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

Oh wow sounds serious.
Do you remember how long your appointment was ? I heard they are now 15 mins.

@Aquarius1234 My appointment was around 10 minutes long, but only because I had the prescription in my hand and there was nothing more to say. It could have been longer if necessary but I said I wanted to get straight to the chemist for my prescription.

The GP wanted to send me to hospital as I've got asthma and my breathing was terrible, but I wanted to try meds at home first which thankfully are working x

Anyone having issues like this, contact your MP each and every time. They need to hear everyone’s dissatisfaction of an appalling service.

I would look on the website of the GP surgery for an econsult link for that specific surgery and complete that so it is in writing how concerned you are for your father. Explain how long he has been unable to eat and his current symptoms eg pain, whether he is passing urine, if he has any issues with his bowels/continence, if his mobility has declined, any new confusion/mood changes. I would also ring to follow up once the econsult has been sent and explain to the reception staff that this is an urgent matter as he is unable to eat. Is he able to keep medications down?

I would ask for him to be referred to the district nursing team that covers his GP practice. When I worked as a district nurse we would keep in regular contact with palliative patients and liaise with the GP if that patient was deteriorating.

But you weren't asking how to get the help, you asked "To wonder what my GPs surgery is actually doing?"...... That implies negative connotations, hence it coming across as yet another thread of GP bashing. You're cheesed off (totally understandably) with your Father not being able to access the care he needs, but every single healthcare and NHS worker in the UK is no doubt sick to the back teeth of people assuming or implying they're not doing their utmost. Its like people think we're running late on purpose, or don't have enough clinic slots because we can't be bothered filling them all, or because they'd rather spend time knitting at our desks or doing crosswords rather than actually seeing sick people. There's simply too many poorly people and not enough staff and time. The phrasing of your opening post title, although mild, is just another kick in the teeth off a society who just don't have a clue how horrid it is to not be able to provide the care we want to. We're so demoralised that we read posts like yours and just take another big sigh, and feel one step closer to jacking it all in and working in a warehouse or as a cleaner or any job where people seem to think we're sat in the staff room watching Countdown rather than actually answering the phones and dealing with Patients.

I run a GP surgery.
It is hell at the mo due to unprecedented demand from Group A Strep/scarlet fever cases. Literally 50+ young children req treatment daily and we still have staff getting Covid.
THAT SAID, our triage priority is children, palliative, District nurses and paramedics; even when we are overrun we would not turn away a palliative patient.
It is possible a receptionist did not understand the priority - best to call practice manager. Hope you get help needed.

P.s. for those just generally stating tosh about GPs, those I work with don't do less than 12 hour days and work the admin on days off- a 3 day GP is full time and more. By all means speak to the manager but please think about impact of submitting a complaint about lack of appointments to the practice as this stops the staff providing care. Formal complaints where having enough GPs is the answer are not effective use of time -we can't change this. Complain to the Health Minister about lack of trained GPs as only the Govt can change this.

So true Farmgirl. I’ve just seen that yes the name of the thread is unfortunately negative and bashful, but a totally appropriate request for help.

@Musicaltheatremum so am I and I'm not a GP. However my quasi public sector organisation had hundreds of staff at risk if redundancy this year. I'm not persuaded staff in the NHS are under those pressures or are facing such potential insecurity.

Elsewhere, flexible working is granted if it can be supported operationally. Clearly that is not the case in GP. Practices. Principally because they are self employed and were given very favourable contracts by Blair.

We, the scummy public, shut down for the NHS. Regrettably the NHS hasn't opened for us. My GP surgery has been heavily involved in the vaccination roll-out for which they have been paid handsomely.

GP's in my opinion need to sort out their admin, prescribe sensibly rather than every 56 days for standard drugs unchanged for 30 years, etc. In the last six months DH and I have been asked to take our blood pressure and send in the readings, never happened before, have been sent poo tests, I've been called for a smear. All things GPs get paid for if they hit their quotas. In the spring I had a lesion - sorting it on the NHS was a shambles. In no other sector would professionals get away with providing such inefficient standards of service.

However I digress.

@bloodymosquito I suggest you try to call tomorrow. If you get no joy, I suggest you wrote a measured email noting the failures of your local health economy's care in relation to your father's care. You should send this to your local MP and copy to the CCG (or whatever they are now called) and yiur local Healthwatch. You should print a copy and hand deliver it to your GP. If they are like mine there probably isn't a direct email address available. Email provides an audit trail.

Honestly I am sure your MP will intervene swiftly.

I hope your father gets the care he has worked and contributed to receive quickly and clarity is provided.

It is an absolute disgrace.

Because an admin person is not qualified or permitted to give a medical opinion.
The hospitals do not accept referrals from admin staff. 3rd parties want doctors to respond.
If people stopped asking for copies of their medical records for at least 6 months it would help - these take HOURS to complete by Admin and GP who have to go through the record and sign it off- and we must use NHS time to provide this service and we can't charge for it. This literally costs to provide in GP time. A recent one took 17 hours to complete.

You'd almost believe this Tory government has manufactured the collapse of the NHS to line the pockets of their chums/cronies.

Covid - money being spent hand over fist for substandard equipment provided by Lords'n'Ladies and now we're spending £bn in storing these substandard items whilst the cost of this is classed as NHS expenditure.

Brexit - let's banish trained/qualified workers by telling them they're no longer welcome and simultaneously refusing to train replacements.

