I have been having periods of AF over the last two years. These have been becoming predictively more regular. The first GP I spoke to about two years ago, recommended buying a Kardia and was pleased I also had an Iwatch. I sent him a couple of PDFs from the Kardia and as a result of this I was put on Rivaroxiban and a 1.25mg Bisoprolo if needed. 18 months go by and my AF now appears around weekly. I thought it was about time to chat to a GP again. I duly sent of a couple of more PDF from the Kardia and phoned for an appointment. Down here in New Romney Kent you can not get a face to face appointment yet the GPs are still hiding behind a phone. I received a call back and this GP was he was totally the opposite. In the knowledge that I had a Kardia and Iwatch he insinuated that I was obsessive and should throw the Iwatch away. He said they do more harm than good. He told me to continue the same medication and don’t worry about it. This GP is a locom and I’m now concerned that he would have written on my notes that I’m some kind of hypochondriac. It was the first GP that recommended that I purchased the Kardia, I had never heard of them before then and to check blood pressure pulse etc regularly.
Has anyone else had similar. It’s made we wary regarding contacting the GP again. Should I report this to the practice or something
Written by
Firstbusman
To view profiles and participate in discussions please or .
If someone had said anything like that to me I'd be feeling upset and really nasty. I want to swear at that locum for you!
It's a big decision whether, or not to report him, it may make you appear a troublemaker. I was in a similar position earlier in the year. I was discharged from A&E one Saturday feeling nauseous and absolutely dreadful by a very arrogant Registrar. As a mature nurse wheeled me out to my daughter, she bent and said to me, "You should never be being discharged, you should take it up with PALS". When we reached my house my son in law had to practically lift me into the house and my daughter was so concerned she stayed overnight. On the following Monday when my GP saw my blood results she said I needed to go back to A&E, well I refused after the humiliation of being discharged and told I could cope with the way I was feeling at home. My GP did more blood tests and then later in the week almost begged me to go back to hospital and offered to get me straight into a ward and bypass A&E. I refused, to be honest I'd rather have died than gone back there. For about a week I felt nauseous, couldn't eat for about two weeks and took about three to recover. My daughter has said she never wants to see me so ill again. She works at the hospital and when I said should I complain she responded with, "Do you really want that recorded on your file" and I knew her answer was no.
In your case I would want to know what has been recorded on your file.
Completely agree with Jean. Ask to see your medical record - do it in writing via the Surgery Manager.
If you want a sensible prognosis & treatment plan you need to see a specialist EP.
Speak to your original GP and ask for a referral. In the meantime research specialists in your area & be specific to whom you want to be referred to and be polite but persistent as your current treatment is obviously not working.
There is no reason not to see GP in person but all GPs are doing telephone triage before making face to face appointments which is fair enough.
Gosh yes Firstbusman. While I agree that sometimes people do get obsessive about checking for their arrhythmias, this is not the same thing at all. Some GPs are very anti your being able to part diagnose your own conditions with technology, and when I was trying to get a diagnosis for my Afib for four years I came across many of them, mostly locums! Afib is such a common condition that they’d all do well to listen a bit more intently to us, and, if clinics and equipment aren’t made available to help us all, then they should scarcely be complaining when we choose to help ourselves!
Assuming you are a man now you know what women go through - not wishing it on anyone of course. It has been fatal to show too much interest in your condition but I think it is becoming the way to go - self management - and your locum is behind the times. I took a couple of Kardia recordings to my (female) GPs and one was very dismissive but still referred me to Cardiology who were very impressed with my recording and fast tracked me for an ablation. The next one was equally dismissive. Your present treatment is minimal and definitely needs review.
That kind of thing isn't written on your notes; and you can see those notes at will for free. Don't worry. There will be very many genuine hypochondriacs on your doctor's books that he might have misunderstood your buying the watch and Kardia and, from his wider experience of others but not of you, drew a wrong conclusion.
I believe that if one insists on a face-to-face appointment and it is for something that truly needs one, then doctors have to agree to it these days. I believe the government have insisted on that. Mind you, like so much of what they say these days, that might also be like Scotch mist.
All calls are recorded at our surgery so if that's the case at yours, the practice manager will be able to listen to how this person spoke to you. They would have got both barrels from me so well done for keeping your cool.
These days you see another GP in the practice or change practice. As Buffafly says it is about self-management now, you can't just rely on the first doctors comments. If I was you I would also talk to an experienced Naturopath; I did and he put me on a Magnesium compound and CoQ10. Such alternative approaches are likely to become more accepted following action to avoid or deal with Covid.
Forget your GP, he or she shouldn't be in the medical profession.
I think there's more than a grain of true in the fact that having the ability to monitor your HR and ECG via iwatch or other device can add to a sense of hypochondria ( I plead guilty to that too )...I'm sure the GP isnt alone in his/ her view fairly routine I suspect another medic may take a completely different view of course .
I would speak to your GP practise manager about this & express your concerns calmly and politely. They were clearly worried about your condition & whoever it was needs to be addressed. They could cause harm to someone else. I had a bad incident with a new GP and did this. It was dealt with & I received a verbal apology. To be honest if you keep calm & are polite what can they record? Not doing anything allows bad practise to continue. And more worrying puts you off seeking help. You don't have to put a formal complaint in to have it addressed. Also with a bit of luck you may never have to speak to this idiot again..
Content on HealthUnlocked does not replace the relationship between you and doctors or other healthcare professionals nor the advice you receive from them.
Never delay seeking advice or dialling emergency services because of something that you have read on HealthUnlocked.
Conflicting doctors advice
Any information on Flutter?
AFA Information Links
Mis-Information on Internet. BE CAREFUL
Difficulties making an informed decision on Covid vaccines. 
