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At the moment the DWP are using an outside agency to carry out medicals on people with medical conditions, and using a point scoring system to decide whether or not people are entitled to benefits. Most of the medicals are carried out by a nurse or other health care professional in less than an hour by asking a few targeted questions. With a condition like Fibromyalgia it takes a qualified Rheumatologist to diagnose the condition and understand the treatment that needs to be implemented to attempt to manage the pain of the condition.
A Rheumatologist would understand the pain and associated problems that Fibromyalgia sufferers face on a daily basis. Yet the nurse or health care professional that fills in the forms for the medical sees someone for less than an hour with no understanding of the condition and how it affects each person individually. It is not possible for someone of this level to understand the issues that Fibromyalgia suffers face, and the medicals should at the very least be carried out by a Rheumatologist. During the medical you are assessed on how much you can move in certain directions, at no point are they taking any interest in how much pain you are in whilst this is going on. Or how many pain killers you have to take afterwards. A favourite question is how far can you walk without discomfort, the answer for a most Fibromyalgia sufferers is over 200 meters if they absolutely have to, what they don't ask is how much pain are you in? Most Fibromyalgia sufferers are in pain 'before' they start to walk, walking just increases the pain.
The point scoring systems is stupid and unfair and needs to be abolished, Fibromyalgia sufferers are being consistently turned down for benefits that they should be entitled to as this is a condition recognised by the DWP and I quote “Professor Aylward, on behalf of the DWP, reaffirmed that the DWP recognises fibromyalgia as a real and disabling condition, and not just something that is "all in the mind". If this is recognised by the DWP as being a “REAL and DISABLING CONDITION” then why are diagnosed sufferers being refused DLA and ESA?
It has been reported that Fibromyalgia Sufferers often suffer more pain than people diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis.
Despite the DWP's statement, Fibromyalgia sufferers are being discriminated against as the condition is seen as 'invisible' like many other conditions.
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