[Misc] Any recent GP surgery experiences

[Denis]

I tried three weeks to get an appointment. You have to ring at 8:30am or 2pm, however hard I tried I kept getting the message to say all appointments taken.
Finally one morning I got through and was told to send a photo of the skin complaint (on my face), bothering me. The doctor phoned back later saying that she’d sent a prescription for some cream to the local chemist. I’m not that impressed, the area of skin where I’ve applied the cream has easily doubled in size and is a bright red mess and I go on holiday next week. For all I know, it could be misdiagnosed from just looking at the photo I sent.

 

[Giraffe]

Similar to most above. The e consult route appears to just about to be the most efficient although one time I only then got to speak to my doctor as my wife mentioned it to him whilst she had him on the phone and he said okay pass him over.

Most of the time you phone you are on a long queue and whilst they are supposed to call you within 48 hours of an e consult it is not 100% reliable. God knows how you can ever get in front of a doctor. I think my sister managed it recently but only because she is the most difficult person I know! That shouldn’t be how it works and I fear lots of people who don’t make a fuss and are reluctant to push their symptoms are falling under the radar leading to long term illnesses like cancer getting diagnosed so much later. I don’t see any reason why GP’s can’t back to close to normality now.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

I’ve had a couple of telephone appointments without too much hassle from ringing at 8.30 (which was the norm for ordinary appts before covid) and a face to face appointment.
I had my normal flu jab last Autumn & appts made for my two covid jabs.
I’ve had an xray on my foot at Hove Polyclinic, a telephone appointment with my rheumatologist, and one cataract operation. I’m due back at the Eye hospital in October to be assessed for the other eye to be done.
All in all, I can’t grumble, although my routine thyroid blood tests haven’t been done for two years now.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

I tried three weeks to get an appointment. You have to ring at 8:30am or 2pm, however hard I tried I kept getting the message to say all appointments taken.
Finally one morning I got through and was told to send a photo of the skin complaint (on my face), bothering me. The doctor phoned back later saying that she’d sent a prescription for some cream to the local chemist. I’m not that impressed, the area of skin where I’ve applied the cream has easily doubled in size and is a bright red mess and I go on holiday next week. For all I know, it could be misdiagnosed from just looking at the photo I sent.

I would ask the pharmacist at your local chemist for advice. It could even be a reaction to the cream.

 

[1066familyman]

I’ve had a couple of telephone appointments without too much hassle from ringing at 8.30 (which was the norm for ordinary appts before covid) and a face to face appointment.
I had my normal flu jab last Autumn & appts made for my two covid jabs.
I’ve had an xray on my foot at Hove Polyclinic, a telephone appointment with my rheumatologist, and one cataract operation. I’m due back at the Eye hospital in October to be assessed for the other eye to be done.
All in all, I can’t grumble, although my routine thyroid blood tests haven’t been done for two years now.

Busy medical year for you too then. Hope you get everything sorted soon.

 

[Audax]

Similar at my surgery:

1. Booking appointments online was closed March last year and remains closed - can only book via phone now )and a year and half later their phone system remains dire).
2. Have to go through a phone triage first before they will consider face-to-face.
3. Had a face-to-face lunch time today with paramedic, having had triage phone call early this morning. They still managed to be an hour late...
4. It won't go to the Dr unless the tests the para has requested for me show something that needs it.

 

[Rugrat]

Seaford appears to have pretty well shut down!

Re the OP I'd be delighted to get No 13 in queue as invariably line is engaged or rings unanswered. Getting through later in afternoon is better but as they are only giving appointments on the day and tell you call back next day, when same thing happens.

I ended up having to (very reluctantly) call 111 last week (but that's what the receptionist told me to do), made me feel something of a fraud but I was in real pain following a (non emergency accident) ... felt even worse when 111 gave me an appointment at A&E. After all of that I was prescribed pain killers that the Doc could have very simply fulfilled

I really don't believe the Covid excuses ... this is what 'new normal' looks like imo

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

Interested to know if my current experience is the norm or unique to my practice. Went to make an appointment last Thursday and had to phone as they won't let you in without an appointment. I wanted to see a nurse or pharmacist about my blood pressure and a possible issue with my existing medication. This morning, I am waiting for a telephone triage call from a nurse who will then decide if I am worthy to go and talk to someone. Just tried phoning to find out how they will contact me as I don't want to sit by the home phone all day - 3 minutes of recorded message later, I am queue position 13.

