To go to an UTC after work?

[whereismyhusband]

I’ve got a knee injury which I’m awaiting a physio follow up and scan on.

in the last week or so it’s worsened, to the point my knee starts to lock and catch upon movement. It’s becoming more and more painful, and the 111 advice seems to be to go to UTC. Is this really the reasonable route though? My follow up for physio is likely to be a few months away yet due to the waiting list, so I don’t know what else to do

Can you afford to pay for physio? You can likely get a private session very quickly

I’ve already found the NHS physio to be really good - I’ve been in person, been told that if it gets to the point I can’t exercise any other way I’ll receive a referral for hydrotherapy to help keep it strong while I wait for surgery. It’s just this bit, the in between. The pain is almost unbearable. It’s all the time. While I walk, sit, sleep, everything. Even just sitting down helps. My GP won’t touch it with a barge pole despite a formal complaint which the practice manager decided in their favour.

But a private physio or NHS makes no difference because it’s not the physio I need help with, it’s just pain management until I go for surgery (likely to be a year)

I had something similar years ago. A meniscal tear… a bit had come adrift and was locking. It didn’t need physio… I had an arthroscopy and a bit was taken out. Has worked fine since then (35 years!). However I imagine that might be a challenge without private health care.

Sadly it amounts to at least £6k privately - about £1,300 for the initial consultation, scan and results appointment and then a further £4,700 minimum for surgery. It’s money I don’t have at the moment

What is it you’d like from the UTC? You can give them a call and they can answer whether they think it’s something within their treatment offer. UTCs don’t generally get involved in prescribing except for short-term relief and particularly not for strong painkillers which require close control and monitoring. Does your Trust allow self-referral to the pain clinic? That’s an option to look into. You really do need to push back again on your GP for this. They have strict prescribing guidelines when it comes to painkillers but should support referral to the pain clinic.

I just want a night pain free. That’s literally all, I’m so fed up of hobbling round my house with multiple ice packs strapped to my leg. My GP are pretty adamant that because my care has been “transferred” to the hospital, that’s it. But they’ve got pretty awful relations with the hospital anyway. So it pushes a lot (like this) onto the hospital and increases wait lists etc.

You need to be examined by a clinician. If the GP can't do this, does your surgery have a MSK practitioner?
If you want to use the NHS route, ask for a MSK assessment, then once diagnosed you can start rehab, pain relief and the correct treatment.
If you can afford it, spend £50 to see a chartered physiotherapist or registered osteopath for the same route, UTC is not necessary for this, unless you are unable to unlock the knee.

As I’ve said I’m already undergoing physio, the issue is the constant pain that won’t be alleviated until surgery, which is some 12-18 months away

I'm sorry that you are in so much pain OP. I would ring the UTC and see if they can tell you on the phone whether they can prescribe pain relief in this situation. They might not be able to definately tell you they can without examining you, but they should be able to tell you if pain relief for a condition other medical professionals are currently treating is something they definately wouldn't provide. It might also be worth having a chat with a prescribing pharmacist. Prescribing pharmacist can provided prescription pain meds. Again I don't know if they would do so for a condition currently being treated by another professional, but it's easy to see one, so you wouldn't have a lot to lose.

I might give that a try. Basically that’s why my GP have washed their hands of me, despite knowing it’ll be a long wait for a scan and orthopaedic consultation. I know it’s minor compared to a lot of things people go through but it’s so, so painful and awful and I’m so fed up

I’ve managed to get an emergency physio appointment. Fingers crossed they can help