A competent doctor’s office will have a triage nurse that you can leave a message with if you’re unsure if you should see the doctor. Sometimes I’ve been advised to try OTC medication to see if it helps, and if it doesn’t then call back for an appointment. Occasionally the doctor, if familiar with your conditions, will call in a prescription.
I’ve had a nurse tell me over the phone to take something, and I thought it might not be a good idea and turned out that had I done it, it may have killed me. Nurses are not doctors and to have them telling patients what to do or take with having seen a doctor is a risky business.
That should be ‘without’ having been seen my a doctor.