Booking doctors appointment!!

[maltrout512]

Rang to make an appointment to see my doctor today..(Dr A). Sorry he's fully booked until tomorrow afternoon... But you can see the duty doctor at twelve noon, I said ok......... You're booked for twelve and will see Dr A. :roll: That's the doctor I wanted to see anyway :!:

 

[pebbles]

Is nuts isn't it?! This was my recent experience (as emailed to a friend) when wanting to be referred for something

• told gp I wanted to be referred
  he contacted relevant wherever
  I received an NHS letter stating I had the right to a choice of when, (?!!) but had to phone a number
  I phone the number
  they check back with gp that it is a genuine referral???!!!! (Eh?! it was he who contacted them....!)
  they then triage according to perceived need
  they then write to me with appt date

I felt a Victor moment coming on...

 

[carlb40]

I've given up on my doctors. Last time i tried to get an appointment i was on the phone for nearly 2hrs waiting. Gave up and went around when they reopened at 4.30pm. Got told they can't give me an appointment now, i need to call in the morning. Explained about trying to call earlier, but was told to call in the morning.
So tried again the next morning and it was constantly engaged. Went round on the evening and was told there were spare spaces the next evening, so turn up and they will fit me in. Arrived the next evening and explained, but was told we don't do that you need to call in the mornings between 8.30 and 10am. :twisted: :twisted:

That was about 4yrs ago now, not been in since. I have heard things are slightly better now, you can go into the clinic and make an appointment - for 2 months time. :shock:

 

[cedarwood]

Damn you lot are lucky you need to have one foot in the wooden box to get an appointment at our surgery

 

[doorframe]

A while back I was suffering from recurring headaches (Ice pick headaches). Could not get an appointment outside of normal working hours for 5 weeks. Inside normal working hours was 3 weeks. I could turn up any morning as an emergency, with no guarantee of being seen. My employer said that's fine, but I wouldn't get paid, or needed to give the standard 1 month notice for holiday.

(The joke is, that the service engineers where I work book time off almost every week (it seems) for dentist, doctors, etc. Because I'm in the workshop I get shat on! Rant over)

Went to A&E. They told me to go to my doctor.

I gave up coffee. Headaches gone in a week. Good old Google.

 

[rafezetter]

I called my doc's surgery monday last week about abdominal pain - wasn't asked what it was about - wasn't interested when I tried to tell her - got my appt for thursday this week - that's 11 days wait.

I'd move but I like my doc a lot, and trust him - it's just the system around him is ****

 

[whiskywill]

I called my doc's surgery monday last week about abdominal pain - wasn't asked what it was about - wasn't interested when I tried to tell her - got my appt for thursday this week - that's 11 days wait.

That sounds like my surgery. My response is always. "That's too long to wait and if I die it will be your fault."
The answer is always something like "If you don't mind waiting you can come in tomorrow morning and we'll try to fit you in."

 

[Ali]

Rang the doctors today for an appointment, after 5mins waiting on the phone got told the next available appointment will be in 14 days time.

I just hope I'm still alive by then. I do wonder how the elderly and more vunerable are coping.

 

[Harry 48]

DOCTORS APPOINTMENT that's the best joke I've ever heard start phoning 8.30 engaged 9.00 finally got through no appointments call back at 2.00 at2.30 no appointments try 8.30 tomorrow and so it go's on

 

[Newbie_Neil]

I registered for our online service and it is excellent. I can now see all of the doctors and the slots that they have available, so I am able to make a booking at any time. 8)

I'll get my coat. :lol:

 

[Mark A]

A few months ago I called my local surgery to have a particularly large splinter removed from my hand. Appointment was made for that same afternoon...

 

[Jonzjob]

You want to try it over here. Sometimes we can't get t see our doctor till the next day and if he refers to a specialist it can be as long as next week! :shock:

The only thing we do have to wait for is the opthalmist. A 3 month wait for that and some parts of France it's 6 months, but if it's an emergency it's immediate. Optitions don't do proper eye tests so if needed you have to go to the specialist.

I did here that there are real problems in Ireland with a 10 month wait for the gynecologist :? :?

Don't need a coat so I'll just get me 'at

 

[RogerS]

It's very hit and miss. I can usually get to see any of the three GPs in our surgery within 3 days..sometimes same day. Asking for a specific doctor may be longer - but no longer than seven days. At least I can book that far ahead. My friend can only book for next days' surgery and by the time he gets through, all the appointments have gone.

I think we should have separate surgeries for anyone over 70.

We also need to stop politicians opening their big mouths. Herefordshire Hospital has seen a massive spike in two-week fast track cancer referrals to their gastro-enterology department ever since Jeremy Hunt sounded off about naming and shaming GPs with alleged bad cancer diagnosis. The end result is that they cannot offer ANY appointments within the 18 week waiting time and have no idea when. I could go back to my doctor and say 'I'm vomiting blood' and jump the queue that way but I won't.