Strep A - nicely fed to their tame media as a 'crisis' ensuring parents would panic (unnecessarily mostly) overwhelm GPs/A&E/PaedA&E and demand, threaten and bully HCPs into providing antibiotics creating a shortage for those who actually need them.

Strikes - staff on their knees, burnt out, demoralised not even being given the basic courtesy of discussions. Pass the blame to the workers, not the govt.

We're being played like a fiddle, in real time, by these charlatans.

This!

@Tistheseason17 but you can't blame people for asking. I had a biopsy in the summer. No results within the time Inwas told they would be ready. Batted from local hospital to GP waiting time.

Eventually I found out the day hospital had had the results for nearly a week. When I consented it was on the basis that I would be sent a copy of the results. I was advised by an administrator that I could only receive the results at at appointment with the consultant because I needed a treatment plan to be put in place. There was zero cognizance of the worry that caused. I called back and spoke to a "manager" who told me I couldn't have the report because reports were complicated and patients didn't understand them. Eventually a director faxed me the report.

Key sentence "no evidence of any malignancy was present". The cause of the lesion was unclear but nothing further was required. Yet it was considered appropriate to waste a slot, in short supply, with a consultant dermatologist.

I am sorry you feel time is wasted over requests for records but I suspect it is because trust had been completely lost due to experiences such as the above.

They are doing regular appointments. My understanding is that they are doing more consultations than ever, even if many are phone ones. I think the workload has simply increased and of course it means some patuebts' needs aren't able to be met.

I really hate to think what’s happening to people that have nobody to advocate for them, I suspect many people are dying alone and in pain and fear. I suspect those aren’t statistics that will be available.

While I don’t blame NHS employees or GPs, I think how I used to be worried when visiting countries with only basic healthcare systems, incase I or a fellow travelers became ill. Now I think we’re one of those countries, and in some cases, worse.

I hope you’re able to get help for your dad, OP, and I’m really sorry a hard time is being made exponentially worse. It’s really sad now, that being ill is perhaps the smaller part of the trauma, and that the, at least, or greater part of the trauma is over provision of care. It’s inhumane.

Absolutely this. Mine is normally pretty good. I've seen them face to face, spoken on the phone and done econsults for various urgent and routine things. I'm getting letters for routine checks e.g. asthma clinic smear test etc.

Since last week they are only seeing urgent cases only. They currently have huge demand because of winter respiratory problems and huge problems with staff sickness.

By all means complain to your MP, but not about your surgery. Ask what on earth the government have been doing given they have known this winter was going to cause these issues since the summer and have done fuck all about preparing for it. There is not much GPs can do. if the resources aren't there they aren't there.

Doent he have a CNS? An out of hours number to call the cancer assessment unit? His oncology team should be providing care, not the go unless he has been discharged to the GP.

Sadly I think that's spot on.

@WeBuiltThisBuffetOnSausageRoll So sad and so true. My parents didn’t want me to get involved. Eventually I did, and I got immediate responses, I think because I put everything in writing. It was too late to help my dad, but I learned a lot. You will not get help unless you - politely - make a fuss and keep a paper trail.

The system that I have experienced is on its knees. I don’t think people have any idea how bad it is until they need it. Though it varies from place to place.

I would also add that it was the GP who came out to my dad in the last few weeks and dispensed pain relief (eventually).

Macmillan were of no help whatsoever. A huge disappointment and I question their actual purpose.

@WavingCatpaw so true. I can’t begin to imagine the (lack of) level of care those on their own without family or friends to advocate for them experience.

Maybe they’re genuine questions. My surgery has never returned to anything like normal since Covid.

@ILoveeCakes im in hospital at the moment. I’ve had my life saved over the last three weeks.

I can confirm that:

1. the nhs are indeed working extremely hard doing an incredible job with fuck all respurces
2. the government continues to press on with its privatisation agenda. This hospital is currently building its new wing. Al all new beds are in single rooms, which will be available privately, for a few. This turning the nhs into a two tier system
3. 3. we are incredibly lucky to have life saving care delivered by nurses who own a quarter of what our MPs earn for a quarter of their hours. Everyone is entitled to a living wage for delivering life saving work. They all deserve double what they are on.

no idea about gps but I just wanted to offer an alternative to the sneery voices saying the nhs is shite. When you’ve got 12 fractures and hardly any hope and they give you back your life, I think you might see things differently.

My own dd has cancer and thankfully is able to get GP appointment. He was told at his appointment yesterday if he can't eat or drink then it is straight to a&e. So maybe bypass your GP anyway in this occasion. Thinking of you, must be so very scary not being able to get help

I was referring to specifically Strep A in children. The government was pumping out info as though it was a crisis, when it clearly wasn't. That misinformation resulted in the NHS being overwhelmed by parents demanding children be checked out/prescribed antibiotics when neither was actually necessary.

Meanwhile, separately, others are experiencing respiratory difficulties (as is expected/normal) at this time of year and there was/is a shortage of antibiotics due to Strep A panic.

I've no idea as to what current viruses are circulating or how locally they are doing so. Certainly until your post I have heard zero about anything that is resulting in blood being expectorated as part of any viral illness, which makes me wonder if this is localised to where you are?

All I've heard about locally are typical winter viruses (coughs, sore throats, sneezing, fatigue etc.) certainly no blood.