Lyons.
Receptionist: Okay, great. And, what kind of insurance do you have? Which company?
Patient: Uh, we have Aetna insurance.
Receptionist: Alright and the expiration date?
Patient: Is that the same as the expiry date?
Receptionist: Yes, it is.
Patient: Okay, it expires January 2019.
Receptionist: Okay and finally, your customer or your patient number.
Patient: It should be 0087645.
Receptionist: Okay great, that’s all the information I need.
Culture Notes:
Some health clinics, which are private businesses with multiple doctors, don’t require appointments or insurance. They accept walk-ins (Walk-Ins Welcome, people without an appointment) and you can pay “out-of-pocket” which means you pay the expenses yourself without using any insurance. They can be expensive, but they might be a better option for quick and often 24-hour care. “Health clinics near me” or “24-hour health clinics near me” are great google searches for finding one near your location. You can find health clinics in grocery stores, pharmacies, and because it is such a popular business, you can find them just about anywhere.
USA – Extra Notes
[wonderplugin_audio id=”105″]
British Doctor’s Office
UK – On the Phone
Making an Appointment – New Patient
[wonderplugin_audio id=”106″]
This American English clip is between a new patient and an office receptionist.
—Transcript—
(On the phone)
Receptionist: Good morning, Dr.’s office.
Patient: Hi, would I be able to schedule an appointment with you?
Receptionist: Yes, of course, could I take your name please?
Patient: Sure, my name is Ezra Fitz.
Receptionist: And, how is that spelled?
Patient: Fitz, F-I-T-Z, Ezra E-Z-R-A
Receptionist: Okay, thank you, and date of birth please.
Patient: Okay, that’ll be the 20th of January, 1988.
Receptionist: Okay and can I have your address please?
Patient: Sure, it’s 19 Abbotts Road, Henfield and the post code is HN47JP
Receptionist: Is that 7-J-P?
Patient: Yes, JAY-PE
Receptionist: Okay, and can I have your national insurance number?
Patient: That’s MF-12-35-45-61.
Receptionist: Thank you. Are you registered at this practice?
Patient: Yes, I am currently registered with you.
Culture Notes:
The NHS is the National Health Service, and British citizens’ taxes go towards hospitals and make hospitals free. Every citizen has a National Insurance Number (NI number) so they can have access to this free health care. Private insurance is available, but most people use the NHS.
In the recording, you might hear that Americans say “August 19th”, but in England, people normally say “19th of August”.
UK – On the Phone
Making an Appointment for Someone Else
[wonderplugin_audio id=”107″]
This American English clip is between a new patient and an office receptionist.
—Transcript—
(On the phone)
Receptionist: Good afternoon, Dr.’s office.
Patient: Hi there, could I make an appointment for my son?
Receptionist: Yes, absolutely, could I take your son’s name, please.
Patient: His name is Bruce Fitz.
Receptionist: And how are you spelling Fitz?
Patient: F-I-T-Z.
Receptionist: Okay, and what’s his date of birth?
Patient: His date of birth the 19th of August, 2014.
Receptionist: And is he registered at this practice?
Patient: Yes, he should be.
Receptionist: Okay, and can I take the national insurance number of a parent or guardian.
Patient: Yes, that will probably be under his father and that’s TZ-14-27-93-85.
Receptionist: Okay, and the father’s name?
Patient: He’ll be under John Fitz.
Culture Notes:
A ‘GP’ is a General Practitioners. It’s a small clinic with just a few doctors, and they deal with less urgent problems like fevers, pains, exams and checkups. We call the building ‘the GP’ (i.e. “I went to the GP for a check-up”), and you need to register at your local GP to get access to care. You can only be registered at one GP at a time. If you want to register, the staff will give you a form to fill out.
UK – Extra Notes
[wonderplugin_audio id=”108″]
If you have any more questions, please feel free to ask in the comments below!
Thanks,
Kat and Mark
