Check out the doctor

[letslaugh63]

hi got my 1st rhuemy app in April was just wondering can I search online to see if f he is any good,that sounds a bit harsh but I just want to know what other patients thoughts on him/her are and as lupus was mentioned by my gp if they have dealt with this before.I must being nosey really x

[Hidden]

Interesting.

Is a good doctor someone who gets it right, no matter how unpalatable that is for the patient? Or is a a good doctor someone who says what the patients want to hear?

What are the criteria by which we are going to judge this doctor?

(Please forgive me - I am a redundant academic and this sort of question is very interesting to me).

[letslaugh63 in reply to Hidden]

Last week I went to see osteopath as reffered by my old gp's surgery.not only had she written wrong details but I was kept waiting 40 mins for app and when I eventually got in there was told I had 5 mins to explain why I was there.she was obnoxious and couldn't give a damn about why I was in so much pain,to me she was a bad doctor

[stretch in reply to letslaugh63]

it's a disgrace that the health service causes us more damage by common incidents like this....i literally cannot believe it happens....i do not understand their minds...attitudes...crazy....apparently the advice is to keep going back to your gp to ask to keep seeing different specialists until you find the ONE !!!

[letslaugh63 in reply to stretch]

Actually I change my doctors.

[Hanny in reply to Hidden]

A good doc (or any other professional) is one who is honest. As my lupus took hold my own GP was at a loss and sent me to hospital. The consultatant was unhelpful to say the least, dont actually remember him talking to me just 'barking at his juniors. Cutting a long story short he never gave up sent me to several others and eventually got a diagnosis. Because he admits when he is stumped I have great trust in him when he treats me,,, A good doc depends on your personal experience of that professional

[Petrof in reply to Hanny]

Absolutely agree. A good doctor can't know everything but can admit when they don't know and will either find out or ask for help. I would trust such a doctor too, as they don't try to fob you off with some harmless diagnosis and medication.

[stretch in reply to Petrof]

glad someone has same perspective as me.i blame arrogance,pride and EGO.

[letslaugh63 in reply to Hanny]

I would definetly want a doctor like that x

[Petrof in reply to letslaugh63]

I am so lucky I have one! A reumatologist, seen him just today.

[grannyjogger]

I'm not sure it's that black and white. If the doctor gets the diagnosis 'right' but doesn't communicate well with the patient then they might not hear what they need to know to understand their condition. On the other hand, what use is a doctor who gets the diagnosis wrong no matter how good their bedside manner? I'm not sure we should judge at all - just share our experiences and let others judge for themselves. What do others think?

[letslaugh63 in reply to grannyjogger]

Probably worded that wrong I was just interested in other patients opinions of him/her.a good doctor to me is one that does their best for patient and is open and honest and don't think it's weak to say I can't help you but can refer you to someone who can.my son was born with a faulty heart valve and local hospital doctor could've been a better doctor if he just admitted from start he didn't know what he was doing as my son could've died at anytime while he was playing doctor

[nicky1234 in reply to letslaugh63]

thank goodness you got proper help,

docs are human but a good doctor to me

is someone who listens

admits when they dont know by passing you over to someone else.

and works along side you.

i only ever saw one bad doc she was obnoxious spoke to fast and did not listen she even insulted my g/p she said i have never heard of him lol.

she insinuated there was nothing wrong with

me it was in my head.

anyway i went to my doc and said she is a stupid cow and told him everything

he agreed with me lol.

he had recieved her report, and in it she had said i do have some sort of immune problem prop lupus i swear she must have recorded the convo i had with her. she is a scleroderma expert.

ps i do have scleroderma it came out about a year later. xx

[letslaugh63 in reply to nicky1234]

I have had a few bad experiences with doctors and I know their not all bad and their only human beings and so they make mistakes like anybody else but I do believe doctors nurses anyone in care profession have a very hard job but if they chose it as a career they should do it right as a they are dealing with people lives x

[nicky1234 in reply to letslaugh63]

so true,

sometimes i think they either do it for the money

or they think they know everything.

i had a headache for over 5 years (24/7) it did not cripple me like a mirgraine or anything but it was always there.

i saw a doc at the hosi and he said its stress. duh everyday for 5 years. i said dont be so stupid you really need to go back to medical school. this was before i knew i had lupus.

well when i was put on plaquinal that headache went away

ps i was very happy at the time lol.

pps i also think medical negliance killed my mum. xx

[scoobydoo1 in reply to nicky1234]

Hi thank you for your post and opinion, but I can assure you that on the whole people who work in the nhs do not do it for the money, contrary to belief we do not know everything, some may think they do but is that not the case in other professions too?

as a potential lupus sufferer and an emergency nurse i can see both sides of the argument.

could i ask which speciality doctor you saw at the hospital, contrary to belief all doctors are not trained the same.

