Just received a shielding letter but no one knows why!!

[theviewfromhalfwaydown]

I’m freaking out a bit that there’s something wrong with me I don’t know about. I received a shielding letter but have no idea why I have it. I’m slightly overweight but haven’t been weighed by a dr in 10years and that was just after I’d given birth to my youngest. I have no underlying health conditions I know about and I’m only 38. All I can think of is that I had gestational diabetes but that was years ago. I’ve already had the first jab as I work in healthcare but I’m worried they know something I don’t. I’m not going to shield as I don’t think I need to and I want to work but it’s still thrown me quite a bit.

Glad it’s not just me - have been completely thrown by having a shielding letter this morning. I have type 2 diabetes but relatively mild (not on insulin) and although I’m overweight my blood pressure and cholesterol are good. It actually says on the letter to ring your GP if you don’t think you’re high risk - so I did and the surgerythey don’t know why I’ve got the letter either as nothing shows on my records as being of a high enough concern to trigger the letter. Going to speak to my GP tomorrow.

I think with bmi its over 40 and that only makes you CV not shielding.

Looing at the qcovid calculator even bmi and asthma didn't send me into the shielding category.

I think diabetes would have shot my score right up though (I was being tested so was curious). Maybe they're counting pre-diabetes?

I think conditions get coded on your records as an active problem but don't get taken off if no longer applicable. Simplistic way of looking at it. Probably best to email gp secs if you have the facility with your surgery (work as GP sec).

They can't be calling everyone with diabetes to shield though surely?!

My friend has had one, also had GD

@CoffeeRunner

Could I just reiterate - please do not phone your GP! The GP practices do not send out the letters & do not have any information on why you have received one above that which you would know yourself.

All this does is clog the phone lines & stop people in need of medical appointments or urgent advice getting through.

On one particular day in the height of people calling re Covid vaccines (even though the recorded message gave all the info we had), 27 same day appointments went unused as ill people could not get through to book them.

The information on my email clearly states to phone my GP (even with his name and the surgery's number) if I had any questions though, so you can't berate people for doing so!

I literally just posted about the same.

Gestational Diabetes and pre-Diabetes in my case, but also underactive thyroid... so thinking this is the reason

My dad's original shielding letter came from the local hospital trust but was not signed. In the intervening year, he has had appointments with all his consultants ( at three different hospitals) and at the GPs, all of whom have denied sending the letter.

Can I join the club? Got the email earlier today. Also had GD. Otherwise I’m a healthy weight, mid-30’s, no other risk factors I’m aware of.

Diabetes is a huge risk , it sounds to me as if any history of GD is getting you on the list

It certainly looks like they've been sent out to anyone with GD, which is a bit odd... surely a mistake?

Me too! Only health conditions I have has been GD in the past! DD2 was born in October.
I imagine that a search has been done for anyone with diabetes on their record, without distinguishing between GD and long term issues.

GP Practices are in the dark too as the new shielding information came out to patients at the same time as to Practices so no time to get organised. The shielding letters do come out centrally.
I have a feeling it will be the gestational diabetes that has done it - in error, unless you're still pregnant. But the code will be on there as it was correct when you had it - if that makes sense.
We foresee a whole load of very confused patients and Practices!

Someone on Twitter was shocked to get a letter. Turned out their BMI was recorded as vastly enormous- their height had been entered as 17.3cm instead of 173cm.

Errors can happen!

GD makes people high risk to type 2. If people are only getting checked for type 2 once a year, there will probably me a high number of women who have type 2 but don't know it yet. Perhaps including those pre-diabetes individuals are a way of minimising the risk to them and acting with caution. Also, diabetes seems to be one of the higher risk factors that I keep hearing about.

Gd dies mean you remain a high risk for diabetes all your life , and diabetes dies not mix well with covid

I had GD last year and have also just received a shielding email. No other risk factors

Has anyone seen what happened to Liverpool Echo Reporter Liam Thorpe.

He was offered a jab on the grounds of his BMI despite of his age (he's in his 30s). He thought it really odd. Instead of taking the jab he questioned it with his GP.

He got a call back from a very sheepish nervous doctor revoking the invitation. When Liam asked why as a matter of interest it turned out there had been an error on his medical records. Instead of recording him as 6ft2 it recorded him as 6.2cm and he therefore had a BMI of 28,000!

As Liam points out despite how hilarious this story is, it does suggest there is likely to be a wider issue with GPs having records with errors for a small number of patients. And it is quite alarming that somehow Liam slipped through the net and this wasn't picked up at any point previously.

www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/invited-covid-vaccine-because-nhs-19857990

I think the moral of the story is that if you have reason to suspect there maybe an error on your medical records, chase it up...

Yes, I have, that's why I recommended phoning the GP in case the op was another 6cm pancake.

@CoffeeRunner

Could I just reiterate - please do not phone your GP! The GP practices do not send out the letters & do not have any information on why you have received one above that which you would know yourself.

All this does is clog the phone lines & stop people in need of medical appointments or urgent advice getting through.

On one particular day in the height of people calling re Covid vaccines (even though the recorded message gave all the info we had), 27 same day appointments went unused as ill people could not get through to book them.

This really pisses me off. People (usually gp receptionists) being gatekeepers for the nhs. People do not call the doctors for fun, in fact, it’s the last thing I’d rather do. People are currently depressed, anxious and scared. It’s not their fault that the nhs is no longer fit for purpose with useless disjointed systems as demonstrated by this thread and that gp’s are often useless. Every person on this thread who has basically been told to stop their entire life for probably no reason at all has everything right to phone their gp and demand answers and, if they don’t know, they can be pointed in the right direction to find out

(And yes phoning your GP about a possible error is necessary and bloody important and isn't wasting time).

@CrackOpenTheGin and if phoning your GP would help you get the information you require then that would be fine. But unfortunately it won’t, as GPs surgeries will not know why a specific patient has received a shielding letter.

Patients trying to get through to make appointments or get urgent advice are also often depressed, anxious or scared. Surgeries have to prioritise and “questions we can’t answer about letters we haven’t sent” is bottom of the pile.

Me too. Similar BMI (hopefully under 30 now but may be around that on records) and GD in past but diet-controlled and later checks have always been fine. Dr can't ring me back till tomorrow afternoon but are we saying GD is a significant risk factor or that people who have previously had GD are getting these letters in error?

Does this mean DS can’t go to the childminder? Say it isn’t so!!

@CoffeeRunner the email literally says “Please contact your GP if you have any questions” followed by the name and phone number of the surgery.