How many people have been failed by the NHS during lockdown?

[Polnm]

My DH has cancer.

His appointment in April was by phone
His appointment in August was postponed until October

How is this acceptable? Hospitals are empty whilst patients can’t access care.

GP appointments by zoom with a 2 week wait for a basic blood pressure check in person or to take bloods

Why isn’t there more publicity and outrage about this?

We can’t be the only family going through this surely?

@Iminaglasscaseofemotion

I don't know anyone who has been hospitalised with covid, infact I don't personally know anyone who has had covid in this are (obviously there will be some) and today we are going to the funeral of a man who could have survived with treatment. I know people who work in the hospital here and according to them it has been pretty empty throughout this whole thing.

Yes, North Yorks here - No cases in my area for 35 days according to the NHS - 15 people dead in the local hospital in total apparently too, but still everything is shut. It's going to be a long, hard winter with lots more dying of preventable illnesses and poverty I think before we get a vaccine. Horrible, horrible times.

Not as bad as a lot of you have suffered but my little girl has ongoing ear problems and the doctor won't even see her ☹️
They just keep giving her antibiotics which are making her feel quite sick ☹️
Surely a new symptom of bleeding from the ear needs looking into not just presumed as another infection that as never presented this way before 🤔
And to top
It off the doctor I spoke to on the phone said you must know which antibiotics works better for her by now so which would would YOU like me to prescribe 😳

This thread is really putting things in perspective for me. I'm 36 weeks pregnant - I completely understood partners not accompanying pregnant women to hospital for appointments/scans etc but I have been moaning to family about the waiting lists for csections and how unhappy I am that my appointment is constantly being pushed back - I'm high risk for a few reasons and on insulin for GD so guidelines are that I am 'supposed' to deliver at 37-38 weeks but they are gridlocked with sections so I am being pushed back to 39 weeks. My sister had a similar situation a few years ago and her baby was stillborn so I have some anxiety about being pushed back and the greater risk of stillbirth.

But this thread has really made me realise how selfish I am being. At the end of the day, they are going to get the baby out. They can't put births off for months so it is causing us some 'inconvenience' and worry in the short term but that is nothing compared to what many of you are going through right now. I'm so sorry to read some of these posts and shall keep my big mouth shut and appreciate all the care that I am receiving.

This makes me so sad 😞 I’m so sorry for all your troubles, every single poster who’s having a rough time. It breaks my heart that people aren’t getting the care they need and the care that should never have been restricted in the way it has been in some areas.
This thread has actually been somewhat of an eye opener for me as, while I was aware things varied trust to trust, this simply isn’t what I’ve been seeing. I work for a GP surgery, and while we’re not perfect, compared to some stories on here, we aren’t doing too badly at all. Face to face appointments are being made when needed, blood tests, routine or otherwise, can generally be done in a couple of days with results back very fast, specialist referrals are (mostly) being accepted and appointments scheduled, within reasonable timeframes, we’ve got physios working face to face in the centre, scans are being carried out and smears/mammograms are being offered again... It paints a very different story, for sure.

I mean, we still get shouted at that patients aren’t being allowed to arrive early for an appointment, and that ear syringing isn’t being done, but you can’t please all the people all the time!

If private hospitals aren't up and running either (as that's their source of income) that suggests that the risks to staff are still too high in terms of social distancing etc for them to feel it is worth it. Covid is low now, including in hospitals, but it does spread super-quickly in enclosed environments, so I can understand why there is some caution, especially after the care home debacle.

And yet schools are opening up in full with no social distancing.

The cynic in me wonders if the Tories are quietly letting the NHS fail.

@Polnm

Valleydad99

Have you emailed your MP? Whilst I find them generally useless they can sometimes get action taken with healthcare delays

You can just accept it.
Have you been to a&e? If you choose a hospital with a testicular cancer programme and go midweek you might be lucky and they will call a specialist down

Don't pin your hopes on A&E, DP went, he was so yellow from jaundice that he was glowing in the dark. A&E sent him away back to his GP, the receptionist at the GP told him his case wasn't urgent and he would have to wait until the Friday to speak to a doctor (this was on a Tuesday).

@tinseltitsandlittlegits with bleeding from the ear, I would take her to A&E. That's very concerning.

And when his blood tests came back at 435 for bilirubin and 588 for the cancer marker for pancreatic cancer the GP just referred him for a routine ultrasound.

Went to Doctor's to be told "it's probably cancer and you need a scan to check it but urology's closed due to covid, so you'll have to wait". That was in April, I'm now having all the classic symptoms of testicular cancer and urology is still shut, so my choices as I see them are - Die, get better, or remove my own testicles just in case and die of an infection

There are quite a few things you can do if you want to be an irritant in the side of the NHS. If you sit and wait for them to call you, they often won't.

I would- go to urology/oncology in person and ask to speak to the secretary in charge of appointments, or call this secretary- look up the consultant to whom you were referred/or dept' and phone this secretary and say you will take any appointment, any cancellation, anything if you can be seen.

Also, go back to the GP (a different GP) and explain the situation and ask for an urgent 2 week referral, then chase them by phoning the surgery every few days to ask about the referral and the scan (as the scan could be done even if an appointment was not certain).

Private- I get it costs money, one thing you can do though is pay for the initial scan, and then they will refer you back into the NHS system, you don't have to do either/or, I would have that initial scan (borrow, ask relatives, crowd-fund, anything to get that initial one done, I would lend £500 to a friend for this) as then you know what you are dealing with- there are lots of causes of large testicular lumps and many are not cancer, so it would at least give you the answer of whether this needs immediate attention.

