to not bother with a smear test

[setpieces]

I'm supposed to have them every 12 months due to abnormal cells.

I cannot get an appointment at my GP practice. They have offered me 3 dates I simply cannot do (I'm supporting a parent having an op the week before Xmas, Xmas eve (still with parent) and 2 Jan (away with kids). It took an hour of following hopeless website and booking referrals plus a phone call (engaged) and callback to get this far.

By the time I get the test (assuming calling back at the end of next week as requested is successful) it will be 2 months after I got the letter then another 6-8 weeks for the results.

I might as well wait for the condition to worsen and refer for treatment in 4 months time.

I really hope you don’t have daughters if this is the attitude you’re teaching them regarding a 5 minute appointment that can literally save your life.

Go into the doctors and book face to face?? Or a sexual health clinic. It’s literally 5 minutes.

Also don’t understand you saying you won’t have the results till March? I’ve just had my smear and had my results letter about 4 days later.

Give your head a wobble OP.

YABVVVVV unreasonable.

To those saying 'do a home HPV test'..you clearly don't understand. The OP has already got cell changes which need to be monitored. A home HPV test can't tell you that!

I appreciate it’s frustrating trying to get an appointment OP. But it’s not something to you can bury your head in the sand in. You need to be proactive.

If you can’t talk about smear tests in-front of clients then you step out of the room and into a private area.

If your employers are being difficult and not allowing you time off to attend appointments you need to escalate this to HR and Occupational Health immediately. I’m sure your employer would rather you take a couple of hours out of your day to attend an appointment rather than months if not years of sick leave if this develops into cancer.

If you categorically cannot attend any appointment offered via your GP practise then go online and find your nearest Sexual Health Service and enquire with them. I am in Doncaster, Yorkshire and my local service offers cervical screening if you are overdue.

Please take some responsibility for your health and future.

You can get a test, just not at a time you consider convenient for you.

You are prioritising everything and everyone over your health.

What about half a days leave? Less time with the kids but how much time will you have with them if this progresses to something more sinister.

Do you think they’ll thank you for half a days holiday knowing you didn’t get a test? Let that sit with you for a minute before you react.

You need to make your health a priority.

The results come a lot quicker than that actually. I had mine within 2 weeks last time.

Hopefully the OP's daughters won't need to have smear tests! Firstly - vaccination and secondly - modern ways of testing.

Also it's not that easy to sort out appointments, they can't be on your period, either. Easier for women of my age who are only having periods every three months but when mine were irregular and unpredictable it was very difficult and they also wanted it to be in the first 10 days of your cycle. I didn't even know when my cycle was starting half the time. That has at least got easier.

Get a private test near your parents. It's £150 and worth every penny.

That's just silly. If you don't care, why should the doctors. Only you can advocate for yourself. It's only your health and life.

I can take a half days leave but it won't guarantee me an appointment. I got dispensation to work from home today so I had time to check the websites/booking rules and eventually phone. But got no appointment. Despite spending an hour on it. The problem is they may not have released the appointments or may not have any available. If I get the appointment then another half day to attend? I guess I could but I really wanted my holiday to rest.

There is so much else going on in my life it's really difficult to keep this at the forefront expending valuable time on maybe speaking to someone to maybe get an appointment.

Seriously? Are you insane. Why would you want things to worsen before getting seen? What are you hoping to achieve by that? It's a lot more inconvenient having operations and treatments for cervical cancer

We get it. You are not the only person with a difficult GP and busy life with all sorts going on.

Not sure what you want from this thread - validation its shit/difficult and you shouldn't bother?

Have you thought about changing GP surgeries OP?
Hope you get an appointment sorted soon.

Are you an absolute fucking idiot??!!

Just book it in whenever you’re free. Though really are you never going to leave the house when your parent has their operation? Surely, if it’s a big one, they will be in hospital for a bit? You will at some point need to leave their side. Get friend, sibling, carer in. I just had a major operation and dh still managed to go to the dentist and do all the school runs and look after me.

That said, book it for January then. My results came in less than 2 weeks. It’s better than nothing. I’m currently being treated for quite an aggressive stage 3 cancer (not cervical) and bloody hell the difference it would have made if my cancer was caught the first time I went to the GP and said I’m worried this is cancer. It would have been a minor inconvenience and not a huge life changing event that I may not survive.

You’ve already had abnormal cells. Bloody hell. Aren’t your scared?

Nah, just get cancer that’s easier

OP can get an appt. She’s got other things happening and decided its not a priority.

I cannot get an appointment at my GP practice. They have offered me 3 dates I simply cannot do

Assuming you are in England OP:

https://www.nhs.uk/service-search/sexual-health-services/find-a-sexual-health-clinic/

Use this link right now. Find your nearest service, email them now and enquire if they do cervical screening. Call them as soon they open.

Hopefully not too outing but my original GP surgery was taken over by the CQC for poor performance. They couldn't find anyone to run it instead so it closed down and we were forced to move (all 6000 patients) so we're now overcrowding the other local GPs.

So changing GP will not be easy or beneficial.

I might go private although 1. I'd prefer they had access to my history and 2. It's more time finding who offers the service where and when.

I need to sleep now. Thanks all.

"...I wanted my holidays to rest."

You are another OP who posts AIBU but who, despite everyone saying 'yes', really doesn't care what they hear.

What's so special about Christmas Eve? Go in the morning and have a holiday sherry in the afternoon, for goodness sake, before you're resting forever.

"OP can get an appt. She’s got other things happening and decided it's not a priority."
@EnYar

You quoted me:
'I cannot get an appointment at my GP practice. They have offered me 3 dates I simply cannot do'

That's a little unfair without also pasting in the reasons why I cannot make the 3 dates!

As I already said I'm supporting my 80 year old parents the week before Xmas as my dad is having surgery. They live 300 miles from me so appointments on 20th or 24th Dec were not possible. I'm on holiday with my kids on 2nd Jan which was the only other date offered.
I have a clear conscience about prioritizing my folks and my kids in this situation.

I'm 300 miles away having Xmas with my parents! I'm with them because my dad will have had surgery 4 days previously.

Are you physically in the area on 2 Jan? As if so, you're already on annual leave then. This is perfect timing.

Go to the appointment and do fun things with the kids before and after.

The luxury of free healthcare. If you were paying you’d find the time for this test so as to get treatment now if needed and not to wait until later with the huge costs of treatment if it gets worse. Enjoy your freebie healthcare.