Doctors appointments - or lack of

I phoned GP surgery to get appointment yesterday and it had recorded message that on no account, if anyone had flu like symptoms, were they to go into the surgery - because of possible corona virus.

Missfoodlove I am very interested in that link you posted to Healio. Thank you.

Sparkle fix I’ve ordered some echinacea drops thankyou.
And
Foodlove I ordered some NAC it came yesterday. Could you ask your friend how many mgs she took a day please?

Thankyou for the recommendations. But as it’s now Saturday I can’t ring my docs again till Monday. I tried 111, I had to do it on line as I’m coughing so much a telephone call was out of the question. The answer came up DIAL 999 FOR AN AMBULANCE NOW.
That’s way over the top. I know I’m ill, but I don’t need an ambulance.

I live in Central Scotland, but broke my arm in Aberdeen, mid October. Paramedic appeared within minutes, then ambulance to Aberdeen Royal, seen within 30 minutes. Came home next day, Aberdeen had organised a Consultants appointment at local hospital for X-Rays & analysis a week later and then an appointment with Physio a week after that. Also carers coming in night and morning to help me dress shower etc. for 6 weeks. Sent for a scan and blood tests done in January to rule out Osteoporosis.

Sister was recalled end of November after elective Breast Screening, tests done at beginning of December in Glasgow, tiny lump identified, removed in January. She starts 3 weeks of radiotherapy next week. All free on the SNHS, even offered refund of travel expenses.

I, personally, have no complaints but wish the service was as good elsewhere.

Wow it’s like another world Granny23 but to be fair I suppose Scotland do get more money to spend per head don’t they ? Not being argumentative just saying that perhaps that’s the difference ?

missfoodlove thanks for the link
I've been reading about this for a while its commonly called NAC supposed to be good for a variety of conditions bronchial, liver, depression and neuropathy
Worth taking a look ?

Gilly, Responsibility for the National Health Services in Scotland is a devolved matter and therefore rests with the Scottish Government. Legislation about the NHS is made by the Scottish Parliament.

The Scottish Government decides what resources are to be devoted to the NHS, in the context of devolved public expenditure. Of approximately £34.7 billion controlled by the Scottish Government, around £11.9 billion is spent on health.
That's a big part of the budget!

However, we still do have huge waiting lists for things like joint replacements. One of my friends had a private hip replacement at a cost of £11,000!!!!! There was a forty six week waiting list. She was very fortunate that she had the means to do so.
I waited six months for a coronary angiogram, despite having spent time in coronary care. I could have been dead by then!

Sorry Willynilly I didnt mean to imply that our overall health system s better than your. Its not. it's shocking. My late father spent many hours lying on hospital trollies while seriously ill, sometimes with not even a pillow because they'd run out.

But personally I'd prefer to pay 50 euro for a same day gp appointment than wait a month when I was ill and needing medication.

Don’t be fooled that the Scottish NHS is like that everywhere. I have been on two waiting lists for more than 20 weeks here in the Grampian region. Services here have deteriorated noticeably in the past three or four years.

Many of us can think of excellent service we have received in different parts of the UK and also quote dire incidents.

It is patchy.

Sparklefizz I agree. A telephone appointment is preferable to spreading the germs around the GP waiting room.

Antibiotics may well be the answer if the bronchitis is a bacterial infection hitching a ride on the original problem.

If you can’t get through to your GP, then take the advice of others and ring 111.

Hope you are soon feeling better.

I’ve posted about this before but I still shake my head in disbelief about the huge variations in GP practices. I’m equidistant from two practices in an affluent market town, same demographics, patient list size pro rata , funding , CCG etc I moved 6/7 months ago and the difference was unbelievable. It still seems like all my birthdays and christmas’ come at once.

Well in that case it’s money well spent Marydoll much more important to have a relatively healthy population than some ridiculous vanity project . So well done Scotland . ?

I am seriously considering moving GP practise Suziewoozie ours has become a bit of a joke.

I've been plagued with colds turning into chest infections in the last few years. A couple of months ago I started a really bad cough on a Friday night and thought 'This is going to be really bad by the time I can see a GP', so I went to the local walk-in centre on the Saturday and was given antibiotics. I don't see why I should have to go there rather than see my own GP, but I had pneumonia one year starting with similar symptoms, so I felt I really needed looking at.

