AIBU to be upset about this text from my doctor?

[Pinkwellyboots3]

Since my dad suddenly died in June I have been constantly unwell, I think it’s the stress and grief and the doctors have assured me this is a normal reaction.

I have had a constant cycle of mastitis, tonsilitis, chest infection and utis. It’s been HORRIFIC. I’ve had more antibiotics in the last months than I’ve had in my entire life and I’m sick to death of it and worried.

Once again, I’ve woken up with a throat covered in yellow puss, can’t swallow, temperature and feel disgusting, I filled out my form this morning and explained my symptoms and added a photo of my throat. I said I wanted to avoided antibiotics at all cost unless I really needed them as I’ve had several courses recently. I received a message back saying ‘as requested your antibiotics have been sent’ well, I didn’t request them. That I can get over. It’s the best part that got me.

FYI: You had 10 contacts with the practice since start of Sept, the average across the UK is 8 over the entire year.
All the best

isn’t that just so patronising? How can I help that I have been unwell so many times. Yes, that is a high number but I have genuinely and helplessly been unwell, 2 of those appointments were with the asthma nurse as I’ve recently been diagnosed with asthma too. Every appointment they have identified a bacterial infection which required treatment. I just feel so upset by it and it just feels so patronising. Am I being too sensitive? I feel like that’s just not professional… I am going to a doctor to literally do their job.

So I'm a firm believer that once ill, your energy/chi/mojo/something is knocked off kilter and you can have a real year of poor health of minor ailments, especially if you're mentally run down too.
A good doctor should realise this and help.

I've had 5 years between drs appointments and then a 6 month period when I deserved my own chair in the waiting room.

It's probably a generic text and probably not from the GP. If it's bothering you then ask the receptionist what it means and what should you do if these symptoms return in future.

Hope you feel better soon. It sounds horrendous.

I suspect that's the mean (not the median or mode) and has been inflated by some extreme outliers!

Please don’t worry about social services. I’m sorry about your dad. It sounds like a really tough year. This was most likely an automated tactless message. Wish you better soon x

Interesting responses bearing in mind that GP's are self employed and run their own practices. Therefore they have agency over the messages their practices send out.

I think you should complain to the practice manager and request a double appointment with the a senior partner to support you to get to the bottom of what's causing this and to refer you to ENT forthwith.

@Pinkwellyboots3 nearly 30 years ago, I had a similar run when "low". I had endless prescriptions of Amoxycillin for: tonsillitis, sinusitis, laryngitis, chest infections, etc. Things either didn't clear up or something else appeared. I'd had late miscarriages before and after ds. Eventually, I burst into tears at a consultant obstetrician appointment (high risk so consultant led) when 20 weeks pregnant and feeling really rough. He shook his head and said GP's didn't understand what could be prescribed in pregnancy and gave me a prescription for a seven day course of Augmentin. It knocked out whatever it was for good and I haven't been ill like it since.

After ds was born I had infective mastitis and am convinced there was a bit of lingering infection deep within that was bringing me down.

10 times in 6 weeks is a lot….you don’t need to contact them every time you’re ill.

In the last year BTW, I have had:

A repeat cholesterol test and a request to make an appointment

A thyroid blood test - no GP visit- established hypothyroidism- annual blood test needed.

A F2F apt for a chest infection and AB's prescribed.

A prescription for a cream for a recurrence of nasal vasysomething on request- no apt required.

A prescription for naproxen and omeprazole for occasional back pain arising from two wedged vertebra and lumbar disk degeneration.

They have filed my bowel screening result

I have familial high cholesterol
Severe osteoporosis
Pagets disease
hypothyroidism
I don't bother my GP about any of the above except for required blood tests.

I have been to the Dr more in the last 12 months than for a very long time but the interactions were all necessary and I have had two F2F appointments.

A couple of months ago I received an email noting that my records indicated I was a lone household and offering me virtual networking to chat about crafts over a cuppa. It was sent by the Primary Care Network on behalf of my GP because social connections reduced appointments required and meant my GP could spend time doing more important things.

Boy did I complain. I don't live alone, I have a full-time professional job, I don't need support to make social connections and I did not appreciate a patronising email that assumed I shared a brain cell with an amoeba.

Evidently, this is funded by the centre but the IT team was running reports using the wrong parameters, the comms team needed to review their comms, and they accepted there were learns.

The issue is that there are 170 PCNs throughout the country each with a budget of about £10m. They clearly are operating as cottage industries of incompetence and presiding over a layer of crapocracy.

The issue is that GP's tell us they are overworked and the NHS has no resources. Clearly the NHS is pissing millions up the wall and not for theh benefit of patients. The PCNs operate to support our self employed GPs. I haven't heard a single GP point out the waste. Ever.

Both GP and PCN apologised.

Well of course they did. Easiest way to get whingers off their back. Fucking hell, you complained that they offered you help erroneously- take a look at yourself

edited to add. Why do you think that you need ‘the brain cell of an amoeba’ to be in a lone household or need connections? Get off your high horse

Sometimes you have a bad run of stuff
I’ve had years where I’ve had 14 courses of antibiotics and it’s felt like I’ve been in the GP weekly
health conditions

This is almost twice a week….

I work in a surgery and we would never ever send a text like that. We have people come in regularly near enough everyday with a different problem. We would never pass comment and certainly not a text. I’d raise with the practice manager. Although it’s probably the practice manager whose bright idea it was to Send them messages.

I complained because there was incompetence combined with an overwhelming waste of resources within NHS services that the public funds.

Also, I commented that the email was written assuming the recipients shared a brain cell with an amoeba, not that I believe those who live alone do. Far from it.

The op has contacted the Dr ten times in ten weeks BTW, not six as you have quoted. May I respectfully suggest you read post more carefully before responding as rudely.

Oh that’s rubbish, OP. I have felt a burden at times when I’ve had several visits close together so I completely understand. However, my DM kindly pointed out that if they would investigate and resolve the matter then I wouldn’t need to keep returning! That certainly made me look at the situation differently. You’re clearly unwell and stress is likely a huge factor but are they offering you help/support for your stress?

It’s not been ten weeks since the beginning of Sep.

what was the waste of resources? Sending a text?

4 appointments for mastitis on 4 seperate occasions, with a huge wedge shaped red lump on my entire breast with a temp of almost 40 each time, couldn’t feed my baby and generally felt like i was going to die
3 appointments for tonsillitis, high temp and unable to swallow my own saliva
1 for a chest infection which triggered a referral to the asthma nurse
2 appointments with asthma

so unfortunately yes, I did need to go.

This! Exactly this - we live in an automated world now, the algorithm wasn't happy. Ignore & move on.

I’ve also never heard of messages being automated. It has to be sent by someone because it’s counted how many times you’ve been in. From my knowledge I’ve never heard of this being something that can be done automatically. We can send bulk automated texts but again this has to be selected from certain cohorts. It will be the GPS/practice manager who’s come up with this.

I’m not saying you didn’t need to go. But they can’t analyse every single persons individual circumstances - that really would be wasting NHS resources @SilkAndSparklesForParties - so they just highlight facts to make you stop and think. And if, on reflection, you did need to go then…fine. What’s the issue?

What does 'fill out my form' means?

I'd think either you ask for a consultation or you write to the practice manager to include a note on your record.