Am I expecting too much of my GP surgery?

You are not asking too much, your surgery sounds a bit like mine, a total shambles. My OH has a bad arm turns out is shoulder impingement, he saw an assistant physician or nurse practitioner, we never get a GP, haven’t seen one for well over a year, and tried to talk about meds for chronic autoimmune disease, but was told he could only talk about one thing and would have to make another appointment. We still haven’t been able to make an appointment, the app isn’t working and when we ring at 8 the queue is too long. So he rang his consultant’s Secretary who told him he should take this up with his GP, he told her that he doesn’t have a GP, to cut a long story short the consultant prescribed different meds, we had to drive nearly three quarters of an hour to the hospital to pick up the prescription, and someone at our practice should have a letter from the consultant informing them of the change to his meds.
I really do feel for you. We are definitely not asking too much but too little. I hope you manage to sort this out.
All the best 🌹

I am in virtually the identical position as Lucky. My new surgery is staffed entirely by locums, so seeing the same GP twice is never going to happen. Even the nurse practitioner is a locum!

I had what I thought might be a DVT. Called the surgery: "No appointments available". Pointed out to dippy receptionist that blood clots travel and can end up in heart, lungs or brain. "No appts available". Two days later, the surgery called to make an appt - for two weeks later (no urgency, then)! Three days later, my chest was rattling like a clapped out old banger and I was coughing up blood.

Saw the locum nurse the next day who said she would refer me for a chest X-ray. One week later, I had a call from the hospital asking where I was. This nurse had made an appointment with the DVT clinic but no-one had thought to let me know!! No wonder the NHS loses money hand over fist.

Incidentally, it was the government, not the individual GPs, who dictated that a patient was only allowed to discuss one symptom per consultation. Daft. I repeatedly say that invariably there is a connection, which falls on deaf GP ears. What is everybody afraid of?

only allowed to discuss one symptom are you sure about this dalrymple?

Most GPs are under contract to the NHS but their standards of care are answerable to the GMC, not the government, I would have thought. THEY can choose what they agree to discuss surely, but they may decide to decree only one symptom due to time constraints.

It was the government, not the individual GPs, who dictated that a patient was only allowed to discuss one symptom per consultation.

I had no idea dalrymple
What idiot dreamed that up?

I have looked everywhere I can think of online but can't find this dalrymple - please can you post a link?
Thank you.

I would happily settle for one health issue per patient if I ever got to see a GP.
Haven’t seen one in ages.

I wonder how,any people fall through the cracks, become infirm, confused, depressed, and just give up...

I was married to one. Those days, there was no ‘out of hours’ service. The GPs themselves did the night calls. Being a 2-man practice, my Ex was ‘on call’ every other night, although I must say, it wasn’t very often he was called out. They were good patients.

Probably because they had good care?
Do you think they did?

MissAdventure

I wonder how,any people fall through the cracks, become infirm, confused, depressed, and just give up...

Oh am sure that the reason for so many individuals undiagnosed or misdiagnosed with life threatening diseases whom we read about in the news with horrifying regularity is down to people being unable to access health care and just putting up with awful symptoms because is just too difficult to get to see a GP or be referred.
Is a crisis that is killing far too many people too soon.

My daughter and I often said we like the chance to study 1000 random medical files, of people who have died from natural causes, and see just how many missed appointments, follow ups which weren't followed up, and people.e assuming that not hearing from the gp meant that all was well.

dalrymple23

I am in virtually the identical position as Lucky. My new surgery is staffed entirely by locums, so seeing the same GP twice is never going to happen. Even the nurse practitioner is a locum!

I had what I thought might be a DVT. Called the surgery: "No appointments available". Pointed out to dippy receptionist that blood clots travel and can end up in heart, lungs or brain. "No appts available". Two days later, the surgery called to make an appt - for two weeks later (no urgency, then)! Three days later, my chest was rattling like a clapped out old banger and I was coughing up blood.

Saw the locum nurse the next day who said she would refer me for a chest X-ray. One week later, I had a call from the hospital asking where I was. This nurse had made an appointment with the DVT clinic but no-one had thought to let me know!! No wonder the NHS loses money hand over fist.

Incidentally, it was the government, not the individual GPs, who dictated that a patient was only allowed to discuss one symptom per consultation. Daft. I repeatedly say that invariably there is a connection, which falls on deaf GP ears. What is everybody afraid of?

We’ll, I had unusual pain in my chest, rang 111, advised A&E, swiftly moved through, bloods for d-dîmer test then CT scan, two small clots in my lungs, now on blood thinners.
If I suspected a DVT I wouldn’t wait for my surgery, I’d act.

I looked through my notes on Patients Access recently. A member of staff at our surgery recorded that I am a smoker and she gave me smoking cessation advice.