The 18 week maximum time-to-treat is another of those ludicrous ideas dreamt up by politicians. It is a meaningless measure. If you exceed the 18 week period then nothing happens as far as you are concerned. Or the hospital. So we have a team of managers monitoring the 18 week time-to-treat, the wasted time by support staff etc filling in the screens to provide the data - all costs money that could go towards more clinical staff or better paid clinical staff. [/rantover]

South Worcestershire CCG has instructed its GPs to stop sending patients for ultra-sound scans to save money. Any GP requests for an MRI scan have to be vetted by a bean-counter who usually refuses 50%. No clinical basis of the decision whatsoever.

And please don't get me started on Patients Choice.....another dreamt up screwball system by the politicians. There is no such thing. There are different rules for PCTs and CCGs. You might be able to decide between hospitals in your CCG but you sure as hell can't go outside the CCG.

That is at one extreme.

Then you have the superb A&E real-time display provided by Gloucestershire PCT where you can look up online the waiting time at each of the main hospitals and smaller community hospitals and how many people are in the queue to be seen! In real-time...that's brilliant, IMO.

 

[doorframe]

I've got free health care as part of my job, so when I couldn't get an appointment to see my GP I investigated the possibility of going private.

To see a 'free' private doctor I have to see my GP for a referral. If I can see my GP before I die, and he gives me a referral, I have to pay £200 to see the 'free' private doctor. If I go ahead with his treatment, I have to pay another £100. If the treatment is ongoing, at the turn of the year I have to pay another £100.

It's not quite so 'free', but for something more serious it's maybe worth considering.

 

[rafezetter]

Finally had my doc's appt, and at the end he said he wanted a stool sample, I said I've never made a sample before but I was willing to give it a try, how high did he want it and 3 legs or 4?

 

[Jonzjob]

3 legs would be my choice. 1. it won't wobble and 2. there's only 3 legs to make. 8)

Or you could always include a strap and a single leg so you strap it on yer bum and it's always where you want it when you sit down. Mind you, that could be alkward at the bar in a crouded pub :? :?

 

[dickm]

Up here the service hasn't been quite as far privatised as in England, and we have a surgery 500 yards down the road, so can generally get in either by waiting on the day or appointment within 24 hours. (I won't link this to the Referendum!)
But a couple of years ago, I got what turned out to be shingles, so while passing a pharmacy in the next village mid morning, went in and asked if they could have a look at the red rashy bit. Pharmacist said instantly "that's shingles, who's your doctor?". Gave the name, pharmacist rang the practice and got the reply "if you can be here in 20 minutes, we'll see you". It was an 18 minute drive to the surgery, but made it and GP prescribed some pills, but they hadn't got them in stock in that surgery. They rang one of their other surgeries, which had them and "if you can be here in 10 minutes, we will still be open" (they are closed over lunch). Result.
Moral seems to be that you may get better access by being referred via a local pharmacy.

 

[rafezetter]

Up here the service hasn't been quite as far privatised as in England, and we have a surgery 500 yards down the road, so can generally get in either by waiting on the day or appointment within 24 hours. (I won't link this to the Referendum!)
But a couple of years ago, I got what turned out to be shingles, so while passing a pharmacy in the next village mid morning, went in and asked if they could have a look at the red rashy bit. Pharmacist said instantly "that's shingles, who's your doctor?". Gave the name, pharmacist rang the practice and got the reply "if you can be here in 20 minutes, we'll see you". It was an 18 minute drive to the surgery, but made it and GP prescribed some pills, but they hadn't got them in stock in that surgery. They rang one of their other surgeries, which had them and "if you can be here in 10 minutes, we will still be open" (they are closed over lunch). Result.
Moral seems to be that you may get better access by being referred via a local pharmacy.

possibly - but there's another reason too - I was told when I had it 20 years ago around my waist that if the ring went all the way around and met, you could die as it affects the nervous system and can attack the spinal column, I was treated obviously, but ever since there's been a dead spot on my back where the rash was, almost no feeling there.

 

[dickm]

possibly - but there's another reason too - I was told when I had it 20 years ago around my waist that if the ring went all the way around and met, you could die as it affects the nervous system and can attack the spinal column, I was treated obviously, but ever since there's been a dead spot on my back where the rash was, almost no feeling there.

I think the "ring all the way round and you're dead" is a bit of an old wive's tale, but even when it's only 1/4 of the way around it's bl***y painful so a more extensive attack would certainly be serious. The site of my attack can still niggle for no apparent reason. Just to add insult to injury, it's apparently not like most viral infections, which once you've recovered from them you are immune to future attacks, shingles can recur whenever it feels like it. Which makes the proffered anti-shingles vaccination that is now being offered seem a bit too good to be true.
It's just the german measles virus anyway, which suddenly flares up and attacks the nerves for no apparent reason. In my case, it followed suspiciously closely after first having the "over-65s" flu vaccination, but statistically, that was probably down to chance. The attack often affects the nerve(s) where they go into the spinal column, but can be anywhere.