It's a bit late to tell me I should have been shielding!

[Toddlerteaplease]

Got a letter sent to shielding people with the new advice on it. Except I wasn't shielding as I never got the first letter and didn't think I was particularly high risk. (I have MS) I've worked as a nurse the whole way through. (With a risk assessment though) I think the horse has already bolted!

😂 I am terribly sorry OP but that made me laugh!
I mean I had some delayed post but three 3 months? 😂

I hope you are okay and feeling fine! 🤞💐

I laughed out loud when I read the letter.

Wow quite a big contrast when you have been working as a nurse. How do you feel? Relieved you haven't had to shield or annoyed you had to keep working when you maybe shouldn't have been?

Problem is, I never quite worked out how at risk I actually am. I did have treatment that makes me vulnerable. But it was over 3 years ago. Though still on monthly bloods. And the MS society has only mentioned if you've had it in the last 3 months.

To be honest, I think I would have kept working regardless. I work on a 'clean' ward. And I did get exposed to it by a patient who unexpectedly tested positive. And didn't catch it. So I don't really care, after that.

the problem is I think you need to tell work, and their risk assessment might change in light of the advice. they'd be in big trouble if you got it from the hospital if you're supposed to be shielding.

"they'd be in big trouble if you got it from the hospital if you're supposed to be shielding."
Not if she didnt tell them. What sort of big trouble do you think the hospital would be in?

OP sorry but I laughed too! I'm glad your still alive to get the letter. I have heard a story of the letter being sent to a person who has died from CV.. 2 months later.. so look on the bright side!

Good grief. My text (different condition) materialised after 7 weeks telling me I needed to shield and I thought that was slack. Yours is in a whole new league of hopeless. My GP said a whole set of people who needn’t shield were put on the list and another set who should be shielding were omitted. Yet one more thing this government have managed to mess up. I’m glad you have kept virus free but no thanks to them.

Are you in Wales by any chance? The letters were completely messed up here. I have lupus and fibromyalgia and didn’t get a letter. My friend with just fibromyalgia did. Same fibromyalgia meds as me.

It could be a clerical error- not everyone with MS was automatically advised to shield, think it depends on what medications people take, and other health factors.

Could well be an error. I didn’t get the original letter. But weeks later got a call asking how I was getting on with shielding. I said I wasn’t.
I called GP. I am more vulnerable than most but neither my asthma or the immunosuppressants I’m on are quite enough to mean I HAVE to shield.
Clear as mud.

My mum got told 2 weeks ago by the gp she should have been shielding. She has severe kidney failure.

Luckily for her as she is over 70 and had heart failure a few years ago, and we knew about her kidney problems we told her to shield anyway. We have delivered her shopping etc...... I worry that someone without family would have been missed and had to go out shopping etc..... the system has been very poor for who should shield.

I have MS too, I was told to shield a few weeks ago, we were doing it anyway 😂

Morning :-) I work in a GP surgery and often have to check patient's shielding status. It's actually a really strict criteria but basically immunosupressants (not all of them and some in certain doses only), severe respiratory illness, chemo, organ transplant, 20mg or more prednisone daily, bone/blood cancers are really the only indications for shielding. you can have cancer and only need to shield if actively on treatment. This is the neurology society advice on MS and shielding (it's quite wordy). Be aware there are a lot of scams and people sending out shielding letters that are not official (no idea why!?) So if you cannot your surgery they can look through your medication and tell you for certain but I suspect you're moderate risk not high risk (shielding) hope that helps? x
cdn.ymaws.com/www.theabn.org/resource/collection/6750BAE6-4CBC-4DDB-A684-116E03BFE634/ABN_Neurology_COVID-19_Guidance_22.3.20.pdf

I know someone else who has had the same thing, received a letter yesterday with updated information for people who are shielding but had never been told to shield in the first place.

Oh dear 🙈🙈 I know people who got letters to shield and then their gp rang and said it was a mistake and then a few weeks later gp rang again and said actually you need to shield 🤣🤣 in certain areas its been a bit of a cock up. I got my letter the very first day but I had been shielding myself anyone once I had heard that it was in the community. I know people with my condition then that were never told to shield at all.

@clairethewitch70 Can I ask what meds they are please? I’m in Wales and have fibromyalgia but no letter, just wondering if there are some more effective meds I could be taking. Thanks

Mrs McCarthys - Pregabalin & amitriplylline

I'm in Nottingham,
@KitKat2020, the treatment I had 3 years ago does something to my T cells and B cells, which is why I wasn't sure about the level of risk. Especially as Covid attacks the Y cells or something like that. But the only advice the MS Society we're giving was if you'd had it in the last 3 months. Despite there being loads of people asking the same questions as me.

I don't think I'd have shielded anyway to be honest. I live on my own. And there is absolutely no way I could have handled that level of isolation. And I love my job. I could have gone off if I'd wanted too but said no.

Mrs McCarthy, they are immunotherapy drugs. That re engineer the immune system. They are amazing! But unfortunately not available for fibro.

We’ve never had a letter 😏 DD is shielding after we phoned to check with one of her consultants.

I had similar. I was told by my consultant I should be shielding due to my immune suppressants, told by my GP I should shield due to my asthma. Have never had a letter or a text so phoned both, who reiterated I should be shielding. Consultant said the letters in Wales are an absolute mess and a lot of people haven't been contacted. So no idea really, luckily am at home anyway at the moment so have just followed the guidelines and not gone out.

I can't see why fibromyalgia needs to shield? Or am I missing something.

I got my letter 10 days ago. The one that was sent out to others around March/ early April.