Refused doctors appointment - so annoyed

[hopelessmeringue]

bit of a rant here but I could bloody scream.

The doctors surgery was closed most of last week and the previous week and were only seeing emergency appointments due to sickness. I phoned on Wednesday and Thursday at 8.30 and all the appointments were gone. Asked if I could book in advance but no that’s not possible, it’s only on the day and there’s no advance booking. Phoned on friday and there were appointments but the receptionist said she will pass along my information to the doctor and they will just send a prescription to the chemist. I said I really would prefer to have an appointment instead, and that I don’t mind if it’s with the paramedic, nurse, doctor etc but they said no that’s not possible because it’s a problem I’ve had for years so they can treat me without seeing or speaking to me. It’s a pre existing condition that has been at bay for the last few years and now is starting again, so I would like an appointment rather than just a prescription of something I had 3 years ago. She completely refused to make me an appointment and said the doctor will send a prescription straight to the pharmacy. Unfortunately with Christmas etc, I won’t actually get the prescription now until it reopens after Christmas as the pharmacy don’t even have it yet and it usually takes 2-3 days for them to receive it from the doctor, then 3-4 days for them to make and check it. I asked if I could collect a paper copy for the chemist myself but that’s not possible either. Eventually she just hung up and I tried to phone back to speak to someone else and couldn’t get through. I tried to phone again today to check it’s gone to the chemist and also to ask again to see someone but still haven’t got through.

AIBU to be frustrated by this? I’ve taken the last week off work to try and get an appointment and I don’t have any more leave now until April. I genuinely have no idea what to do! I know I’ll get the prescription at the chemist after Christmas but it’s a condition that hasn’t always been easy to control and I wanted to actually speak to someone about it as it’s been at bay for a few years and now it’s starting again. And if it doesn’t work and i do end up needing an appointment it’s going to be a nightmare getting it off work- I’ll have to start the calling on the day thing all over again and it could take days to actually get through and get one.

I could bloody scream

But the point is, I should have got one of the appointments when I phoned up and they were still available. I asked and was told no because they could just send a prescription straight to the chemist for me instead. But I wanted an appointment and explained why.

don’t bother questioning my timings, just read my OP properly or don’t comment. I spoke on Friday and was told the prescription would be sent to the chemist. They have received nothing. It’s not unusual for it to take 3 days or so to actually make it to the pharmacy. I’ve had prescriptions before. That is apparently normal for the surgery and according to the chemist it is. And then the pharmacy, as I’ve previously commented, have a timescale for when prescriptions will be ready to collect after they receive it. Tuesday is ready to collect on Monday (it would have been Sunday, but obviously they don’t open on sundays) but they won’t be open on Monday anyway because it’s Boxing Day. Revolutionary idea but not all practices work as efficiently as yours must do if you find this so hard to believe.

I think I’m at the stage where it will be harder not to cry! Lol.

I didn’t realise that was a service! I will definitely ask for that when I’m able to get through. I asked for a paper copy but they said no as it wouldn’t be ready instantly and they had to speak to the doctor and so on, but a text would still give them time to do that. Cheers for the idea!

I think there is a big disparity between how well practices are managing, and like a PP, I'd ask amongst your friends/neighbours for a recommendation and choose a different practice.

As an example:

Last Monday morning my DD(6) had scarlet fever symptoms. At my surgery you have to ring at 8am for a same day appointment. They then hold your place in the queue and the system calls you back when you get to the front. Triage (a GP) called me back about 8.35am, and they told me they wanted to see DD that day, appointment for 11.15am, out of there with a prescription, was home by noon. DD stayed off school the next day while the AB's kicked in, was in school feeling fine by Wednesday.

In contrast, another girl in my DD's class also came down with it, their mum also called their doctor at 8am on Monday, but at her surgery you have to keep dialing again and again, she rang over 100 times, by the time she got through they said no appointments left, ring on the Tuesday. Tuesday morning exactly the same thing happened, ring on Wednesday. By Wednesday, when my DD was back at school, the same thing happened again. Told to try Thursday morning. They then paid for a private GP appointment at 6pm that day in a city an hours drive away. Started taking the AB's late on Wednesday night, their child missed Thurs and Fri off school, which included the nativity, Christmas carol concert and Christmas Lunch with Santa visit. Their mum missed a week of work.

We live about 5 mins drive from each other, both DD's are in the same school class, both doc surgeries is the same small town. It is ridiculous there should be such a difference.

Me neither and I can't understand why this isn't routine now!! It saved so much faffing about. Contrast this with yesterday when I had to go and pick up a repeat prescription for my son. Text to say it had been issued by the GP 'just this once' but that he must have a medication review before the next time (how? No routine appointments have been available for weeks) and that it had been sent to the pharmacy next door.

Go to that pharmacy. Queue for 35 mins to get in. Get to front and they look for paper prescription. 20 mins of thumbing though huge piles of paper prescriptions in about 15 different plastic baskets. Can't find it. Eventually check online system. Ahh, GP has issued it to a different pharmacy, the one closest to where we live.

Go to that pharmacy. Smaller queue of about 10 minutes. Give name and DOB of my son. 15 mins of thumbing through paper prescriptions in 5 or 6 different baskets. No we haven't got it. Yes you definitely have as other pharmacy could see on the computer it's been sent here. Slow trudge round the back. Comes back with a pile of another 10 or so plastic baskets. Another 10 minutes of thumbing through. No, we haven't got it. Eventually persuaded the guy to check the online system. Can't find son. Asks for his NHS number that luckily I have. Find son on computer and can see prescription has been issued electronically. Gives me the medication.

