To be disappointed at waiting list.

[NachoAddict]

First things first I am super greatful for the NHS and I do know how lucky I am to be receiving treatment for free.

BUT am I being unreasonable to be disappointed at the length of the waiting list.

I am on the list to have double jaw surgery. My teeth have been ready since the end of June and I was put on the list. Heard nothing so gave them a ring today and they have said they have my paperwork but they haven't got a date for me yet. They are currently booking January appointments so it will be at least into the new year.

I feel like crying. That is at least 7 months in braces just waiting .

Anyway I will zip up my woman suit and stop moping now, just wanted to unload how disappointed I am.

It's like going back to the 90s, when it wasn't uncommon for people to wait 2 years for non-urgent surgery.

Bloody tragic imo.

Sides I had a thread on here when I was considering private and a lot of people recommended staying on the nhs for this kind of surgery and that it is much safer to be in an nhs hospital when dealing with your airways etc.
The surgeon also recommend that it woukd be better to stay on the nhs and just wait.
I don't want to ruin my face just because I am impatient.
Food is a moot point, I cant eat after the op anyway.

It strikes me as tragic that a consultant can tell someone there will be a long wait, but if you like to pay me £5000 I'll do it in a couple of days. Not sure if it's still the case, but at one time the consultant did the operation in the same NHS hospital.

Some private hospitals are no doubt better at some run of the mill operations – the straightforward ones – cherry picking helps them keep costs down. Private hospitals generally do not have A&E or specialist departments. If anything goes wrong you're then in the same queue for emergency treatment as everyone else.

In our neck of the woods a couple of years ago a private firm undertaking cataract operations left twenty two patients with serious eye problems that the NHS had to sort out.

I'm happy to wait

To be fair, if it were that urgent then I'm sure the NHS would have done it, but as they haven't it isn't. I'm not worried, and not so terribly unwell or debilitated, afaik; but that aspect of my health is compounded by ms, so what symptoms are caused by which condition - can't be certain about all of them until one condition has been sorted, and that's not going to be the ms is it!

I think if it is urgent, there is not usually a long wait.**

eg DH needs a shoulder surgery, it's non urgent, he's on the waiting list, it'll be a year approx.

I need/ed an urgent gynaecology check - my blood loss is ridiculous, bordering on life threatening, and my GP booked me directly into the gyn appointment whilst in his office for 2 weeks time. When I saw the gyn, he agreed urgent and booked me in for surgery in 2 months. Would have been earlier, but he was on holiday in October for 2 weeks and I was on holiday for 2 weeks straight after.

So, those of you who's issue is urgent, go back to your GP. They are the ones not writing the referral as urgent, or booking you directly for the appointments. Then ring the place and make it clear you can make last minute cancellation appointments also if you can.

I previously lived in Australia, where the NHS equivalent is far, far worse than UK, everyone who can afford has private health insurance, which is expensive, but with massive gaps, so you still have to pay on top. Private, people are seen quickly, on the NHS equivalent, it can take YEARS.

I would hate to see the NHS turn into that. It doesn't work there at all. Well, it does for the rich.