Would it be wrong of me to do this?

[Happyland8]

So I've had to buy an annual prescription. £104 for the year. I have a chronic condition which unfortunately doesn't fall in the category which gives me free prescriptions so this will be cheaper for me than paying the £8.80 charge per item.

The problem is, I'm now going to be loathed to pay for many of the things I have previously bought over the counter. For example (apologies in advance for the overshare), I seem to get recurrent bouts of thrush, the GP is aware. Rather than waste the GP's time, I normally buy some canesten over the counter which is in the region of a tenner. I'm going to be loathed to pay that now when I'm already paying the annual prescription charge. I feel like I'd rather get a GP appointment and get a prescription and then I won't have to pay the extra £10. Would this be wrong of me? I don't want to be a time waster with the GP but I'm paying a fee to have unlimited prescriptions at no extra charge so I'd like to optimise that since DH & I are on a small budget.

Please don't flame me. I don't want to be a drain on the NHS resources. If our finances weren't tight I wouldn't even consider this and it's not as though I'm getting my prescriptions free, I'm paying a monthly fee for them.

Thanks.

Reoccuring thrush should be a GP appointment or at least phone call to speak to the GP. Very infrequent bouts is different.

Go and see your GP. They could put a note to give you the prescription in future if you call in.

As PP said, check if the chemist you use participates in the Minor Ailments Scheme. If it does, you can get things like Thrush treatment free.
If not, arrange GP telephone consultation when needed.

You already know perfectly well it's wrong. But you'll do what you want anyway, so the point of the question is a mystery.

I think if you raise it as part of another appt and ask the question if a) its poss to have a repeat to use when necessary and b) if there is something more intense than an OTC then its perfectly reasonable. Recurrent thrush can cause all sorts of other issues so perfectly valid.

As an aside I use the 3 month card for regular prescriptions (I have 4) and have gaps of about a month maybe 6 weeks between before purchasing again. I find this removes the need for full 12 mth coverage and saves between £15 and £20 a yr. I always think of savings as food shopping so for me this is 1/3 of a weeks food so not insignificant in the scheme of things

Jacks11 response was perfect.

For those not made aware of the scheme - the Chemist is supposed to raise this with you and discuss it with you if you are a regular (all prescriptions are recorded on their system) I believe you can retrospectively get a cert if you still have receipts etc. Might be worth asking - I was told this once but never had to do myself.

Another useful bit of info is that if you have your prescription through a large chain like boots, their system records it and is accessible nationally. As a result if you forget your drugs when going away you can pay privately for a small 2 to 3 days amount via their pharmacist if on repeat. Also if you carry your repeat prescription list a pharmacist would be better able to assist you, plus if you are ever in need of medical help you can just pass it over say to ambulance staff

Ask for a phone appointment, GP can prescribe it. Next time you're at the GPs for something, ask them to put it on your repeat prescription list so that you can request it if you need it.

Nothing wrong with it at all. If you are sick you are sick and thrush is an illness - see your GP and get what meds or other treatment you need. Ditto other conditions.

This is why we need a complete rethink of the the NHS.

The attitude is that we all have a "right" to anything we want and - the reference to "old biddies" by 13thcentury sums up the belief that what you pay in has no relevance to what you get out, (and manages to be both ageist and sexist).

We have completely lost touch with how much this all costs and disagree about how the benefits should be allocated. The inevitable consequence has to be collapse

Go and talk to your local pharmacist.
Our pharmacy is linke dot our GP surgery, and the pharmacist is able to prescribe certain things. I am guessing that canestan woudl be one of them.

Get an appointment, talk to them and work out what you can get throught he pharmacist.

The only thing you need to buy to clear up thrush is greek yogurt and a syringe...

If it's a recurrent condition they might be able to prescribe without an appointment - but getting it checked out would be a good idea. In either event, YANBU. The system of free prescriptions needs reviewing. It should default to being payable, with an opt-in for free prescriptions based on lower income or being in receipt of means-tested benefits.

Just to add to the voices that say that recurring thrush NEEDS a GP to have a look.

YABU.

The rights and wrongs about the NHS is your choice but recurring thrush isn't something you should just put up with as if it were the common cold; it needs a GP to look at it and advise.

YANBU

if you’re having recurrent bouts of thrush then fair enough to get that investigated and a prescription.

If you were using it for paracetamol and antihistamine you can buy in the supermarket then you would BU.

You might find that it is "on the list" of things you are expected to buy over the counter.
I am entitled to free prescriptions, but after recent blood tests I was told that I needed iron supplements for around 6-9 months when I asked for a prescription I was told to buy it over the counter!

"don't see hoards of comfortable pensioners, pregnant women and parents clambering to pay for prescriptions that they are told they don't have to pay for, so why should this be any different?"
Really good point. I assume when the posters on this thread were pregnant they chose to pay for prescriptions?

And a pp is right, the word is" loath" meaning reluctant . Not on any way the same word as loath which means hatred.

The only thing you need to buy to clear up thrush is greek yogurt and a syringe

is this true???

"Comfortable pensioners" I am one and it took some persuading to get blumming aspirin dropped from my prescription because I said I would buy otc. In the end the pharmacist agreed to cross it off.

And then the consultant decided the aspirin wasn't needed after all.

anyone want to buy a pack of aspirin, hardly used, one careful owner......

Don't listen to this lot. They would do exactly as you are suggesting and they know it! Presumably you pay for the nhs, so why shouldnt you use it?

I'm far from a free loader. I would never ask for cold/flu treatment or paracetamol/ibuprofen on prescription. I'm paying a fee on a monthly basis and in the past year have paid around £600 on prescriptions, plus £10 sometimes £20 per month on thrush treatment. I'm sure there aren't too many on this thread spending this much on trying to get their body to function properly day to day? Now that I am paying for annual prescriptions, I would rather get Canesten on prescription as it's quite an expense for me.

Yes for some people OP, the live bacteria kind but not for everyone. Try it but you shoukd see your GP is reoccuring.

I would just buy stuff over the counter TBH.

Any financial saving needs to be balanced against the huge PITA of trying to get through to the surgery on the phone at 8am, making an convenient appt., and then hauling your carcass down to the surgery on time.

The word meaning hatred is 'loathe', not 'loath', if we're going to get all picky about it.

And it's clamour, not clamber, but I'm far too polite to point it out.

As for OP's dilemma - knock yourself out. This old biddie has private healthcare, thank god.