More chaotic/time-wasting NHS admin

Jess20

My son with cystic fibrosis has often been on more than 20 different prescription items a month. Some from the GP, some from the hospital and others delivered every 2-3 months by private companies. Surprisingly, given the comments on here, he rarely has any issues. He's very much on top of things though and has a great CF team who really get things done. The biggest problems arise when suppliers use companies like DHL to do the deliveries as they don't seem to be able to follow their own processes properly and hundreds of pounds worth of medical supplies has been dumped on our doorstep in the rain while we were out.

I have nothing but problems trying to manage my meds, which are similar.

It took me a year to be told that a private company would be handling one of my meds. Up until that time I would be told off by the consultant and the gp for not taking them, but I didn't know how to get them.

The gp receptionist would say they hadn't received emails, the consultant would be angry with me for attending an appointment when I wasn't taking the meds they'd described.

Then I saw a pharmacist who gave me a bit of paper with a company's name and number on, and said these people should be monitoring you and prescribing this medication.

A few months ago I had surgery for cancer and on the whole my treatment was very good. Post surgery I was prescribed compression stockings with the request for the prescription being sent to my GP. Six weeks later along came a pair - wrong colour and wrong size. I went to the surgery, asked the receptionist if they could be changed, but was told to return them to the pharmacy. Unfortunately, the pharmacist said that they could not be returned. I popped in to the Lymphoedema Dept of my local hospital and they again wrote to the surgery with the correct prescription, sending me a copy. A month later 2 compression sleeves arrived, not stockings, so back to the surgery where they said that they would again reorder. Another month later 2 more pairs were delivered, this time wrong colour and ankle length rather than below the knee.

I wrote to the surgery and once again they have reordered and are treating my letter as an official complaint.

I did consider buying my own stockings but they are £76 a pair which I can't afford. The surgery will have to bear the cost of 6 wasted pairs as well as the time spent in dealing with the matter and I have had to do without my prescription as well become more and more stressed. Grrh.....

I've lost count of how many hospital appointments I've had over the last two and a half years, but I'm glad to report that I've hardly had any letters about any of them, nor about the results. I don't need to because everything is online. Changes of address and medication are done centrally and available to all clinicians. I receive dates and times online and if they're inconvenient, I send a message and a change is made. Blood test results are usually available online by the end of the day and other results are available within a few days. I can also read my discharge notes and correspondence between my GP and the hospital. Before I was formally discharged from oncology, I could send a message about any concern via the "system" and I always received a reply.

Why can't all systems be like that?

PS. The only problem is if Microsoft has a global outage!

It seems to me that many of these comments/complaints are aimed at the admin, not the nursing/medical staff.

M0nica

Perhaps they use Fujitsu.

I worked as an administrator in the NHS for two years. The usual thing with computer systems was to commission one at great expense which had all the bells @ whistles that the management required. Once it was installed, the glitches would gradually appear, and the software company were brought back in to fix it, and so it went on.

Nicky7of7

I would advise everyone to log into the NHS app and check their GP app. I was appalled that so much of my information on the system was wrong. It said I had been seen and all test results had be discussed with me. I haven’t seen anyone and cannot get to see a HP having been told there are no appointments for the foreseeable future. Time for a change me thinks.

Yes, I did that. I went through the last year with a fine tooth comb and wrote a letter with all the mistakes, including that I don't have diabetic neuropathy (even though I have prescribed painkillers for it), but that I have been referred to an obesity clinic, but declined (even though I have never been obese in my life and am not even overweight).

I'm afraid I've found the hospital's IT system much more efficient than the GP. Given that there is no such thing as continuity of care with GPs now and clinicians have to rely on written records, some of the mistakes could have led to inappropriate care.

To the poster who finds complaints about the NHS tedious:
The NHS is not free. It us free at the point of delivery funded by taxes.
Whilst I am grateful for the concept, no one surely can be grateful for ineptitude and time and money wasting. The who organisation needs dismantling and putting together again in order to make the most of time and resources.
I and those dear to me have, btw, received care from the NHS which has varied from excellent to appalling. It seems to depend on where you go, what treatment you need and who you get.

*it is free
*the whole organisation

I'm trying to type with 3 year old granddaughter lying on me!

Metra. Sorry to hear about your stocking saga.

About 10 years ago I had laser surgery on a vein in my leg. I had to go to hospital and get measured before my surgery. On the day of the surgery the surgeon told me that I “might” need special stockings. I said I had already got them. He said “it’s up to you whether or not you wear them but we have to provide them as it is NICE guidelines.” What an absolute waste of money if they are doing this all over the country. My nurse friend told me they cost over £50 even then and they are no good to anybody else as they are made to measure.

My daughter has been in hospital for 15 days today she is being discharged. Physio cleared her first thing she is still waiting for a prescription and sick note and apparently they are short of beds not surprising if it takes hours to do two quick things in order to free up her room.

But it’s ’our NHS’ of which successive governments tell us to be so proud!

they are always slow to discharge, especially when the hospital pharmacy is involved

sorry rosie, I meant to add I hope your daughter is ok and home soon for a much needed rest

Metra

A few months ago I had surgery for cancer and on the whole my treatment was very good. Post surgery I was prescribed compression stockings with the request for the prescription being sent to my GP. Six weeks later along came a pair - wrong colour and wrong size. I went to the surgery, asked the receptionist if they could be changed, but was told to return them to the pharmacy. Unfortunately, the pharmacist said that they could not be returned. I popped in to the Lymphoedema Dept of my local hospital and they again wrote to the surgery with the correct prescription, sending me a copy. A month later 2 compression sleeves arrived, not stockings, so back to the surgery where they said that they would again reorder. Another month later 2 more pairs were delivered, this time wrong colour and ankle length rather than below the knee.

