Speaking with my Dad's GP

[daisywhoopsie]

My Dad recently 'stopped drinking' (he still drinks in private but significantly less, he thinks we don't know).

My sister has been staying with him for the past few days and has let me know that the reason he's been able to cut down so seemingly easily is because he's taking 8 tramadol and 8 codeine every day.
I'm tempted to ring his GP to make them aware of the situation in the hope they may be more mindful about prescribing him enough painkillers to be able to do this.

Would it be worth doing or will his GP not do anything/refuse to speak with me due to patient confidentiality?

I think in this situation the GP can talk to you. If a patient is at risk - then gp's can break confidentiality. You can also give the GP the information without them discussing any details of your fathers health concerns - and as such would not be breaking any confidentiality rules other than confirming he is a patient of theirs.

If I were in your shoes I would definitely be contacting GP on Monday. It does seem to be a lot of painkillers he is taking but it depends on the stength of them. Tramadol is a controlled drug so it is in the Drs favour to listen to your concerns. And both codeine and tramadol are very addictive very quickly.....

I think you're right, I definitely need to contact them.

I had a child of my own a week ago and am now even more fed up of having to mother him. May consider taking a massive step back after this.

You can certainly have a conversation with the GP. The GP will be limited in what they can say to you due to confidentiality I but will certainly listen to what you have to say - just be ore pared fir a bit of a 1sided conversation.

Prepared, sorry

The GP can't tell you anything, but you can tell them what is going on. Its a bit weird having that sort of one sided phone call, but needs to happen as the mixture of opiates and alcohol isn't good at all

We are listed as having caring responsibilities for FIL at our surgery, so can talk about his care with the staff there.