This isn't a discussion about pressures on the NHS. Just interested if this is a problem across the board on just my practice. Had a few issues over the last few years and never seen a doctor - you get a nurse or a paramedic - so probably is just them. But I did get a face to face appointment with a nurse back in April when everything was more locked down.

Yes fair amount of triaging here in Faversham but I have been able to make appointments quite easily. I saw a GP recently about a persistent cough which he decided was due to reflux oesophagitis leading to night time burn damage to my throat. He didn't actually examine me other than to check my breathing which he decided was normal. I was prescribed poton pump inhibitors . To be on the safe side I gave a sputum sample. A week later I was informed I did have a respiratory infection (as I thought) and was prescribed antibiotics. This helped my breathing but I still have a bit of a cough and sneezing fits. I suspect it is primarily viral (the same sodding virus that was going around before covid).

In the past few years I have been seen by a nurse practitioner who misdiagnosed a march fracture as gout, put me on colchicine to remove the inflammation (there was no inflammation) prior to allopurinol, and the colchicine destroyed my gut lining and put my (undiagnosed) lactose intolerance effects into turbo . I was practically housebound for a month, permanently sat on the doughnut in granny's greenhouse .

Our GP practice is krunk. I used to have a GP, now I see someone new every time, often a nurse practitioner. This hampers correct diagnosis and wastes lots of time as I have to come back repeatedly till I get resolution. I had weeks of physio and multiple xrays and whatnot before one steroid injection resolved a persistent ankle issue a few years ago. To save time and money they have invented procedures that wast time and money and delay treatment.

Doctors are brilliant at doctoring but seem to be shit at everything else, especially when directed by politicians. I took on a new appointment as an external examiner for a medical school recently, and the extent of cock-up is astronomical. I have been invited to 7 examiers meetings this summer, none of which are relevant to my appointment, and when I sheepishly asked WTF is going on one of the many people 'in charge' (a medic) asked 'who are you again?' . 'The bloke who has just resigned as one of your external examiners' I nearly replied. I'll give them one more chance. They mean well.....

Everything that isn't already ****ed is heading towards being ****ed, I'm afraid. HMG can undermine the NHS under cover of Covid, hoping the middle classes will go private. If I were a tory that's what I would do. 'Nationalised NHS is like the BBC and should be defunded', innit? Who knew? .

ps another experience - I was on the waiting list for a hernia op for a year. I got sharp pain one morning and called 111. After a lengthy chat I was told to go imediately to A+E. Luckily Mrs T was abailable to drive me. I was there all day. Due to staff shortages a paramedic was tasked to take a blood sample. He couldn't get the needle into a vein. He then handed over to a medical student who had a couple of goes and finally got there. Luckily I am not needle averse. Eventually they said I did not have an intestinal occlusion and sent me home. I finally got the actual hernia op a few weeks later (a brilliant job as it happens).

 

[Thunder Bolt]

Busy medical year for you too then. Hope you get everything sorted soon.

Thank you. At my age, it won’t get totally sorted but every little helps.

 

[GT49er]

I recently bypassed the whole waiting in a phone queue thing by filling out an eConsult form. I think most (all?) GP surgeries use them - they can be filled out online using a PC, or using a smartphone app. https://econsult.net/nhs-patients/how-to-use-econsult

It's essentially a series of questions to answer & fields to fill out that replace the questions you'd have to go through on the phone before you get to speak to your GP or someone else anyway.

When I did mine, I got a text back saying that they have reviewed my concern and that I would get a call from a physiotherapist the next day.

Very quick & easy. If you try it, ignore the bit about logging in with an NHS account (unless you have one already) as it takes WAY longer to create an NHS account than to complete the eConsult form

My experience is exactly the same as the OPs (though I can quote a much higher number in the queue!) What is particularly annoying whilst wandering round trying to get on with your life with a phone clasped to your ear is being repeatedly asked, 'Do you know you can contact us via our website - go to www. etc, etc.' You want to scream down the phone, 'Yes I've been on your effin' website. It doesn't cover my particular query; that's why I'm trying to effin' phone you!'