I wrote to the surgery and once again they have reordered and are treating my letter as an official complaint.

I did consider buying my own stockings but they are £76 a pair which I can't afford. The surgery will have to bear the cost of 6 wasted pairs as well as the time spent in dealing with the matter and I have had to do without my prescription as well become more and more stressed. Grrh.....

My husband has Lymphedema and has has exactly the same problems as you we have a large bag of incorrect stocking that have been sent ot prescribed. They are very expensive but they cannot take the incorrect ones back. Absolute madness and a waste of money

JaneJudge

sorry rosie, I meant to add I hope your daughter is ok and home soon for a much needed rest

Thank you she has badly broken her ankle and has had two lots of surgery but is now very frustrated trying to escape muttering no wonder the NHS is in a mess if it takes ages to do simple things.

I tried to cancel my partners eye clinic appointment as he had to work that particular day.
All,I got was the answerphones for the medical secretaries.
No one answers the phone. Ever.
After numerous tries I gave up.
I’m not sure what the secretaries are doing all day, but they are unobtainable.

When I go to the eye clinic I get 4 separate letters sent to me. 1 for each of the tests and 1 for the consultant. The appointments are 5 minutes apart.

The appointment line can take up to 90 minutes to get through to someone, it is also used as the general hospital number. It is soul destroying to hear you are number 35 in the queue, so I guess lots of people give up.

Nannapat1

To the poster who finds complaints about the NHS tedious:
The NHS is not free. It us free at the point of delivery funded by taxes.
Whilst I am grateful for the concept, no one surely can be grateful for ineptitude and time and money wasting. The who organisation needs dismantling and putting together again in order to make the most of time and resources.
I and those dear to me have, btw, received care from the NHS which has varied from excellent to appalling. It seems to depend on where you go, what treatment you need and who you get.

A massive organisation does not need wholesale dismantling to rectify admin flaws. In fact, re-organisation always results in more glitches until they're sorted. It needs the admin to be sorted - not dismantling.

rosie1959

My daughter has been in hospital for 15 days today she is being discharged. Physio cleared her first thing she is still waiting for a prescription and sick note and apparently they are short of beds not surprising if it takes hours to do two quick things in order to free up her room.

My experience is that patients in that situation are moved out of the bed and into a dayroom.

In her final years Mum was given 2 walking sticks and a commode. She never used the commode and, when she died, it was still wrapped in the original wrapping. We were told not to return it. We did, however, by dropping it off at our local hospital who said it was okay to do so. We gave the sticks to charity. It is all such a waste.

Greciangirl

I tried to cancel my partners eye clinic appointment as he had to work that particular day.
All,I got was the answerphones for the medical secretaries.
No one answers the phone. Ever.
After numerous tries I gave up.
I’m not sure what the secretaries are doing all day, but they are unobtainable.

I ended up phoning pals to ask the eye clinic to answer their phone.
Or to get back to me when I left a message.

growstuff

rosie1959

My daughter has been in hospital for 15 days today she is being discharged. Physio cleared her first thing she is still waiting for a prescription and sick note and apparently they are short of beds not surprising if it takes hours to do two quick things in order to free up her room.

My experience is that patients in that situation are moved out of the bed and into a dayroom.

No she will not be moved as she is a MRSA carrier so has been in isolation
Still waiting for her to be discharged after over 7 hours of being cleared by physio apparently now they are going to take some painkillers from the ward supply and then we will have to go back again tomorrow to pick up the rest.

DH sent NHS letter stating an appointment had been booked for him. Attached was a map of how to get to the hospital. The letter didn't state where the procedure was booked - the map was for a hospital oover 2hrs from us. They had enclosed the wrong map. We questioned it as we had to rebook the appointment due being on holiday.

M0nica

Perhaps they use Fujitsu.

Quite!

My husband received a letter for a face to face appointment with a consultant. He then received an email confirming said face to face appointment. Two days prior to the date, he received a text confirming the face to face appointment. It was in another town, and when he turned up for the appointment, he was told it was meant to be via the telephone. The consultant insisted on fitting him in which added more work for him. Our family will be eternally grateful for the treatment my husband has received, but the systems are in a dire state and let the staff down.

Many years ago my late DH had a pre-admission appt prior to his foot operation. He was told he would be in hospital for at least a week and would not be able to put any weight on that foot for several weeks. He had the op on a Friday, stayed in overnight and we were rung mid-morning on Saturday to say we could collect him and to bring up a wheelchair. We were a bit surprised and asked how we were to manage at home if he couldn't use one foot and leg. A physio arrived with crutches which DH had no chance of being able to use. I said we'd been told he would be in hospital for at least a week so the staff nurse said in that case I'll have to ring the bed manager and find him a bed. Unbelievable. This was pre-planned surgery. He had a further foot op two years later, on a Tuesday and the consultant said you'll be home on Friday for your lunch. Friday came and there was no-one available to discharge him. It was the bank holiday, he needed a plaster cast on his leg, the plaster room is closed at weekends and bank hols so he had to stay in until Tuesday when his discharge paper was signed at breakfast time but the plaster room was so busy he didn't get home until early evening. Five extra days in hospital.