Except that it is completely wrong. I quit smoking just a couple of months shy of 20 years ago. She must have got me muddled with another patient! I messaged and told them because I want it corrected. Imagine if I put in an insurance claim and the insurers say “ sorry but you never disclosed you are a smoker.”

Makes you wonder how much more they record wrongly.

@Primrose53 how did you get access to your records, would like to read mine but not sure how to do it.

I look at my record via Patient Access ... if you Google this you will find how to register. I am aware of several inaccuracies on there ... including a missed appointment .. weren't me guv!

No appointments for 16 weeks with any GP is what I get if I try to make one on the app. Phone calls never get through. Basically I don't bother any more. Luckily I haven't had anything that hasn't resolved itself with self treatment since 2019 except for scabies which was misdiagnosed in my grandson and then spread through the whole family. Permethrin which clears it up was totally unavailable (and I believe still is). My pharmacist showed me on his computer 4 A4 pages of common drugs that are unavailable and yet GPs were still prescribing them! However they can be bought online - a simple ointment for 4 children and 2 adults £180 which we could ill afford but itching makes you desperate!! Shambles is an understatement!

Babs03

@Primrose53 how did you get access to your records, would like to read mine but not sure how to do it.

Babs03. Ask at your GP Practice. You have to set up a password with them and when I first set mine up you also had to show some form of ID.

On ours you can order prescriptions, read consultation notes, read test results and (more recently) look at certain documents (eg there was a copy of a letter I sent to one GP). It would be great if you could also make appointments but you can’t on ours.

P.S. it also includes notes if you have been to outpatients, minor injuries or chemists for tests.

I was in town a few months ago and Boots were offering free blood pressure checks. They pressurised me a bit so I had one. Next time I saw our GP she said “I see you had a BP check at Boots. You could have had one here and we would get paid for it instead of them.”

That made me think they care more about the money than the patient. Because she never mentioned that my BP was spot on and she didn’t comment when I told her it was just convenient to get one on the spot rather than waiting two weeks at the surgery.

Of course you’re not being unreasonable luckygirl. Continuity of care with a complex history is essential, it makes management of issues so much better for both patient and GP. Your situation is appalling.

I agree with others about contacting the practice manager, in writing. I would hope they would intervene and get you the help you deserve.

Our huge (8 surgery) GP practice employs a number of pharmacists who manage medication reviews and are the first port of call for worries about side effects. They often make contact with hospital consultants to check out whether a change fits with their requirements. Administratively the process to get to a clinician is unwieldy (e-consult with a three day wait for a response then usually two weeks for an appointment) unless an emergency when a duty doctor responds. We do get there eventually but as I pointed out to our surgery manager the process is too much for many very unwell people. They simply give up. If she knows about an issue she can and does sort it, the problem is patients aren’t aware of that!

I wish I had an easy solution for you luckygirl. Please don’t despair, there will be someone in the practice who can help, the practice manager is a good place to start. Apologies though if you’ve already tried this.

Did you try the practice manager luckygirl?

I think you need to make an appointment with a private Doctor who would be able to give you the time you need.

@Primrose53
Thanx 🌹

Luckygirl3

I can't make a double appointment - I've tried and they are weeks and weeks away and with a random doctor who knows nothing about me. In the meantime I am not taking a drug should be taking (because they won't reinstate it without seeing me the doc) and not taking another without proper advice as the side effects are too awful, having no idea whether this is detrimental to my heart.

Are you by any chance under shared care between your GP and a hospital dept? If so contact your consuktant and explain the difficulties re drugs etc. My consultant soon had things sorted when I had similar re vital blood tests.

We're not allowed double appointments at my GPS.
I'd like to think I've got the common sense to not bring up two potentially huge problems at once, but so be it.

I'll do one appointment per issue.

Farzanah & Not Spaghetti: I went into my previous GP surgery in Sussex with a list of symptoms post heart attack. Total refusal to discuss more than one - "choose just the most important". "What if they are connected?", I asked. I was told that I would have to go back another time.
.
Remember: consultants refer you back to the GP.

When I next saw my cardiologist, I asked him about this and he told me that it was a nationwide diktat, which came from the government and that wherever I moved I would have the same problem. No, it was not broadly advertised, as it would, naturally, cause national outrage!

It is actually the same here in Norfolk, except the NHS here has added a new dimension to lack of patient care. They have changed the criteria for obtaining patient transport to get to OPAs. I have mobility issues: spinal stenosis, oedema in both legs and breathing problems after the slightest exercise. I am no longer eligible for transport. I presume one now has to either be on a stretcher or in a coffin!! I was told to take a bus. Ho, ho! I suppose this is one way to reduce the waiting lists, as we all just keel over!