My wife hasn’t had this check since we moved here 5 years ago when the nurse said due to her having Bronxhectasis and an aspergillus growth in one lung that my wife probably knew more about her treatment than she did and they wouldn’t bother with another appointment. At our previous address my wife had had a lot of appointments but found them quite useless for her and they eventually stopped doing them at her practice anyway.
Do any of you still get these and do you find any benefit. My wife is going because for the first time in decades this year she had hay fever which caused a chest infection and then another allergic asthma attack one night. She used her reliever inhaler and just ordered more but they haven’t given her any - in fact they made a right mess of her repeat prescription even though she was told to put it on when she saw the senior nurse practitioner after the allergic type of asthma attack she had about two weeks ago (!)So is hoping she can sort that out with the nurse if nothing else.
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Desanthony
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Hope it all goes well for your wife Desanthony. Sometimes reviews are worth doing, sometimes they are no more than a tick box exercise, depending on the knowledge of the nurse you get.One benefit for your wife is it presents an opportunity to ask for the reliever inhaler to be on open request. (As it should be!)
I get an asthma review and a copd review, usually one after the other, by telephone since start of covid. I reckon there must be a fixed fee for each review and consider this the true reason for these reviews. Have to say they are pretty useless imho
Yea we have found these a waste of time previously but as she didn’t get her ventolin in her last repeat prescriptions thought she would go and ask again if nothing else - it’s so hard to get to see anyone at the surgery these days so be good to see someone - though surprised it’s not by phone. Think they would do blood tests and vaccinations by phone if they could nowadays!
Hi Desantony I feel for you! We have find it so hard getting help over the past two years. My husband had almost zero respiratory reviews for COPD & Asthma and really deteriorated. Nothing happened until I wrote a detailed e mail on his condition and how it effects him (and me) and asked it be shown to GP and placed with his records. I know they can’t discuss another patient but it made sure how he is was recorded. All doctors are at least mindful of negligence! It worked. Finally after 2.5 years waiting he’s about to undergo Pulmonary Rehab which has given us a bit of hope. Good luck! These days we have to really push!
Very good question! More idiotic thinking from those half wits who govern us. The mind boggles at the gp services today., some good but many certainly not worthy of the high pay for part time hours.
When things go relatively okay-ish I don't think having constant check ins with the nurse is a priority. I would however bear in mind, with chronic illness, things do not always go well and then getting back in the loop is very difficult. I don't personally have experience myself as I am Japanese living in Japan. I see doctors not nurses. But for my sister who lives in the U.K. it became an issue. During Covid she dropped off the books with her GP. She is legally blind and has autoimmune disorders and is housebound. She could not get any help from her surgery whatsoever. So in desperation from six thousand miles away I wrote an email to her surgery advocating for her. It was lucky they took it seriously and now she is back on the system with help from a physiotherapist and is finally be seeing a Rhuematologist after months and months of pain. It was discovered during a blood test that she has some very high white blood markers and now is on the Cancer pathway. It may be nothing or it may be be something.
My point is, get into the loop and stay there because if something drastic happens it won't be easy to get the attention she needs. Best wishes.
She would do the same for me. It is definitely a fine line, with lots of diplomacy and a tiny bit of urgency. Difficult. We all need an advocate at times. I hope your issue with the surgery is okay now Knitter. xx 🌷
Hi, I had exactly the same experience as your wife after moving to a new town 7 years ago. For 1st 3 years the same respiratory nurse wax utterly useless, I felt I knew more than she did. 4th year I thought I'd give her one last chance but low and behold there was a different one and she was incredible, so pleased I hadn't given up. I also haven't had a review since 2019.By the way, with Bronchiectasis your wife is entitled to 2 respiratory checks annually, a referral to a hospital consultant (preferably one who's an expert in Bronch), sputum tests via GP when she has an infection and prophylactic antibiotics - at leastin the winter. With the complication of aspergillosis they should be looking after her as it can multiply and need antivirals to manage it.
Gps don't understand about bronchiectasis so my gp always tells me to contact consultant and physio nurse at the hospital. They only repeat prescription and give rescue pack medication
I hope all goes well for your wife. I have an annual asthma review with a nurse at my drs practice but it’s basically a tick box exercise because because my asthma and bronchiecstasis are monitored by the hospital.
Good luck with your wife's appointment.I find it helpful to write down any questions I want to ask beforehand as when faced with medical bods my brain goes into hibernation ....
I have an annual review with the surgery asthma nurse, it is pretty much a tick box exercise and these days over the phone. I am also under the regional respiratory team who look after my lung conditions, again over the phone. I use both to answer questions, check things if I have any issues and if I get infections then the regional team sort out sputum samples and antibiotics if needed, they are the link to the consultant. It’s worth keeping some contact with the GP’s team as back up if you need local advice it’s also another route to the GP if needed.
I'm very lucky to have a Bronchiectasis Consultant who does a Patient Initiated Pathway where you stay on their books and once a year they send you a questionnaire to check on how you are doing. I take prophylactic antibiotics 3 × week & my GP knows which rescue antibiotics to give me if get chest infection. I can always call the Consultant if worried & get seen in outpatients for chest x-ray etc. They also have specialist B'ect nurses who check you are doing the sputum clearances exercises correctly. Has your wife been refered to a B'ect specialist?
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