To have found this rather unbelievable?!

[babybearsmummy]

My l.g has a heart condition which see sees a cardiologist for, but in between appointments, she also has to see the GP to make sure things are ok and have a little listen/ check over.

We like to see Dr A as he diagnosed dd and made all her referrals etc when she was 8weeks old and has seen her for 80% of her GP appointments since. However, I totally understand it's not always possible to see him, so will happily see others even if it is a little bit of a faff keeping new doctors in the loop.

Anyway, these last few weeks have, understandably, been a nightmare to get dd in for an appt, so it has got to the point where the receptionist has put our name down to be called if any appt crops up. We finally got one yesterday after a 2 week wait!

While I was in the corridor/ buggy park area, there were 2 elderly ladies having a natter and my ears pricked up when I heard lady 1 ask if lady 2 was ok and hoped she wasn't seeing the doctor for anything too serious and lady 2 replying that no, everything was fine, she had just been in to give Dr A his Christmas card.

Now am I being a Scrooge or is this a total waste of a GPs time? Argh, talk about silly season!

Maybe she popped in for two seconds with no appointment to give the doc a card or maybe she didn't want to tell MsNosey why she was at the doctors.

Fair point jingling

It depends, maybe the receptionist let her in to give the card between appointments. I cant imagen anyone getting an appointment to give a card at the doctors I go to

I would've assumed she'd just popped in without any appointment to hand over a card, and it really wouldn't bother me!

Maybe she didn't have an appointment and was literally dropping in?

though

Last week I had a 3wo baby with such a bad cough he was choking and missing breaths. I rang for an appointment as soon as the line opened (you can only book "on the day" not in advance at our GPs) and it was engaged. I called back forty times over the next fifteen minutes and when I got through they had no appointments left They squeezed us in at lunchtime.

If all the appointments were taken by elderly lonely but healthy people I'd have been hopping. A GP appt costs the NHS something like £60 which would pay for a few social carer visits or hours in a drop-in centre instead.

Bloody hell Horry I would've gone straight to a&e

Hope he's ok now

It wouldn't be the first time I've heard of the elderly making appointments to visit the doctor with no medical problems. Hope fully they had just popped in though?

I was on a female ward once where I was the only patient under 70. It was about a week before Christmas and two of the patients were chatting. One was being picked up by her son and spending Christmas with him. The other lady said she didn't want to be a burden to her daughter and had nowhere else to go so would insist on staying in the hospital as she had no one else to spend it with and she would get a Christmas meal.

Bit sad and frustrating really on both sides. I had to spend 2 nights in the admissions ward as there were no beds available, but people are so lonely they want to stay in hospital.

He's much better now thanks