More recently, I looked on the NHS website for advice about coughs and saw that they recommended a herbal remedy called pelargonium. I bought some on Amazon in the form of drops which you put into water. These did seems to affect my cough. I bought some in Holland and Barrett and the shop assistant told me that they have loads of people going in for them, all, like me, very surprised that they work. So they might be worth a try?

We can always get a same day appointment for urgent matters.

kerenheppuch
Pelargonium?? Isnt that a geranium

But personally I'd prefer to pay 50 euro for a same day gp appointment than wait a month when I was ill and needing medication.
Wouldn't everyone Beswitched but not everyone can afford to. But we all pay into the health service so we should get what we pay for.
In N I, waiting times for urgent consultant appointment, eg endoscopy - is 6 mths. Not considered urgent is 12 mths. Its like that for most departments. Dreadful.
Non urgent GP appointments varies 1-3 weeks according to numbers needing them.

Benenden is great value. I advise anyone who can to join.

Gillybob your husband's treatment is very bad. Unbelievably so. I hope you complained loudly to MP.

I know that anecdotes about what individuals' experiences have been are not really helpful; but they highlight the more general point made upthread about services being patchy. They really are, and IMO this should be something that the NHS can deal with.

We all pay NI and tax, so we should get the same services, but even in the same town GP surgeries vary, and at the next level, hospitals offer different things to their patients. I don't understand why there can't be a centralised system, to ensure parity and equal access to drugs and other treatments/diagnostics, so that the postcode lottery is stopped.

Doodle re GP surgeries IMO ( and IME) it’s not about diagnostics and access to drugs/treatment per se it about having a GP practice that has the right culture and ethos. The partners being willing to fund a good practice manager and support all non clinical staff with training and appropriate resources including software. If you can’t get an appointment without a fight you may well just give up and then you access nothing

Totally agree suzie. I think it’s the same in hospitals - leadership in individual departments is very important to maintain ethos & ensure things happen efficiently.
But at the same time, staff become demoralised by lack of funding & red tape & that’s when things start to fall apart.

Recently a friend attended a hospital appointment for a review after some tests had been done & couldn’t see the consultant because the test results hadn’t been sent on from the hospital where they had been done.....really, how hard would it be for someone to check the day before that all the required information was there, and if it wasn’t, to rebook the patient?
In the example I gave, not only was my friend inconvenienced, but someone else could have been given his appointment and not had to wait so long.

Doodle re GP surgeries IMO ( and IME) it’s not about diagnostics and access to drugs/treatment per se it about having a GP practice that has the right culture and ethos. The partners being willing to fund a good practice manager and support all non clinical staff with training and appropriate resources including software. If you can’t get an appointment without a fight you may well just give up and then you access nothing

That's true, but not the whole story. We have a telephone system. If you are lucky enough to get through at 8.00 am (when a lot of people are commuting) you get a callback from a GP if the receptionist thinks you need one. There is an option to book a call online, but you have no idea when it will happen, so unless you are able to take private calls at work with no notice you need to take a day off, or risk missing it by being en route or in a meeting or something.

If you jump those hurdles and the GP thinks you need to be seen, it can happen the same day. I had that experience recently. I got a call, spoke to the GP, who wanted to see me urgently, so made me an appointment an hour later - so far, so good.

He wanted me to have a chest X ray and an ECG, which had to be done at the hospital. I got the X ray done in a walk-in centre, but need an appointment for the ECG, which couldn't be arranged by phone. The letter came a few days later, and the appointment is for 5 weeks after the urgent GP appointment.

I can't get treatment until I get a diagnosis, which won't happen for months, as it can take 2 weeks after the ECG before the GP gets the results, and then I need an appointment to speak to him about them. Not ideal if it turns out I have a heart condition.

I agree absolutely about the fragmentation of diagnostic services - but you know both of my practices do ECGs in house at the drop of a hat ie as in make an appt with the nurse for this afternoon so again, we’re looking at the role of GP practices. And the telephone system at my now practice is just perfection. You can literally ring 24/7 to arrange a telephone consultation ( you just have to register first on the system) and an automated voice gives you a time - if birding nie (Sat afternoon) I’d get a slot Monday and they ring within 10 mins either side. If I needed to make an appt for Monday, I’d ring this same 24/7 number and if there wasn’t an appt free, they’d give me a telephone slot as outlined above with a guarantee of a face to face if deemed necessary after the call. This is what I mean by the right software - this telephone software is available for any GP practice that is prepared to invest in it.
janea I think the issues re hospitals are qualitatively different

Birding nie = if I ring now (obvs?)