Janet -v- UCLH. Continued...

Had my blood test earlier for my prescription update. Back home phoned GP. No appt slots in July. Phone end of week to see if August put on screen.

Open letter. From Pool List for Natl Hosp for Neurology & Neurosurgery, apologising that my appt could take several months etc.

Puzzled, I phone the line manager who I spoke to earlier. No answer. Try PA team for Urologist. No answer.

Get through to appts of Pool List, to be told I am ROUTINE, and can wait 7 months.

At which I was speechless for a few seconds.

I then broke down in tears, and asked how on earth could my pain be classed as routine?! Given tel no. of PALS.

Phoned PALS. Very helpful lady who has agreed to help. I told her about the referral, the inadequate pain relief (how I was never routinely prescribed morphine), how I've been given the runaround and I am often lucky to get someone at the end of the phone, and how I feel the members of the surgical team never hung around long enough to listen to me properly.

She will contact the main doctor at the Pain Mgement Centre, and the line manager to query the referral. In the meantime, I am to see my GP and get them to fax my past medical history from their PoV, and the suffering post surgery, medic to medic, in the hope that something can be done sooner.

I said, please bear in mind there are no appts for several weeks!

Also given a telephone number to instigate a complaint procedure about the retrospective points, ie the post op care and the (in my view) inadequate pain relief. Will do that later when I have the time to spare (cooking dinner now so I can go to allotment later when cooler).

Wish me luck!

Re: Janet -v- UCLH. Continued...

I do wish you luck gal - nothing worse than given the run around when you are in pain and of course adding to the stress !
Hope PALS will help you and soon xx

Re: Janet -v- UCLH. Continued...

Good luck Jan darlin' - in the meantime re: your thread about T.V. schedules - I have copied and posted the email I sent to Lord Tony Hall (BBC DG) and will keep you appraised of any response I get.

Re: Janet -v- UCLH. Continued...

Oh Jazzi what a mess your help seems to be in.

That is so shocking that you cannot get an appointment for a couple of weeks. Surely you can ring up on the day and they can slot you in.

Sending you lots of hugs - I am speechless.

Re: Janet -v- UCLH. Continued...

Thank you folks! Unfortunately, this is now the situation at the GP surgery. They are obviously heavily registered and this of course has a major impact on people wanting to be seen.

Wasn't the case a short time ago...seems to have suddenly happened.

Geoff, I've read your email re tv schedules. Good luck.

Shirley, I need to wait at least a week for my blood test results to come through, and I will no doubt require (and request) a double appointment, to get the results, list updated, scrip printed out to hand over to pharmacist for the repeats, and then to discuss the current issue. And I want to see a certain female GP who is part time but who was very nice. There is another female, but I prefer the other one. She was quite empathetic and caring.

Tramadol and paracets taken hour and half ago...still waiting for them to kick in!