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.

Then she should have phoned for an appointment and not given up after 15 mins, or tried on the online service, rather than all this back and forth on MN.

Agree tbh!

@grumpyandfedup I'm in a similar situation, although I think my issue menopause, I called the GP, waited on hold and they also gave me a phone consultation. The Dr will ring me, I will moan about my symptoms, he will book me a blood test and we will go from there.
I think if your Drs surgery is as bad as you say then register with another one. But I also think you need to suck up being on hold and call them, or pop in on your way home from work and speak to the reception team to see if they can bump you up the list. I usually use E-consult but I didn't want to be in your position where I am waiting weeks for an appointment, so I called as I knew I would get one sooner. You need to do the same. I sympathise with your situation, I have had crippling anaemia in the past and I genuinely felt like there was no point in living. But its something that is totally fixable and there is light at the end of the tunnel. Phone them and get it sorted. :)🙂🙂🙂

Clearly, all surgeries are not the same!

Our surgery does not accept letters or emails from patients. It's a hard and fast rule. We cannot communicate with the surgery or the GPs except by telephone or by turning up in person.

DH tried to hand a written note to our GP a few months ago, intending to avoid having to make an appointment, but it was handed straight back. The receptionist said that they don't accept letters or notes and that any emails from patients are not read, so please don't try to email.

It's all very sad. Ten years ago, I could book an appointment to see my GP face to face, to discuss my health issues. That would usually have been a wait of about 3 weeks. Nowadays, at my surgery anyway, it's just not possible. The only appointments available are for urgent, same-day things - and almost all of those are telephone-only appointments. There is absolutely no facility for booking a non-urgent appointment to talk with the GP about a health concern.

You don't need a doctor to increase the iron in your diet or buy some vitamin & iron supplements.

General advice is freely available online for vague symptoms/under the weather. Cutting out alcohol & caffeine, weighing yourself /working out BMI to see if you need to lose/gain some weight, healthy eating advice, exercise advice etc.

I have hashimotos & have also had very severe anaemia (requiring blood transfusion) due to another condition & I would expect to wait until after Xmas for a non urgent blood test/review.

I expect the OP has gone off on her lunchbreak now after a hard morning at work.

I'm an immigrant I had a nose job, a boob job, a nice facial and a bunch of roses from the NHS when I arrived in the UK.

Gotta go, It's time to do the round of the stables of my council mansion. Thank god I don't have to work, because I'm an immigrant.

She must be exhausted!

You mean you weren't provided with a stable hand? 😱

Broken Britain.

If you work for the NHS, you get sick pay so can take a day off to phone the GP. And if you are that ill, you can even take sick leave until your appointment.

Or she could've phoned during the NHS time she was wasting anyway, by chatting on MN for over an hour.

15 minutes. Not an hour.

What are you talking about?

You started this thread at 10.40am

It's now almost 12.40pm

You've been posting for nearly two hours.

Why are you saying 15 minutes? 😳

You’ve been posting on here for a lot more than 15 mins!!!

Lordy - if you were offered an appointment today you’d still complain

Not strictly the case - it was certainly free when we lived in Copenhagen - my friend lives in Sweden , theirs is too - big difference is look at tax levels! Here we want US style tests and service on demand ( with European style anyone accepted) whilst not paying European tax levels or US premiums

Not strictly the case - it was certainly free when we lived in Copenhagen - my friend lives in Sweden , theirs is too - big difference is look at tax levels! Here we want US style tests and service on demand ( with European style anyone accepted) whilst not paying European tax levels or US premiums

How on earth have we reached a point where such vile discrimination and complete lack of empathy has become so normalised that it is allowed to play out on a global forum.

I don't know who should be more ashamed - the OP for peddling this disgusting view or Mumsnet for allowing it.

I’ve made 30 posts. Average 30s per post. That’s not two hours!

So you spent no time reading everyone else’s posts?

How long do you think it takes to read? 10s max.

It has to be annual leave, of which I have none

(Before anyone comes at me, I’m on my lunch, and I’m on hold with the GP!)

It has to be annual leave, of which I have none

(Before anyone comes at me, I’m on my lunch, and I’m on hold with the GP!)

It has to be annual leave, of which I have none

(Before anyone comes at me, I’m on my lunch, and I’m on hold with the GP!)

It has to be annual leave, of which I have none

(Before anyone comes at me, I’m on my lunch, and I’m on hold with the GP!)