If you feel negligence did influence your mums care you can ask for the record to be released under fredom of information act. I am sorry for your loss.

[nicky1234 in reply to scoobydoo1]

of corse some people think they know everything

i am one of them ::winks::

in all walks of life imo the poiticans are the worse.

my daughter got a professor on one of her hosi appointments [ lupus] and he said you dont have lupus, she said every test i have had said i do,

she goes i have been diagnosied by many docs.

i do have lupus, he would hear no more on it.

she told his boss what he said, and the boss said take no notice you do have lupus.

but if she had only ever seen this proffessor she would have come away thinking what's wrong with me then.

its good to hear majority are not in for the money or its just a job, you really do met lovely people

its i would say in my time about 3 or 4 bad uns thats excellent considering i must have seen tons of docs.

ps one day my docs had a locum in, and all he did was stare at my boobs. glad they got rid of him lol.

[letslaugh63 in reply to nicky1234]

Hi Nicky maybe it was for a professional reason lol x

[nicky1234 in reply to scoobydoo1]

thanx hun

she got a cough and 3 weeks later she passed away, she was 57.

turns out it was lung cancer

will the report say how much chemo they gave her? i feel if they had not treated her she would still be alive now. x

[scoobydoo1 in reply to nicky1234]

the problem with cancer, like lupus realy is theres so many different little things that on there own make no sence or cause alarm, when all is placed together like a jigsaw it becomes very clear. I would have thought that your mum was ill before the 3 weeks prior to her death, its unusual to have cancer for such a short time frame and pass away, unless there was other underlying health issues. the medical notes will have all treatment given, by whome, what dose date time etc

in personal experience once a person becomes aware of the diagnosis theres only 2 ways to go- fight till the end or subconsciously give up, unfortunatly sometimes both ways have an unhappy ending.. I must hasten to add that your request could be denied, if so you can ask the fredom of information office in wilmslow to look why and rule either for or against you viewing them. I would if you feel that strongly start with pals at the hospital, explain your concern but highlight you are willing to be reasonable but would like some clarification with the manager/ matron of who looked after your mum face to face. you can tell loads just by expression or body language. dont be fobbed off, be polite, and curteous but leave them in no doubt you will take it higher and get answers, the nhs after stafford inquiry are raw so its a good time to ask. x

[nicky1234 in reply to scoobydoo1]

thanx

before she only had a cough she was normal, she was a diabetic and had pancritis [ they had nipped her pancrious when she had an op which led to the diabetis 20+ years ago ]

she only had the cough a couple of weeks but the anti bios did not work, hence the tests. she had the first chemo she felt ok

then the following wed she had her second

then the thursday she radiation, then that day her nose started bleeding.

she died the following wednesday just before xmas. from diagnosies to her going 21 days. i did not speak for 8 months after she died. it took 3 years before i could laugh at a joke. its now 4 years is it to late?

its still feels like yesterday. xx

[scoobydoo1 in reply to nicky1234]

sorry, if you need closure and answers please seek them my dad died when i was 13 from non hodgkins lymphoma and from diagnosis to him passing was only 5 days, still remember the night my mum came and told me he was dying, and can remember the moment he passed, weird feeling. as good as we are at treating/ diagnosing and caring the human body has much more it keeps from us at this time, hopefully in the future we will overcome all illnesses, until then we just keep trying. take care mark.

[nicky1234 in reply to scoobydoo1]

so sorry about your dad, {{ hugs }}

and you was so young. i was 40 when my mum went and felt that was to young

she had me when she was 16.

thing is i know mistakes happen they were trying to help her, thanx for your advice.