Finally, I agree with those who say go to your MP and get through the system that way.

The squeaky wheel gets the most attention in the NHS sadly- and some of this stuff couldn't be done during lockdown, but now services are slowly up and running and you might have to be very persistent to get attention.

@niki26

But this thread has really made me realise how selfish I am being

You aren’t being selfish at all, you want to protect your baby that isn’t selfish, that’s love.

Valleydad99

You must go to a&e
I met a litbop people with cancer last year. A few had been diagnosed by going to a&e either became they couldn’t get a Gp appointment, the referral time was too long or in 1 case because their frustrated GP find them to go to a&e and stay there until someone called a specialist (the GP told them which a&e to go to in which day as he knew the right specialist was there that day)

I think the death toll from lockdown will go on climbing, one estimate puts it at 200,000 in the long term. outline.com/uSC5hW
There is already an increase in suicides, people with heart issues, cancer symptoms and strokes are still terrified of going to hospital and cancer treatments are delayed.
This doesn’t even attempt to quantify the number of mental health issues which will come to fore in children who have not been allowed out for months and are still being more or less confined.

Not all cancer treatment has stopped, I think surgery is the main problem. Radiotherapy is still going ahead. Departments working full days treating patients

I was diagnosed with a progressive condition just before Lockdown and referred for an urgent operation. The operation hasn't happened yet and now I'm at risk of losing a limb.

My employer (also nhs) is annoyed that I've been off sick for so long because I can't do my job, and now due to the additional problems I'm not sure I ever will be able to. My wages have reduced due to sick pay. I'm also having difficulty getting painkillers to manage the constant pain I'm now in.

@Polnm

Valleydad99

You must go to a&e
I met a litbop people with cancer last year. A few had been diagnosed by going to a&e either became they couldn’t get a Gp appointment, the referral time was too long or in 1 case because their frustrated GP find them to go to a&e and stay there until someone called a specialist (the GP told them which a&e to go to in which day as he knew the right specialist was there that day)

I hadn't considered that honestly. At this point I just feel powerless so am ranting at the cancer research ad that tells me I should go to the GP even during covid if I have symptoms.

I tried my MP - he is useless and just spent his reply ranting at the government and basically saying he's powerless to do anything except open fetes (massive Labour area here and he has a +20k majority but god knows why, presumably his PR is good - I'm a Green voter before I get labelled blue too btw).

I understood at the height of the epidemic but cannot understand why Covid trumps everything

Even on here some people want everything to stay near lock down until covid cases are zero - madness and totally ignores the fact that people are dying from other things and in increasing numbers which will surpass covid deaths. I don't recall who said it but a leading health professional spoke of concerns of the vast numbers of people who will die not from covid but due to lock down

yup, I am still doing my own B12 injections with syringes I had to order from the internet. GP surgery were no help whatsoever. DH is awaiting an appointment about his eyes but that is on hold still.

Valleydad99

I think if you tell them you are considering amputation of your own testicle they will take action in a&e

A&e is also very quiet here.

This hasn't been my experience at all, my smear went ahead as scheduled, my grandads cancer treatment too. i have supported people at work through appointments and the 2 week wait appointments have been running as normal.

It seems so unfair that its a postcode lottery. I understand some treatments being stopped as they increase the risk of serious COVID complications, but in our area, even those are starting back up again.

@Polnm

Valleydad99

I think if you tell them you are considering amputation of your own testicle they will take action in a&e

A&e is also very quiet here.

That is a very good point. Either that or section me for threatening to harm myself.

Either way I'll probably get seen by a different doctor.

I think I'll head down there later and see what they say. Thank you for the advice - I can't see further than my own nose sometimes.

@Polnm

Valleydad99

I think if you tell them you are considering amputation of your own testicle they will take action in a&e

A&e is also very quiet here.

Unfortunately our A&E is now very busy, back to pre-covid times, especially on the weekends.

' if private hospitals aren't up and running either (as that's their source of income) that suggests that the risks to staff are still too high '

They are! Using ppe just like the NHS. Private hospitals like the NHS doing extra lists all to address the backlog.

Again, sorry to anyone waiting for routine treatment but the fact is hospitals, like care homes were where the risk was highest. Now normal service is slowly resuming but fgs give it chance.

The pp with a lump, see another gp and report previous gp for negligence. No gp would send someone away with a new testicular lump, they would get an urgent referral.

Even on here some people want everything to stay near lock down until covid cases are zero - madness

Oh there are loads like this. We should all be locked down again, but harder this time, screaming about a second wave, which in reality I think they want it. They quote facts and figures that are complete bullshit. Have a friend or a friend of a friend who is either a respected epidemiologist or high up in dealing with this. It's all crap and they make themselves look like twats.

The reality is, if and when they face a real problem, such as redundancy or a serious health problem, they will then start singing a different song and grow up.

It's truly awful what is going on with NHS care. We can get facials and manicures but not medical treatment, it's a joke.

I need b12 injections so not an overly serious condition but I feel awful without it. Knew I wouldn't get it during lockdown but has things have opened up, such a beauty sector/bars etc....I assumed healthcare would be re

Oops hit post too soon 🤦🏼‍♀️

I assumed healthcare would be reinstated, but nope!!!

It's resulted in my Drs surgery giving me the b12 vile and needle needed and suggesting I find someone trained in administering injections. We do know a nurse who is willing to give it to me outside, but then I thought last night how will we dispose of the needle safely with no sharps box etc???

To think that this is happening with even more serious and urgent medical care is truly terrifying, when every other part of the country appears to have reopened!