Re: Over worked doctors ?
 

Rainbow six…I feel for you.
Not that this helps you in any way.
I do not know which Gp you are with, but I would suggest you find out who the practice manager is and that you E- mail them with a timeline of your difficulties.
Tell them that a copy of your letter is going to your MP and the Secretary of State for health.
I am not saying that this will bear results, but I think it will make the practice sit up and take notice.(and hopefully galvanise them into action)
Let them know that this is a COMPLAINT.
They have to respond to this in a specific time and they have to tell you what they are going to do about it to resolve the issues.
I hope you take my advice because for too long we have been in an unsupported situation with regards to health care.
Good luck.

Re: Over worked doctors ?
 

[QUOTE=RainbowSix;1273081]I have given up wanting to see a doctor, I'm in pain because of a back injury but in the past 2+ years not 1 medical person has actually touched my back to see where the problem is.
They just make assumptions over the phone and give me tablets to hide the pain.
Attempts to get an MRI have failed twice thanks to their useless booking system.

I think I'll turn to weed for some pain killer, never had it but I hear it's good for taking pain away.

Yes it may do but it will also take you brain away, (so I am led to believe).

Re: Over worked doctors ?
 

well it didnt take mine.

Re: Over worked doctors ?
 

[QUOTE=cashman;1273090]well it didnt take mine.

Cashy, beware of people in blue serge suits ;);)

Re: Over worked doctors ?
 

Taddy, these days they are in polo shirts and baseball caps and don't turn up for anything much less than a murder...so I reckon Cashy is pretty safe.

Re: Over worked doctors ?
 

well over the last couple of years .. ive had numerous hospital appointments with consultants for my eye and the shoulder, physio (till they found out that physio was making it worse .. and then found out there was another injury) and the latest was to see a cardiologist the other week ... which has he said it was nearly a year since i was referred ... and as i hadnt had any more episodes he'll put me thro just to make sure somekind of check where they get my heart to race and check the results ... i digress tho ... in all of this time .. i have not had an appointment with my gp ...when i tried to make an appointment the next one available was the middle of june i was asking at the end of april ....they told me to ring at 8am and i'l get a phone call .. and the doc will decide if i had to come in .. i said thats the urgent appointments not just a regular one ... and she said well thats all we have now. I didnt book it and i still aint seen my gp .. but in this time ive seen a cardiologist, an orthopedic surgeon (3 times), and had phone calls from the orthopedic surgeon 4 times ... had a phone call from the neurologist as well ...

but this one ... last december i got a phone call from blackburn royal as they were trying to get the waiting list down ... and they'd cocked up with me .. they asked if i would be willing to go to beardwood ... to have it done ... i said yes .. i got an appointment and had it done in february .. it felt just like being done on a production line .. same consultant id seen at blackburn did the procedure at beardwood (a private hospital in blackburn for those that dont know) !!! ive had follow up phone calls from the consultant ... had another one of these at the end of june (on a monday night)... he said i'll put you thro for another one .. on the saturday i had 2 letters one a letter about the phone call from the consultant .. the other an appointment for the procedure at beardwood again .. just over a week ago!!!! same consultant again ... did the procedure ... and i was back home by 11.30am .. i now have another follow up call booked with the consultant in a couple of weeks ...

all this is being done by beardwood .. a private hospital .. the nhs is paying them .. i thought the first one was a one off .. it now seems that im under beardwood for this and theyre doing all the followups .. wouldnt it be cheaper to do it at burnley or blackburn or even get my own gp to do it .. rather than paying private hospital rates ...

Re: Over worked doctors ?
 

Yes, GP's now get paid for how many patients they have on their books, not by how many they see. As for the consultant you saw he probably gets paid twice as much at Beardwood than doing the same job on the NHS and the NHS (ie you and me) are paying the consultant and they are then paying twice as much again.

The government and system don't want you living too long, you become a drain on the system, the want you to work until you are 67, pay minimum state pension, you then go into care and they take all your money and property until you die. That's the reality folks... Sadly

Re: Over worked doctors ?
 

I am not sure if it is still the same, but when I worked in the NHS, these services were contracted out to the private hospitals and from my recollections the consultants did not get paid the private rate.
I have a friend who was a gynae consultant and this information was from her

The situation of using private hospitals like Beardwood and Gisburn park was because they had facilities lying idle and if my memory serves me right the facilities were loaned to NHS so that the hospitals were getting a guaranteed income.
Well, that is how it used to work anyway.