Hey guys hope your all having a good evening! I decided to email again to double check and I do have my echo on monday and my holter on 4th August so two trips to London! 😅😆. So glad I checked or I would of just assumed it was cancelled so strange!
Good job I double checked. - British Heart Fou...
Good job I double checked.
Aw I know hun so glad I did! Yeah I go by train it takes a few hours I think good job it's in the afternoon! X 😁👍
Yeah I am gona ask 😅 I know it's bit cheeky but you don't ask you don't get in it. Yeah I get an over ground train and then 2 underground trains. 🚉😂. X
pleased that you’ve got your appointments sorted. Must be expensive travelling to london by train. X
£40 isn’t too bad. From where I live to London it’s about £200 return if you don’t book months in advance. Luckily, I live near one of the major heart hospitals in the North. I’ve got no appointments coming up as they’ve now put me on annual heart check ups which I think is a good thing. Fingers crossed. Hope everything is good with you and that your appointments go well. Xx
Aw wow I thought 40 pound was alot woah 200! 😳 So glad you live near a heart hospital. Aw that's good yeah I get check up every year and mri every 5 years and I have one coming up so very busy this few months indeed 😅. Thanks so much I will update everyone with how my appointments go, well as soon as I get results hehe 😁😅X
When i had to go to the House of Lords a few years ago from roughly Manchester area, it cost £200 for me and another £200 for my son to push my wheelchair,(plus a day off work) not helped because our local station isn't accessible at all so there was another £50 each way for a taxi to Preston. There and back in the day was exhausting.
Sometimes its easy to forget how fortunate we are to be close to our hospitals. Last week, it was HF Team, Bloods, Perfusion Scan and Warfarin Clinic. This week was one of those rare clear weeks, but, coming up from Monday, is the HF Team again, bloods, Warfarin Clinic and something a bit different with a Cardio Rehab assessment.
We are lucky to have such good hospitals nearby although I wasn’t thinking that last night as I sat in A&E at the RVI. I try not to be judgemental but Friday night at the RVI attracts a certain type of clientele and I was surrounded by the drunk and drugged. I don’t suppose it’s any different from any city hospital in that regard though. I’m pleased all your appointments are sorted and that it goes well with the HF team on Monday. Good luck with your perfusion scan results too. I’m discharged from the HF team for the time being but I always found them to be brilliant. The warfarin team are excellent too, good luck. X
Best wishes to you Yumz. and hope you get good results. At least the weather is not too hot, so hope you keep calm and enjoy the train journey. I love travelling by train, it’s the most relaxing form of travel l find. Take something nice to eat and drink. Keep us posted 😀
Aw thanks so much! Yeah I have a feeling nothing has changed much but will be interesting to see. So glad the weather cooled down was doing me in lol. Yeah it's quite a calm journey well until I get to London Liverpool Street! Bedlam 😂😂. Yeah I will definitely take something to eat and drink. Travelling really takes it out of me 🥴 so gona be knackerd after lol. X
Yeah, you will be tired but you will be ok. Will be thinking of you on Monday. I have to have a tooth out on Wednesday. Lol. Always something to mess your day up. 😀😂😂
Aw I'll be thinking of you on Wednesday, going to dentist is well traumatic hate it x I mean who actually likes going lol but yeah wish all the best at the dentist on Wednesday. Do you need antibiotics before having tooth out.
No antibiotics thankfully, but have to get blood INR checked, which is a pain. The tooth is bit loose so hopefully it shouldn’t take long urgh! Just another horrible part of life …..drs, dentist ……. Wishing you well and cyber hugs. xxx
Such a good job you checked hun. Wishing you all the best for your echo on Mon. I'm presuming they won't tell you anything at thd time, but have to wait for your cardiologist appointment to find out the results? X
Aw thanks yeah so glad I did thought I was going crazy when they said nothing on the 24th on there system lol. Yeah sometimes they do when you see the consultant after but I think this is just echo then send you on your way 😅. Yeah probably be few months before I know which will drive me insane I'm sure! X
I hate when you have to wait for the results when the person doing the scan clearly has it all in front of them. You can worry yourself sick waiting for the results. When I've had them done privately, it's lovely hearing the results from the consultant at the same time.Fingers crossed they don't make you wait months as you just want peace of mind 🤗xx
Aw I know the wait is awful! Sometimes they tell you there and then when you see consultant maybe I will find out at my check up in November. wow definitely good to go private I definitely would if I could afford it x yeah definitely need peace of mind I can drive my self crazy worrying as I have anxiety aswell which makes it sooo much worse! Xx 😅😘
I really hope they do tell you very soon and you don't have to wait. Having anxiety heightens the worry, which is totally understandable. That's good that you have a check up in November. I seem to have just been left. My local heart failure team have discharged me and I've never even seen my cardiologist, so goodness knows what my heart is doing inside 🤷🏾♀️.Does your anxiety keep you up at night? Xx
Yay! So all you have to do is turn up now which is the main thing. Hoping the strikes don’t get in the way of those appointments x
Aw thanks hun. Yeah I hope so aswell I'm gona check the trains incase there is any strikes. Hopefully the junior doctor strike dosent interfere with my echo! Aw I hope not and my holter monitor, ok there routine but always good to be in the know with how everything is going with the valves well my dodgy valve lol x
I had a test cancelled for about a month earlier in the year due to tube strikes. It’s not always ideal is it. Is your echo taking place on the 24th Aug ? X
Aw that's so frustrating! Hope mine isn't affected no it's 24th this Monday X.
