GP surgeries are broken

[grumpyandfedup]

Put in an e consult to my GPs surgery this morning for suspected anaemia or hypothyroidism. Okay not life threatening but unpleasant to live with and impacting my mental health and day to day life.

I get a text three hours later to say this isn’t urgent and I’m on a list to be called NEXT YEAR! The date isn’t certain and can be subject to change, but I should expect a call in the week commencing 5th January.

In the meantime my life will get worse, I’ll feel worse and I can’t get any help. Yet an immigrant arriving on a boat has onsite GPs there ready and waiting at all hours of the day.

It is frustrating to wait.

I had bloods taken at the hospital last week (pre-op), and the phlebotomist realised the GP also wanted some done.

The results are back. I have several abnormalities in my FBC, also abnormal kidney, liver and sugar. The GP wrote a whole list of things that need action and asked admin to make an appointment, but I've heard nothing.

I hope I'm not fobbed off like last time (liver was also abnormal before, but tested a month later and it had come down a bit, so they wrote it off as a blip but getting lower, however now it is double the first result they were concerned about.

The fact that no one has contacted me reassures me that none of the abnormalities are significant.

NEWSFLASH - NHS staff get flu too, and they can sometimes get a few days off over Christmas.

Its great to hear you GP practice has offered you an appointment in 3 weeks - considering the season that’s more like in 2 working weeks.

Thank goodness we still have GPs, both British and from abroad, willing to work in our health service after we lost so many staff to Brexit and anti-expat (aka immigrant) sentiments

@grumpyandfedup , what are your qualifications for making that judgement?

What I’ve found though is if you’re over 18, but under 65, nothing is ever seen as normal. My dad had these same symptoms last year and was seen same day.

I’m over 18 and under 65. I’m being see today.

Thanks I needed the laugh

It absolutely is immigrant bashing when you decide to put immigration as the root cause of the NHS being unsatisfactory.

Because, of course, it can’t be that we are the only country where the NHS is completely free which means that more people use it than in other countries, it’s mismanaged which means they’re haemorrhaging money, doctors are leaving for private practices in other parts of the world because the pay and benefits package is bigger.

But yes, it’s the immigrants fault actually.

If your gp surgery is so awful you can also leave? I think people have limited sympathy as you are exagerrating implying you are waiting a year and it takes 7 people to sign off on a blood test....

I don't agree with the op, (it has a touch of throwing toys out the pram about it) but why do you think this is an option?
There's only 1 gp I can be registered with, and plenty of other people are in the same situation.

Whilst I can understand the holiday break can be 1-2weeks everything seems to shut down pretty much for a month which is unfit for purpose. GPs can still accept appointments up to 24/12 and start up again on 27/12 surely?

I think this thread just shows how out of touch with reality people are.

How many of you have been dreadfully ill and just gone to work every single day.
Not everyone can afford to take time off. Not everyone is in employment where if you have a day off you still get paid the same amount at the end of the month
If I had a couple of weeks off work I would be seeing £1500-£2000 less in my pay

There is something very broken in the NHS

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Both

I think that’s her point

OP , can you afford private blood tests? Super drug do them for under £100, other places too. NHS will only test TSH and free T4, which doesn't give the full picture. Private will test t3 and antibodies. I'd start there. You can find this information on line.

Mine too, when I rang a few weeks ago I waited 2 minutes for my call to be answered and was asked, Can you get here in the next half hour to see the Doctor? I have called this morning re the same problem and the need for another prescription, again a minute or so waiting and the medication will be ready to collect this afternoon. It's a poor show for many people but we don't hear enough about the good ones.

Oh here we go. The country's problems are far more complex than that. An ageing population might just have some relevance for a start.

Exactly. I can’t take long term sick. All I can do is muddle through, feeling like shit and completely hopeless.

Not at the moment. I might look into an interest free credit card for them though

A 2/3 week wait for non urgent issues ...is not unsafe and is to be expected after years of austerity. Peak flu and respiratory health and staff illness.
The details about the boats is just unpleasant nonsense

Can you use the see nurse option? Nurse can either fast track if needed. Or order a blood test for you. My gp nurse has sent me to get lots of blood tests. But if she believes something is above her, she says wait till a doctor calls you later today.

The gp pharmacist has also sent me to do few blood tests. They do the whole medication review thing, which they sometimes need fresh blood test for. They mostly call, but last month. They reduced my thyroxine dose without informing me. I had done a blood test and I guess it was decided then, but even a text message informing me would have been ideal.

The doctor doesn't care? What did she/he say that makes you say that?

The OP has been feeling like shit for years, and then decided 10 working days before Christmas was a cracking time to try and make an appointment.

And despite moaning about being kept on hold for 15 minutes when trying to book an appointment, she's been posting on this thread for almost an hour.

No matter what state the NHS is in, patients need to take responsibility rather than complaining when they're not really helping themselves.

Both.

Depends where you are. You'll always get a same or next day appointment at my doctors