To make an urgent gp appointment when the letter says non urgent ?

[Horsfordiansunite]

Have had almost a month and a half off work due to sickness. Yesterday
was my first day back. Without outing myself too much, I had potentially serious cardiac symptoms which warranted 2 visits to A/E. Although blood tests etc were all normal there was a minor issue with my ecg but a cardiologist subsequently told me that this was a variant on normal.
I'm a HCP with quite a bit of cardiology experience and a slightly concerned so ended up being referred to clinic. I was subsequently sent for a treadmill test and echo. The echo technician was very reassuring and said that it was entirely normal, indeed that I had a good heart for my age ! Today I received a letter from my gp requesting me to make a non urgent appointment to discuss the results within the next 2 or 3 weeks
I phoned gp to make one for the end of next week but am now feeling concerned that there is actually something possibly abnormal. Would I be wrong making an urgent appointment for tomorrow instead ? I did ask the receptionist whether the gp routinely sees patients even if the results are normal but she couldn't tell me.

If it was something urgent then they would phone you to come in. I wouldn't worry

If your GP specifically said to make a non-urgent appointment then there is unlikely to be any serious abnormality - especially if you were also told at the appointment that everything looked fine, and your previous bloods and ECG did not show anything worrying.

If you ask for an urgent appointment then you are potentially taking that appointment away from someone who needs it more - so yes, I would say YABU, sorry.

Do you have health anxiety?

Sounds as if you have health anxiety perhaps ?
From what you say the referral was more for your reassurance because you were anxious, and all your results so far have come back as normal.
In my experience GP's often want to go through results with you even if they are normal, and they wouldn't say something was non urgent if it was urgent - it would be completely unethical.

If you feel waiting until next week is too long, maybe you could phone and ask for a phone appointment meantime, so you can at least speak to the GP tomorrow and be reassured that all is OK.

Hope it goes well for you.

(I don't mean to sound unnkind with reference to health anxiety - not my intention, I worry about stuff too ! Just meant to say that your anxiety may be making you ignore all the indications that everything is normal)

Discussing the results doesn't mean they found anything. The GP might want to speak to you about other possible reasons for your symptoms or discuss where to go next, or just to see if you're still having problems, etc. I wouldn't think it's necessary for an urgent appointment when they've specifically made a point of saying to make a non-urgent one.

Thanks everyone no health anxiety but it just seemed unusual that they'd want to discuss the results rather than just send a letter saying all ok. Symptoms have all gone so I'll wait . Doc knew I was concerned so maybe it's just to reassure me

Yes - that's very likely - GP just wants to give you a chance to talk it through and ask any questions you might have, - hope all goes well and you are feeling better very soon

Thanks kurrikurri 👍

Cardiac medical secretary here (over 30 years' experience) - you had a normal resting ECG and a normal echo - Therefore, there is no reason to suspect there is anything wrong with your heart. If your treadmill test had been positive, they would not be regarding you as non-urgent.

Yup yabu...you don't need an urgent appointment so don't waste the appointment someone else does need

I wouldn’t be worried. A&E thought it was fine, you got a clinic appointment to put your mind at rest and they told you all great, and the letter says non urgent. I think it’s more likely that your GP is concerned about a long period of sick leave on top of this and wants to make sure you’re ok. I really wouldn’t give it any thought and I certainly wouldn’t ask for an urgent appointment.

No don't waste an urgent appointment, they are for genuine emergencies.

A bit off topic here, but even the receptionist at my GP doesn't know what "urgent" means. I had a couple of days in hospital last month and when I was discharged I was told to see my GP in a week for follow-up (I was on meds that needed reviewing). When I tried to make an appointment I was told the earliest available was in 3 weeks. When I explained it was for follow-up after hospital discharge the receptionist told me I should ring on the day and ask for an urgent appointment. Yet she wouldn't book me in for this "urgent" appointment 6 days in advance. It's hardly urgent if (1) I know 6 or 7 days in advance that I need to see the GP, and (2) it's not an emergency (and to be honest, if it was what I consider an emergency I certainly wouldn't be wanting to see a GP)

Hi, honestly don't worry. This all seems normal to me, I had a heart monitor and a letter through to make a non urgent appointment to discuss results, all was OK, but apparently they just like to see you to discuss the results I was told. The fact that your echo was all good is reassuring, I'm sure all will be fine.