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Original poster

Lightbulb moment about GP’s and how things used to be

180 replies

Smellsofbeef · 09/12/2022 22:58

I’ve just realised that as a child I was never taken to the doctors. If myself or any member of the family was Ill then the doctor was phoned and it would be a home visit. Never, ever taken to the doctors surgery.

I was born in 73 and as far as I know it was the norm back then.
On the other hand, my children who are now in their early 20’s have never had a home visit from the GP, no matter how poorly they’ve ever been we’d always be expected to take them to the surgery.

When did this about turn happen? Or was it just my family that would call the doctor for a home visit?

I remember the local doctor calling on my nana when he was passing! Not even been called, just he was nearby so he’d pop in to see her (she suffered with her ‘nerves’).

Was a home visit the norm back then ?

OP posts:
Pythonese · 10/12/2022 00:49

Born in 1980 and never had a home visit. But then the first time I saw a doctor was for contraception in my teens.

FiveShelties · 10/12/2022 00:50

Born in 1956, lived in a small village in Lancashire where the GP rented the front room of someone's home for his surgery. I think there were clinics everyday but I cannot remember the GP ever doing a home visit.

My Mum still lives in the same village and is a patient at a surgery with about 6 GPs and they have done a couple of home visits for her over the last three years - she is 92 though.

Frith2013 · 10/12/2022 00:50

Not something I've known. My GP did pop in while she was passing once, when I'd come out of hospital after having meningitis.

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pollutemymind · 10/12/2022 00:55

I was born in London in 1990 and had GP home visits for myself and my siblings all throughout the 90's. A remember a few.

Mothership4two · 10/12/2022 00:58

Born in 66 and the only home visit I had was for a bad cold when I was around 10 and staying with family. Mum was bemused. GP did come out for my DS when he had a fit at around age 2ish.

Don't know if it would be possible now

CallieQ · 10/12/2022 00:58

Born in 60, we only had home visits if really ill..

ThePlatypusAlwaysTriumphs · 10/12/2022 00:58

Born in '72 and had 1 doctors visit for a split head (which, now looking back at it would have been better going to the doc/ hospital)
Disclosure- not a doctor, but I am a vet. I absolutely HATE house visits!! So much more can be done at the surgery, and a house visit eats into time- I can see 3 patients in 60 mins, a house visit takes me at least 1.5 hrs.
I would never request a house visit unless it was life or death. And then I'd probably (sensibly) call an ambulance. Very few cases when it is impossible for patient to attend. If you are that ill, you need hospitalisation

RosesAndHellebores · 10/12/2022 01:09

In the 60s in rural environments when people didn’t necessarily have cars, home visits were necessary. I also remember people being more anxious about trying not to spread disease. People wouldn’t have taken a child with measles or mumps out to the Dr.

I can’t imagine taking a child with chicken pox to the Dr but I guess some people do.

Tjere was nothing like the screening there now is in the 60s and 70s. People just died from cancer and heart conditions more often without necessarily knowing they had them.

RosesAndHellebores · 10/12/2022 01:13

@ThePlatypusAlwaysTriumphs I imagine you are a small/domestic animal vet? I can’t quite imagine grannie leading a poorly horse; or herding a couple of cows through the village Grin

Peedoffo · 10/12/2022 01:13

I work in healthcare and it's still done for people in nursing homes, EOL, learning disabilities. There has to be special circumstances some people you can't get to the GP.

HeidiWhole · 10/12/2022 01:15

Born '71 - I remember quite a few home visits in the 80s, not just for me as a child but for other family members too.
It was quite a comforting feeling having the doctor (always the same one IIRC) at your own bedside 😊

Msgrieves · 10/12/2022 01:19

I was born 81 And I deffo had home visits, I was diagnosed with asthma.

