How many times did you use the NHS last year?

[bumchic]

Me - none
DH - 4 GP appointments for acne
DS1 - one overnight hospital for an operation after shoving a button up his nose, flu vaccine through school
DS2 - flu vaccine
DD - flu vaccine, one consultant appointment for a congenital condition that we have annually

Plus 2 x dentist for all

I think this is quite low. No point to this - there have been years it’s been way higher

Me: flu jab, shingles jab, blood test for cholesterol check up / blood pressure check up with nurse, dentist check up x 2. Now on long term beta blockers and statins with free prescriptions as over 60.
DH: flu jab, blood test for cholesterol check up / blood pressure check up with nurse; GP face to face appointment x 3 for suspected UTIs then prostate issues; bladder scan; PSA test; kidney scan all in hospital under 2 week cancer pathway (all clear given); further GP face to face for fit note (now signed off long term sick due to heart issues); online consultation for further fit note. Now on long term beta blockers, blood thinners, meds for heart and enlarged prostate with free prescriptions as over 60.

Dh has never been in hospital, neither of us has ever broken a bone, I’ve never been to A+E DH only once 40 years ago.

Two trips to A&E for me and one four day hospital stay with infected gallbladder and found out I have stones. A couple of calls to GP for phone consultations related to this condition, fairly useless. Had a I followed their advice and took antacids I could have had a ruptured gallbladder or pancreatitis.
Husband is on regular prescription for levothyroxine and has been seeing a physio see injured knee. He also saw them a few times for post viral symptoms following and virus last year.
None for daughter apart from dentist.
My mum various hospital stays due to end stage lung condition, she died in Feb.
My nephew developed aplastic anaemia after a severe viral infection and needed a stem cell transplant and chemotherapy to prevent rejection.

So a bit above average for my family this year!

Just my repeat prescription between all 3 of us.

Once for my HRT review with the practice nurse. Dentist is private.

Heavy year for dd who had grumbling appendix for 5 days meaning a&e visit, 5 days in and out if the ward and then an emergency op followed by 3 days in hospital then follow ups.

3 weeks after she had planned emergency op on her wrist to remove a bone which was day surgery (with one if the top surgeons in country) then follow ups and Physio. There had been 6 months of consultant appointments before this plus treatment for the broken wrist that led to this op 🙄

I had 1 app for a check on my chest following another bout of Covid.

DH was sent to hospital following an eye test which has led to appointments, 2 MRI, 1 CT, an ultrasound and a lumbar puncture. More will be needed this year due to diagnosis.

DS - nothing this year.

All dentist was private as were a few other treatments.

This year has been heavy use for us but before that it was 1/2 GP appointments each but so grateful we had the NHS available to us.

Hoping this year will be better 🙈

Having not had to go to GP for years was diagnosed with cancer in A&E. So used lots for chemo and a big op plus seeing consultant, scans etc. Probably over 30 times. Still not seen GP though!

Flu jab, dentist x2 and mammogram. No GP or hospital appointments.
However, I've done my back in today so might be breaking my duck this next week!

Me- Twice. Had Uti, given 3 days antibiotics, pleaded for more. Given my history of Uti's.. 4 days later back for more.

DC have NHS dentist so they have had checkup twice

Far too much,
13 hospital appointments
About 40 blood tests
Bone marrow biopsy
Nurse at my GP surgery once a week
Around 5 GP appointments
Several swab tests.

All for a skin condition, and low iron. I hope this year it will be a lot less.

Antibiotics once from GP.

I’m on a daily medication too so I had a blood test and saw my consultant for that once.

Got a surgical scar checked by GP as had emergency surgery abroad.

So x3

I think that's actually really high use OP. You've got an overnight stay and operation in there.
My family of five.
Dentist x 2 each - no work
Me - flu vaccine (paid for at supermarket)
Three teens - zero
Me - blood test with nurse.
Husband- zero
This is a typical year. I guess we're lucky with health but most people, teens to mid 50s have very low use don't they?