Took more that an hour to collect prescription and 4 members of pharmacy staff manually looking through piles of paper prescriptions. Such an inefficient system!! If they all just looked online first it would have taken 10 minutes.

Yeah I think you’re right- everyone’s GP and pharmacy works differently and it’s different for everyone!

I rushed out of work yesterday and today to check if the pharmacy have received it and they still haven’t got anything. I called the surgery multiple times and can’t get through and when I have been able to get out of work (lunch hour) the GP had been closed for lunch so I can’t go down in person either, but there’s no voicemail system so I can’t even leave a message. The phone is just always busy. Im so frustrated and it’s looking less and less likely that I’ll be able to get this medication before Christmas. I don’t know if the issue RE the missing prescription lies with the pharmacy or the GP- the pharmacy have nothing on their system on their end so I think it’s on the GP end, but I can’t get through to them at all to even find out! Absolutely hopeless situation.

I suppose it would come down to how many GP appointments you've had in, say, the last five years.

I've had zero in 7 years, so I would then find it frustrating to be refused since I obviously am mindful of resources.

A lot of people well enough to have holidays etc have a lot of unnecessary GP appointments.

I'm guessing you don't vote Tory. Because if you did YABVU.

Move surgeries that sounds ridiculous

sorry but Im going to disagree with you there.

I hardly go to the doctors. I have a chronic condition that gets worse and better on and off so when it’s worse I have to go more regularly than others. But I hardly go, I can count on one hand how many times in the last 5 years.

However, I know someone who is seen by their GP very regularly. They have a multitude of serious illnesses which need careful balancing and unfortunately they are regularly unwell. People who have to see their GP regularly deserve just as much help as I or anyone else does. It’s not about being mindful of resources, they’re unwell. Just because I go to the doctors less than them doesn’t make me more mindful of resources, it just makes me less sick than them.

I also have no idea what you’re talking about RE the holiday comment

Have you tried contacting your GP via the NHS app? I've given up trying to get through via phone. Whenever I use the App I always get a response, either from a GP or a nurse.

No I haven’t tried I hadn’t heard of that, TY for letting me know! I’ll search it right now and try and put a request through via that.

I think it depends what it's for. If the surgery has been closed due to staff illness she might have been told to only accept appointments for x,y and z reasons

Could you go to a walk in? I was at ours with ds on Monday. 4.5 wait but was handed the antibiotics he needed before we left

The collection times are for repeats they ordered not first prescriptions, took about 5 mins to arrive last night

My only thoughts is that the Dr knows your condition so is making a judgement on how quickly it needs to be dealt with.

Can you say what the condition is?

I think it completely depends on whwt the condition actually is.

Brittle asthma, Crohn's, or an MS or genital herpes flare?. Definitely not ok to be held off till after Christmas.

Thrush, minor pain or mild eczema... Get yourself some canesten/ ibuprofen/ diprobase and you'll be alright for a few days.

2-3 days to send a prescription sounds bonkers but if this is a tiny surgery with limited admin staff that might be why.

I've never, ever had a surgery where you can't collect repeat prescriptions in hard copy, within 48 hours, though.

How do you do that? When I go on the app there are no options to send any messages to the GP and no appointments either

Me and dad have had texts this week our doctors is so overwhelmed with winter sickness that appointments are phone on the day only and only for emergencies, routine appointments and all other functions including their online requests are completely closed for the foreseeable.

You took a week off work just to try and get a doctors appointment? Prescriptions usually go through to chemists in under an hour now and I don’t know what you mean by them taking 3-4 days to check it and make it up.

NHS is undoubtedly shit but your story doesn’t make sense

Yeah, because we don’t all work in jobs that allow us to spend all day calling 200+ times to try and get through. So I had to take a day off, and another and another and so on to try and get an appointment. Maybe if you read the full thread before commenting it will make a bit more sense to you. I know it’s a revolutionary concept for some people to get their head around but not everyone’s doctor and pharmacy is the same.

i can’t find it either unfortunately. I will look again tomorrow though in case I’ve missed it but I can’t even get access to the app! Not sure if it’s a UK wide thing or maybe just available in certain parts of the UK?

But you didn’t have to phone 200 times. You said you got through at 8:30 on all three days you tried.

the NHS is on its knees. It’s non functioning. But the story still doesn’t add up!

That's a bizarre attitude

If I need another appointment because I need rescue steroids for my asthma, I shouldn't be considered unnecessary just because I also manage to go on holiday at other times when my asthma is fine

The one time I avoided going to the GP because I didn't want to bother them I ended up in A&E, on 2 lots of antibiotics, 2 rounds of steroids, a few chest x rays etc. I costed the NHS a whole lot more money. I learnt my lesson and phone the GP as and when I need it now

Luckily my GPs (which also sound way better than the OPs, sorry OP!) don't consider me to be mindlessly using resources for my medical conditioning that would be life threatening if left untreated

I would honestly change surgery if you have the option

I struggled on with a rubbish surgery for several years because I just assumed it was because the NHS is underfunded. And it might be partly due to that but it was also poorly run

My new surgery is excellent, I phoned up on Monday for steroids, was offered the option of a face to face if I wanted one or a prescription over the phone, and I collected the tablets by 6pm that evening. and then I had a text today checking they were working to make sure I wasn't left over the holiday period with symptoms that weren't clearing.

If you have any other options nearby see if you can ask around and find out if they are any good

Yes, as I said in my OP, I started phoning at 8.30 when it opened. I didn’t get through straight away but that’s when I started. I eventually got through, but it took 200+ calls to do that.

it was clear enough to everyone else so I couldn’t give a fuck if it’s not clear to you, if you don’t believe me just leave the thread 🤷🏻‍♀️

That sounds so frightening, I hope you’re feeling a lot better now!