Novemberhater · 10/12/2022 01:49

We always had home visits in the fifties and sixties. I often had home visits in the seventies. When I had DS in the late seventies, my GP even came to visit me in hospital after the birth. That was ten miles from our home town. A different world.

garlictwist · 10/12/2022 02:03

I was born in 82 and I don't think we ever had a home visit - always at the surgery. I do remember a nurse type woman coming over when I was really little but I think she might have been some kind of home visitor.

lemmein · 10/12/2022 02:05

I'm 44 and was thinking about this too the other day after my DD couldn't even get through to the Drs, nevermind arrange an appointment.

I remember home visits when I was a child - surgery visits too, but yeah, home visits were definitely a thing for normal, everyday illnesses. I remember my mum frantically cleaning around poorly me incase the dr thought she was slattern Grin

Not that I think homevisits should become the norm, but it does make you realise how much healthcare has been devastated in this country when you can go from home visits to not even being able to speak to a gp receptionist! Scary times 😕

unsync · 10/12/2022 07:15

In my fifties. We had home visits as children, but probably because my mother wouldn't call unless it was really serious. Unless we were half dead, we always had to be in school. Otherwise, most ailments were dealt with by her, tucked up in bed, hot water bottle, cold flannels, sick buckets, etc. And Vicks Vapour Rub, lots and lots of Vicks 😁

KangarooKenny · 10/12/2022 07:17

I was born early 70’s and always went to the doctors, only once had a home visit when I was covered in chicken pox.
It would have been a bus ride and a walk to get to the doctors.

Ritasueandbobtoo9 · 10/12/2022 07:23

I nearly 50 and grew up in a rural area. The GP used to do home visits and I remember him coming out when I had a nasty virus. Usually we went to the GP, but we had a car and not many people did. So I think in rural areas and before everyone had cars it was quite normal.

Ritasueandbobtoo9 · 10/12/2022 07:24

@unsync Yes, lots of Vicks and Dettol.

Pictograph · 10/12/2022 07:27

I was born in 1974 and I remember having a home visit once, but it was when I was staying with my Grandma in Devon and was not normal in London where I grew up.

Home visits do still happen though - my friend's dad had one recently.

MsNightingale · 10/12/2022 07:34

I was born in 68, and it wasn’t the norm during my childhood (in a small rural village). I can only remember once having a home visit - when I had scarlet fever.

My mum had home visits after she’d had a fall in about 2005 when she was quite old.

user1498193554 · 10/12/2022 07:36

I can see it from both sides, I’m almost 50 and never had a home visit from a GP, but my job is seeing patients at home (so our GP’s stay in the surgery seeing patients/supervising other clinicians ). I manage our palliative care patients, acute visits, and nursing homes patients. But for genuinely housebound patients!

DinosApple · 10/12/2022 07:39

I vaguely remember one home visit, born 1982. Perhaps it was when me and dbro had measles.

Our doctor's surgery had two branches I think. One had a tropical fish tank- clearly the most exciting thing for a child!
The other one we saw the actress who played Grotbags and got an autograph.

I can remember having chicken pox, measles, mumps and rubella as a child. Tucked up in bed curtains drawn, or on the sofa, and mum looking after us.
My poor mum must have been exhausted and run ragged!

My DC have never had a home visit, but they've had jabs for all the awful illnesses I had as a child. The only times I've been really worried have been A&E jobs.

Neighbours87 · 10/12/2022 07:41

Home visits were more the norm as lots of people didn’t have cars.

IrmaGord · 10/12/2022 07:42

Born in 75. The Dr came out a few times when I was a teenager as I had bronchitis a lot and couldn't breathe, once in the middle of the night. He also came out to my dad once when my dad had flu. I remember if you ever went to the surgery, you seemed to be waiting ages, like hours, but I don't know if that's because time went slower as a child when you were bored. You could also get an appointment on Saturday mornings if you needed one, but they closed on Wednesday afternoons.

I don't think we had a home visit past the early 90's, which is when GP contracts were renegotiated under Labour, I believe.