[letslaugh63 in reply to nicky1234]

Sometimes the cure can do this depending on age frailty sorry babe xmy 1 St husband died of cancer,no cure but we stopped radiotherapy as it prevented him having quality of life and he hated hospitals x

[Petrof in reply to scoobydoo1]

I think that doctors and nurses do generally a fantastic job, although sometimes stress and overwork can get the better of them. I know that they would love to help if they could but sometimes it is not that easy, like in the cases of lupus.They still don't know so much and it must be frustrating for them to see us suffer but not being able to do much.

[scoobydoo1 in reply to letslaugh63]

I work in the nhs, and would just like to reply, yes it is hard and we do have peoples lives in our hands and yes we do make mistakes, as you said we are only human. Could you clarify what you mean by "if they chose it as a career they should do it right as they are dealing with peoples lives".

If you mean healthcare workers should provide the best care, in line with current accepted best practice, and within their remit of training and knowledge I agree.

My personal opinion is its a vocation, to much emphasis is placed on being book smart rather than common sense and actually caring for the sick or injured.

[letslaugh63 in reply to scoobydoo1]

I agree it's a vocation but not for all in the profession sadly and that's the word I couldn't think of so put .I am going by what I have witnessed while being in hospital.which I am not going to put on here but I am sure a lot of people have witnessed things while being in hospital.you work in the NHS and I'm pretty sure you yourself have seen things you don't like .I'm also going on so called diagnosis given to me and my family members by doctors that are just not right and 1 of them was actually life threatening.

[Ghogh77]

Hi everyone

Very interesting I looked up my rheumatologist on google but only told me where he worked. Will research the council probably hcpc to see if there were any previous issues if there is another website please let me know.

[scoobydoo1 in reply to Ghogh77]

your rhumatologist will not be registered with HCPC if they are a doctor or nurse. HCPC is for paramedics, operating department practitioners and allied professions. doctors are registered with the general medical council and nurses are registered with the Nursing and midwifery council, hope this helps.

[Coppernob]

You could always just post his name on here and see if anyone has any comments to share? Which they could then PM to you so they didn't go 'global' as it were!

[letslaugh63 in reply to Coppernob]

Good idea coppernob than x

[Paul_Howard Partner LUPUS UK in reply to letslaugh63]

Please be warned, if you post his name and anybody writes anything negative I have to delete it because it would be a breach of the communities guidelines. You are not allowed to name and shame anybody as it would be considered libel and could leave LUPUS UK and HealthUnlocked open to a lawsuit.

[Paul_Howard Partner LUPUS UK in reply to Paul_Howard]

Sorry....I've just seen your post. Thank you for specifying that comments should be sent by private message.

[roobarb]

Hi lets laugh, I have looked up consultants on the internet for myself & my husband. Hospital website seems to vary at lot in the amount of info they give. Some have pictures, which is nice because you feel like you know what to expect. Some hospital sites have feed back from patients, but I've never found any specific to rhuematologists.

Googling the consultant usually throws up a career history & details of research projects they are involved in. But both are worth doing so you get some idea of who you are seeing, & their specific knowledge & interests.

Is your GP still trying to get your 3rd April appointment brought forward?

[letslaugh63 in reply to roobarb]

As far as I know but to be honest I was lucky to get that date apparently they are over loaded in the rheumatology department x

[roobarb in reply to letslaugh63]

Sounds like my local hospital! It's not long too wait I suppose, but not nice when you need some answers for all your symptoms. X

[robinson9]

there is a , its hospital for people with lupus. It over by London Bridge. i go there when i can't get answers. And the top consultant is Graham Hughes from St Thomas hospital.

why not google it and give them a ring.

[nicky1234 in reply to robinson9]

in manchester its the royal infirmary connected to st marys.

they are excellent.

[letslaugh63]

Thanks girls but I live in Norfolk x not I wouldn't be willing to travel to get answers or right help x

[serenigirl]

i have been waiting for well over a year yo see my consultant for a follow up after treatment in hospital for low magnesium and i still havent got ann appointment so i think it all depends on the area where you live

[nicky1234 in reply to serenigirl]

you should phone the hosi, they could have sent a letter out and it got lost,

good luck hun.