Can you still have a doctor visiting your home?

[Fiona2011231]

I remember about three years ago, when my father was ill, we called the NHS, explaining that he was too ill to come to the hospital. So they sent a doctor to our home, checking his condition and giving the prescription.

Last week, we called the NHS number 111 but this time they said we definitely have to go to the hospital.

Is it true that the NHS cost-cutting has eliminated the possibility that a doctor can visit you?

Thank you

Housebound people can have a GP out to them. My nan definitely does and quite quite regularly too.

Home visits tend to be utilised for the terminally ill and incredibly sick and frail (usually elderly).

It is a more efficient use of time and resources to have a doctor see patients either at the surgery or in a central clinical out of hours site.

Also depending on the problem, if you need emergency or out of hours care it is possible that you might need blood tests, ECG, scans, further investigations, which can only be done in a hospital or clinic setting.

Doctors visit the elderly, housebound and dying. The able bodied are expected to make the effort to get to the GP surgery or hospital. It has been like this as long as I can remember.

GPs will visit at home if you are unable to get to the surgery and its a problem that can be dealt with by a gp-mostly elderly but alp utilised if people are bedbound for other reasons. If you need to see a hospital Dr though its more complicated.

111 also assess the problem, so there will be some scenarios where they recommend hospital rather than waiting for a visit, because of safety aspects. And what Reallytired said

They are relatively common up here (Aberdeenshire) because of the rural area. My mum gets them quite often because she can't easily access transport - there isn't any after 10pm or so.

I have had several in recent years - twice out of hours (no transport) and once after surgery where I couldn't walk more than a metre or so. On the latter occasion the doctor and nurse both came out.

It is easier in hospital or an out of hours setting, in worst case scenarios some stuff can be done but it's not easy and very time consuming.

I do find it odd, not having home visits, as I remember very well when (living in a tiny village) if there was a problem overnight you just phoned the doctor or the district nurse and they'd come to see you. It sounds a bit 'Miss Polly had a Dolly' but it did happen. This was as late as 2001, and it was so simple - the doctor knew you, whereas now if you call nhs24 it is usually anyone who lives within the shire, usually covering a 50 mile radius.

It is crazy too as they have to have an out of hours service open every night, and relatively staffed (ie. one doctor, two nurses) but most people will get a home visit unless they are within walking distance, not young, not a parent with wee ones, not elderly and not seriously ill.. (I.e. Most of out of hours users!!)

As far as I know at least parts of the highlands still operate in the way that you can just call the local doctor and they'd come out. At least it's that way for my gt gt aunt, who lives on an unmarked road 30 miles from the nearest village and 15 from a shop of any sort..

Our surgery still does home visits for the elderly and housebound.

Over Christmas we had a dr come out at 1.30am to my 18 month old nephew as sil couldn't physically get anywhere with him.

I wasn't very well and phoned the surgery, my walking is very poor but I do go out, the gp I spoke to said they had an appointment that morning and could I get there, I explained that my walking was not good at the best of times and I really didnt feel good enough to walk myself from the car park to the surgery. She was very nice and said that a gp would come to see me.

I have had home visits by GP for my disabled DD - but only when she is not well enough to go out or when I need her to be examined lying down (she is in a wheelchair and needs hoisting onto a bed - a facility they don't have at the surgery).
In reality though, you will probably be seen quicker if you go to the doctors rather than requesting a home visit. My DD was very ill recently. She could have see the GP at 9.30am if I had taken her to the surgery - as it was, she wasn't seen until 1.30pm at home - thus delaying her inevitable admission to hospital by a number of hours.

The GPs at mu surgery do home visits every day. Mainly to the elderly, housebound due to illness or unable to get to the surgery.

That should have said "my" not "mu"

My dr visited me around 5 years ago when I had a bad water infection! Doubt this would happen now though.

DD had a home visit when she became very poorly with chicken pox 3yrs ago.

She looked like she had the plague and had a temp through the roof so there was no way she could go out in public. That's the only time I've used the home visit service though, I've never had a home visit myself.

I've had the Dr out to me twice (most recently in Nov) both of which needed hospitalisation (Crohns). In Wales, perhaps slightly diff set up than in England

I had a home visit when I hurt my back recently. I couldn't walk at all. At first they said it would mainly be for older patients but when I got worse they came out.