To wonder what my GP Surgery is actually doing?

[bloodymosquito]

Since Covid my surgery has been very evasive about booking appointments, but now they say they will only talk to emergencies. Isn't that what A&E is for? I have a very ill family member with cancer and needs help but apparently it isn't classed as an emergency

Missing point of thread and tone deaf to OP’s very real concerns.

So who "told" you all that then?

OP I'm sorry you're going through this. I'd contact the Practice Manager as suggested.

That's appalling.

My Mum’s GP refused to see her and would only do phone consultations. He repeatedly told her that the pain in her chest was a pulled muscle. Then he thought it might be pleurisy, so gave her steroids. Still no better, she was permanently short of breath. Then she had a minor stroke, was admitted to hospital, diagnosed with terminal lung cancer and died a few weeks later. I don’t think the outcome would have been any different, but she could have had better pain management (she only had paracetamol) and treatment might have given her better quality of life for her last 12-18 months.

@imadeitnice it's the nurses next

As a specialist palliative care nurse- I can assure you if you are facing existential struggles and need support to work through advanced care planning and preferred place of care, symptom control etc. hospice care is completely appropriate.

Can you refer to Macmillan nurses, or a local hospice for care? My grandad accessed both and the local hospice nurses and medical staff were amazing and would visit him at home.

I'm just saying that the part time ones don't seem stressed or over worked. Which is fine. But harder for patients to know when they are in or on leave.

I'm a GP and I hate the many doctor-bashing threads on here, but OP the service you're getting is completely inadequate. They should not be only offering appointments for emergencies.

But is it definitely an ongoing thing, or just a temporary Christmas/New Year/bank holiday thing? We've had 3 doctors off sick with Covid in the past week, as well as some having annual leave, and of course the 3 bank holidays. So we've had to limit appointments to urgent only, until things are more normal in a week's time.

If your surgery is doing urgent-only appointments as a permanent thing, then that is totally wrong. I would ask to speak to the practice manager.

So who "told" you this information you claim you have?

I've seen one GP 3 times in the last 3 months and before every follow up I was told she was on leave for 2 weeks.
And it took much longer for me to sort my issue and wasted time.

If, even by your own admission, an inadequate service is being provided, how would you like people to respond if not with "bashing". A less loaded term might be "criticising".

@Hourbyehours Must be different for your hospice. We were told all local hospices had strict criteria my my mum did not meet so they could not help. Only Maggies and the hospital helped until she died of cancer.

Hm, well definitely one way to look at it. Doesn't help OP get helpnnor females in the medical profession. Apparently, a job, which can only be done if you wish to work fulltime.

A temporary very limited service which @Sarahcoggles has explained, while agreeing that the OP should be getting better service for her dad.

OP is not clear if her DH still has cancer. You need to contact Pals and get clarity about the current situation.

OP, have you had any contact with your local Macmillan nursing team? It may be worth getting in touch for both support and advice on GP access. Alternatively, the district nursing team could possibly act as a bridge between you and the practice to negotiate a care package.
Ultimately though, if you don’t get anywhere, yes, report the surgery to your local health authority.
My husband’s a GP who never stopped seeing patients in person when necessary throughout the pandemic. This shouldn’t be happening to you.

You have full sympathies OP

We had problems when my FiL was dying of cancer. In that case the GP was helpful as far as they could be. Whilst others may have positive experience of McMillan nurses, we found that really she brought nothing to the table. We took turns to feed, clean, change bedsheets etc but it was exhausting.

When we called our local Marie Curie hospice it turns out that they’re not for end of life care. They see themselves as pain specialists etc so you go in for two weeks to manage pain then go home… it’s dire for the terminally I’ll in this country.

If they can’t keep anything down, then they may need a drip to prevent dehydration. That requires a hospital. You could ask the GP to do a house visit for a patient review. Insist on it. As others say, speak to the practice manager. You could try McMillan you might get better service than us.

You know the NHS is collapsing when things like this happen.
That is a terrible service and I am so happy that I haven't got that issue.
Is it not against the law for them to operate as such.
I hope you get help soon

General Practitioners don’t seem to be doing more than telephone appointments nowadays… but I’m not sure what you expect a GP to do in this scenario… maybe he will have to just have soup if he can handle liquids? can Macmillan advise?

OP if you can’t get anywhere with the surgery, phone 111

Let's be honest it's quite helpful for some people to work full time.

Absolutely not tone deaf at all. I didn't write bashing GPs, Aquarius did. I just replied to the comment. I'm actually livid you wrote that. I sympathise greatly and don't have any useful suggestions on how to help. It's appalling the problems people are having accessing healthcare at the moment. I really hope OP gets some resolution and the help her family needs.

Just wanted to add my support OP. Ignore the nuisance posts accusing you of bashing. You have legitimate concerns about your dad’s welfare.

Yes, this; same here, OP.

It's immensely unkind and unhelpful to accuse somebody of 'bashing' a profession when they are desperately needing essential services ASAP and the very place that is explicitly there to provide them is point-blank refusing to do so.

Yes, there are discussions to be had about all kinds of aspects of GP surgery employees and their place and expected workload within the NHS; but kicking ordinary vulnerable patients is not the solution.

Our GP surgery seems to have been on strike (or at least a deliberate go-slow) ever since Covid. They're happy contacting patients demanding routine checkup appointments to be made before they will issue mundane repeat prescriptions - I don't know whether they have boxes to tick or they have special incentives to do this; but when it comes to the patients contacting them about a new concerning issue, they seem to want to do anything other than help.

Not GP bashing at all; just concerned for the patients and also for their colleagues in A&E who are getting a huge load of the GPs' workload forced on to them as well as their own. And it's no use urging/guilting people not to go to A&E with important things that are not emergencies if they are given no other choice; most of us simply cannot afford to go private.

If your father is under palliative there should be no problem seeing it speaking to a GP... request if they have a duty Dr or triage Dr on shift it's not a routine appointment
My surgery is struggling beyond belief trying to manage expectations however palliative patients are always given help quite timely.
I hope he gets help soon xx