Me - none. I had an operation privately at the beginning of last year but didn't have any NHS input at any point. I've got a disability but the care at the local hospital has left a great deal to be desired so I just pay now.
DH has been to the GP a couple of times, had one hospital outpatient appointment and some blood tests and is on one regular medication.
Both my DS's have stable long term conditions with monthly prescriptions and annual review appointments with the GP.
Everyone in the family except me has had the flu jab.
We are all with a private dentist.
Not sure if my DD counts as as immediate family as she is married and lives along way away, but she has just had a baby and had a bit of a complicated pregnancy involving a lot of hospital visits. I think she and baby will have cost the NHS more than the rest of the family put together in the last year but hopefully that is all behind them now.

For myself alone for gp and hospital, well over 100

Quite a bit, have a disc prolapse that's absolutely goosed the nerves in my foot and leg. Was in and out of the Dr's for months for help (misdiagnosed as hip bursitis) before I was finally hospitalised with cauda equina. Have needed nerve meds since then and physio. Have had 2 mris, xray and ultrasound for it too.

Also had a 7 day ecg.

I got shouted at by a Dr in A&E ten years ago for not visiting my gp often enough, was mind boggling. Who goes to their gp just for shits n giggles when they are not sick?

Me - flu vaccine only.
DH - none. I cannot remember the last time he used the NHS. Over 10 years I think.
Kids - Kid A for cardiology annual check up (ecg, echo, consult), dentist, ear infection
Kid B for annual urology check up, dentist.

Kid B unfortunately had lots of private health care though - private psychiatrist for adhd and anxiety, because the NHS waitlist is too unbearable.

According to my diary

2 dentist appointments
1 mammogram
1 blood test to check if I’m pre-diabetic (there is a massive family history, so my GP surgery does a test every 18 months)
Flu jab

This is pretty typical.

Me - annual pre-diabetic blood test. Very lucky, I haven't seen a GP for 11 years

DH - one GP, two A&E, all in last ten days of the year.

Very little. I tend to use my works private medical which includes GP consultations the same day.

Me: a smear, HRT check, Dentist check ups x2, Doctor appt for private referral.
DH: Dentist check ups
Kids: Dentist check ups and Orthodontist for braces

Tried to get WLI (didn’t quite meet the remit, my BMI is just below 40 and while I have arthritis in my knees and acid reflux it doesn’t count. My BP, blood sugars and cholesterol levels are all fine). I’ve ended up going private as I am very heavy).

One prescription for steroid cream for a small patch of eczema. It was only small but I’d tried every otc remedy going and nothing worked. The consultation was via email with a photo.

3 repeat prescriptions, one for acid reflux, one for long term depression and one for an under active thyroid. I need annual blood tests for the thyroid gland plus they do all the usual over 40 tests at the same time.

Free eye checks as my brother has glaucoma.

I work for the NHS and they gave me a flu jab.

Ive had to pay for ear syringing, treatment for lower back pain and afore mentioned weight loss meds (only just collected them yesterday, want to wait for my next run of days off work to start as you often get nausea and/or headaches and I wanted to try it when I’m not at work).

im 60 this year, so probably average. My worst 12 months was in 2021 when I had NHS treatment for cataracts, gallbladder removed and surgery on a fractured shoulder. Not my lucky year (or the NHS’s!)

God, it felt like I lived at the GP last year. Diagnosed with high blood pressure so had several appts to try different meds and discuss results.

Very low vit D and iron, so had injections and vit D supplements. Two ECGs, then an echocardiogram and an ambulatory ECG.

mammogram
bowel cancer poo check

ear infection so a GP appt for that

dh - few GP appts for high BP
flu vaccine
blood tests after being diagnosed with high BP
blood test to check for clotting factors

We’re private for dentists.

Three thyroid blood tests for me.
Child broke her leg (not badly), so four visits to children's hospital.
Child broke a tooth, two trips to dentist.

Don't think I used GP. Dentist is private.
Had bone scan and mammo at hospital and on Tamoxifen.

A&E once because I thought my existing AF had got 100% worse. Turned out it was psychosomatic and I was just having a panic attack.

GP 3 to 4 times, for the AF and other things.

Pharmacy is every month to pick up beta-blockers.

DD never goes. Would rather be carried out unconscious than use the NHS voluntarily. The sort who thinks a paracetamol solves everything. Tbh she's been right so far.

Yearly cardio check up
Flu jab
GP for knee pain
GP for frozen shoulder
Dentist twice
Two suspicious mole checks
Yearly blood tests to check that heart meds aren’t affecting anything.

But I am quite old!