Ohhh! Fingers crossed no strikes or cancellations. Let us know how the echo goes. I suppose you could cheekily ask the radiographer if everything is okay. Some say it looks okay, but speak to the doctor, and others say you need to speak to the doctor only. I’ve had both 🤣 x
Hey, glad you checked, can they not fit the holter at the same time? My mum had issues with her bowel and had to been seen in London and she would always try and get them to do both things on the same day. She was told no over the phone but when she was there she went to the other department explained the situation and they did see her that day, so maybe that's an option if they say no over the phone. I assume you have to go back to London to drop the holter back off?
Phew! 👏👏
We don’t have that problem in North Hampshire: text & email reminders are sent out the day before every appointment. It saves the NHS a fortune in missed appointments…. and also saves the patient being taken off the list & referred back to the GP
if you have to take the tube, bare in mind there is a tube strike next week so check that as well. Buses and public transport will be very busy so give yourself plenty of time
oh what tube is it??? I hope its not the one that goes to St Paul's? X
I think it’s all tubes it might be alright Monday but if you go on TfL website it gives more details. I rely on the tube to get to work. I’ve only been back for 2 wks but have taken leave next week because just at the moment can’t face the struggle to get to work
I don’t know if you have explored buses in London. We now tend to use them over tubes. My daughter lives in part of London without a tube so has introduced us to the buses. Very very efficient and they go every where. We took one bus from Tulse Hill all the way to Marble Arch. Otherwise a bus to Brixton and two tubes. Much more pleasant as the tube is hot, crowded and apparently the pollution is very high. Get to see London on a bus. Have to factor in more time but we’re not bothered by that. My husband uses an app called Citymapper and gets all the info needed.
Wow that sounds interesting the app. I did live in London for 14 years before moving away so I am used to travelling by bus only thing is I've never travelled by bus from London Liverpool Street to St barts 🤭😅 x
It takes about 20 minutes to walk from Liverpool St station to Barts Hospital.
I have to get to a hospital appointment next week. With no tubes running it's going to be a combination of buses and shanks pony for me.
Brilliant thanks milkfairy! As much I love a good walk do you know of any buses that pick up outside London Liverpool Street to barts?? X
My walk will be through Hampstead Heath so much nicer than the city.
Have a look at Transport for London's journey planner.
Thanks hun X yeah I did I saw there's a taxi that takes 6 minutes and costs 8 pound so might do that and then risk it getting tube back to London Liverpool Street.
You can get a bus, stop F, from Liverpool st station to London wall museum stop bh, then get a 56 which goes into the hospital, or you can walk from the museum, it’s a 5 minutes walk. That’s the bus route.
Aw wow thats even better thank you x do I get off at the barbican I think it's called I walked from there it's so easy!
Yes you can get a 153 from Liverpool st to the Barbican
It will go towards Finsbury Park
You have lots of choices😀
Aw brilliant. I just got a news notification apparently there calling of the tube strikes hope that's true!
I hope so too it will be less disruption. I heard the doctors, not the juniors, are planning to go on strike but I don’t know when. If they do hospital appointments will be affected, I’m sure the juniors can’t cover.
Yes thank goodness the strike has been suspended. standard.co.uk/news/transpo...
That’s a very tiring journey. I’ve spoken to a lot of people at the hospital over the years who travel from far to get to London hospitals. Some even have transport arranged for them, but it’s tiring because they have to stop off and pick up, then after your appointment you have to wait again.
It is worth asking if they can do it all in one day because that would save you another £40.
I hope all goes well with your appointments All the best
Just wondered why you aren't seen at a more local hospital to you? Hope all goes well x
Thanks hun. It's a specialist hospital I used to live in London so I was transferred from great Ormond Street hospital to st barts and then I moved out of London so still have to go to St barts, my local hospital isn't qualified to deal with my heart problem everytime I go to A&E they don't have a clue on what to do they always say are you under a specialist hospital for your heart x
Oh what a pain! Isn't there any heart hospital nearer? Having said that, I'm having treatments in two health authorities and it's a nightmare. They just don't talk to one another and Im invariably having the same tests done twice. What a waste of money.
Hope all goes well for you xx
Thanks hun yeah it's not ideal to be going to London but I'm just glad I'm seen by any specialist hospital for my heart. I did ask about transferring once and they said maybe in a few years time and if I did would be to basildon hospital ( my grandad was treated there aw miss him) 💔, or Cambridge both of which are too far from me 😢 so London is the best option and probably the cheapest x aw being under one hospital is bad enough but two how does that work? X
Oh I see. Well at the least transport is relatively easy to London I guess.
I had my Angiograms done in Derby and my Surgery done in Glenfield and hour down the road from me. But Glenfield won't operate again unless they know my heart is healthy enough so Derby have done tests but don't report on it very quickly and certainly don't share with Leicester. I was rushed to Derby with my PE after I was discharged from Leicester (Leicester didn't want me back) so they're looking after my lung health but Leicester are dealing with my breathing issues after damaging my phrenic nerve......can you see why I'm at my whits end?!! Xx
my experiences of Bart’s has been exemplary some times it’s worth the inconvenience of travelling
Yeah true there very thorough I haven't had the best experience but that's probably down to me not them x
It might not be two trips…. I’m wearing a ECG monitor now (Holter type) - it came by post! I send it back after 24 hours wearing back to the (well known!) London hospital. I’m dreading taking the stickers off - there huge!
Aw I've used this 3 times. I wish it was that but I was specifically told 4th August, 10.30 am, clinic 3 so they definitely want me to go to get fitted with the monitor x that ecg they send you is quite handy to fit yourself and like you said the ecg stickers are massive and hurt so much to take off! X hope your monitor goes well how many days are you supposed to wear it i wore that for 7 days once was unbearable!
That's it isn't it there's no harm in asking and it's up to them to say yes or no to the request!
At my previous job management were cross when I had said thanks but no thanks to working one Sunday and I had said to them how they were entitled to ask and I am entitled to say yes or no for myself!