I did try eConsult once. A bit later I got a reply. It said, phone NHS 111 ...........................

 

[Thunder Bolt]

Seaford appears to have pretty well shut down!

Re the OP I'd be delighted to get No 13 in queue as invariably line is engaged or rings unanswered. Getting through later in afternoon is better but as they are only giving appointments on the day and tell you call back next day, when same thing happens.

I ended up having to (very reluctantly) call 111 last week (but that's what the receptionist told me to do), made me feel something of a fraud but I was in real pain following a (non emergency accident) ... felt even worse when 111 gave me an appointment at A&E. After all of that I was prescribed pain killers that the Doc could have very simply fulfilled

I really don't believe the Covid excuses ... this is what 'new normal' looks like imo

Lewes has a small injuries unit which is open most days, which can treat patients. It’s far better than A&E.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

Lewes has a small injuries unit which is open most days, which can treat patients. It’s far better than A&E.

The minor injuries units are fantastic. Ours is in Southampton, and with myself and both my sons playing a lot of sport, we've had many an opportunity to visit over the years.

So much better than A+E - generally no more than an hour waiting, and you don't share the waiting area with aggressive drunks, etc. The practitioner takes a look, you get an immediate x-ray, right there (rather than traipsing off to the fracture clinic) and a swift diagnosis. More people should use them, and leave A+E to the really serious stuff.

 

[bluenitsuj]

They are still hiding behind the Covid excuse with no valid reason anymore. It is a joke. Dentists have been open for many months now

 

[rebel51]

And as for mental health services, don't even go there. It's come to a bloody standstill, I need to change meds that a gp doesn't get involved with, so I'm fighting a losing battle atm

 

[Weststander]

And as for mental health services, don't even go there. It's come to a bloody standstill, I need to change meds that a gp doesn't get involved with, so I'm fighting a losing battle atm

Other than CAMHS, which in our experience, have still been amazing.

 

[Cowfold Seagull]

Lewes has a small injuries unit which is open most days, which can treat patients. It’s far better than A&E.

ANYWHERE is better than A & E these days.

 

[AmexRuislip]

Interested to know if my current experience is the norm or unique to my practice. Went to make an appointment last Thursday and had to phone as they won't let you in without an appointment. I wanted to see a nurse or pharmacist about my blood pressure and a possible issue with my existing medication. This morning, I am waiting for a telephone triage call from a nurse who will then decide if I am worthy to go and talk to someone. Just tried phoning to find out how they will contact me as I don't want to sit by the home phone all day - 3 minutes of recorded message later, I am queue position 13.

This isn't a discussion about pressures on the NHS. Just interested if this is a problem across the board on just my practice. Had a few issues over the last few years and never seen a doctor - you get a nurse or a paramedic - so probably is just them. But I did get a face to face appointment with a nurse back in April when everything was more locked down.

I needed to speak to my doctor about something, which I did through their E-consult.
Had to tick boxes after various questions.
10 mins later I received my sick note.
Can book appointments through the NHS app for my docs.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

The minor injuries units are fantastic. Ours is in Southampton, and with myself and both my sons playing a lot of sport, we've had many an opportunity to visit over the years.

So much better than A+E - generally no more than an hour waiting, and you don't share the waiting area with aggressive drunks, etc. The practitioner takes a look, you get an immediate x-ray, right there (rather than traipsing off to the fracture clinic) and a swift diagnosis. More people should use them, and leave A+E to the really serious stuff.

Our neighbour fell down some steps and we took her to Lewes at 7pm. They were excellent.
It’s open from 8am-8pm and covers minor illnesses too.

I agree, more people should use them.

 

[Dick Swiveller]

Quick update - I had my phone call with my nurse and now qualify for a phone call with my doctor on Thursday. Despite thinking it is the pharmacist at the practice I need to see to tweak my medication.

 

[Denis]

I would ask the pharmacist at your local chemist for advice. It could even be a reaction to the cream.

Thanks, good idea.