GP’s are our first port of call when we have a health issue, but I’m getting more and more frustrated in their responses, I have a favourite aunt who I’m fond of, you could say I’m her unofficial none paid carer ordering and collecting medication arranging appointments etc, a few years ago after my aunt had gone through a major operation to remove a tumour and kidney which I’m pleased to say was a complete success we had cause to visit her GP a couple of years later, the appointment was to change her medication for another medication which was stronger, he promptly printed off the prescription and then quickly rattled off possible side effects, one was possible problems to the kidneys to which I quickly corrected him and said kidney my aunts only got one kidney, with a puzzled look he said why is that so I told him about the major operation she’d had, but on reflection why hadn’t he looked at my aunts records before hand, driving home my aunts mobile rang it was the GP he said scrap that prescription I’ve prescribed something else.
Now this week like a lot of elderly people especially ladies, my aunt get’s problems with her legs, her knee joint swelling and sometimes a rash, we visited another GP but same surgery she said the knee needed x-raying and prescribed ointment for the rash, my aunt had suffered from ITP ten years ago and nearly died from it, so out of the blue I didn’t know she was going to say it asked the GP about the blood test she’d previously had, she asked about her platelet’s the GP said they were fine but then asked why she’d asked, I said my aunt had suffered from chronic ITP “Immune thrombocytopenic purpura” a blood disorder 10 years ago and spent 5 weeks in ICU and almost died, again this GP looked puzzled and said oh dear that’s bad, but the point of my post is we all know how busy GP’S are but surely they should spend a few minutes going through our records before prescribing medication, this isn’t a rant it’s just a concern.
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Pitbull2017
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Yep been there repeatedly. I have to verbally go through my health history every time. I now leave RA or fibro till last. As soon as I say RA/fibro I get Ahhh that’s it !! So if I leave it last I hope they are already thinking of other possibilities,
Gone are the days Gp reads your notes and after your initial consultation they will say how’s your RA or menopause are the tablets doing the job . Surely it’s easier now things are computerised.
I had a an incident when I saw an emergency GP two months ago via 111 for a UTI and told him had an allergy only got home with the medication to read contains Penicillin. So I wrote to my GP and asked about how this had happened as this was on top of being given a 'script for a medication not permitted for someone with low GFR as like your aunt I have kidney problems and a GFR of 22. I was rung back and advised they were sorry it had been noted and GP's have a 'duty' to read notes. So I'm now very careful and here its probably down to the Econsult scheme as I also said to a GP on the phone 'you do know I have CKD and a GFR of 22" he replied "Do you? " so he hadn't read notes then but I'd bet they do now. So I really do understand your frustration and although can't offer advice on how to change it I do think it's going to get worse.
You mean you hope they do now, I’m not sure I’d count on it.
A dear friend changed her GP when she was on end of life care and trying to sort things out before the end and her named GP had to ask her what type of cancer she had. There had been other problems but that was the last straw. Imagine having to change your GP when you were dying.
Trouble is when you’ve got to go through your case history in case they kill you bang goes most of your ten minute consultation.
That is disgraceful no other word for it. It really upset me and its so dreadful it almost defies common decency never mind the behaviour expected of a doctor. We all know that they are under pressure but here we have 15 GP's most work part time and now just over the phone. And more houses are being built so eventually will GP's be based in hospitals only like in China?? God knows but it is awful. The good thing for me is I can see my Nephrologist F2F now and haven't needed to see an RA medic so far..... lol xxx And ten minutes here its a diagnosis by text ' Dear Mrs ----- I've sent a prescription to the pharmacy' and thats it. xxx
Funny I was just thinking the same about GPS in hospitals the other day. I was even wondering if it might be a better system.
I’ve had back pain, very long story but the new GP - my old practice sold out in January, all of the GPs and medical staff left even the one who said she would stay. Place became like Fort Knox, all locked up and they never seemed to answer the phone .
Agonising backache - finally made contact to ask if I could be sent to have sacrum xrayed. A lot of humming and hawing which I took as a no. Think it was because I declined her offer for statins.
Eventually when in agony I hobbled in to A&E which I think is an awful thing to have to have do. Saw a GP there and was told right away that I needed physiotherapy, he thought I’d described sacroiliitis and signed me up for that and gave me painkillers.
Realising there was at least a 16 week wait for physio I found a very good private physio, paid for private MRI scans, turns out my lumbar spine is a mess and I’ve also got a sacral insufficiency fracture and several other nasty problems that showed up on the pelvic and sacral scan.
I suppose to look on the bright side the regular X-ray I asked for probably wouldn’t have shown all that.
It’s been a very painful depressing experience and I have changed my GP practice. Fortunately they answer their phone, their front door is always open and the doctor called back very quickly when I needed to speak to her.
Very valid concern too… my GP has a system that ‘flags up’ concerns, however it needs human input to ensure that part of the system is used when pertinent to any patient.
Yes it infuriates me that my GP does not look at my records before a consultation and starts every appointment with "how can I help you" ignoring all the information I had to give the triage receptionist. Even worse is that the GP doesn't seem to read the letters my consultant sends her either as I've often had to wait to get my copy (arriving much later as it was sent by second class post!) and then point out that the consultant has asked her to take some action. Last time is was to do a blood pressure and cholesterol check and it was many weeks later before the GP organised it! 🙄
Ha, ha. I once booked online and filled in all the details of why I wanted to see him on the little form - when I finally got to see him he made some comment about the great detail I’d gone into. I got the feeling he wasn’t impressed but I he appeared to have read it.
I could have written this reply as I have had exactly the same experience. My latest upset is that I was told by my GP sorry nurse! In March 2020 my cholesterol was 6.1 and could be managed by lifestyle changes but this Friday when I had my first rheumatology face to face appont they told me that my reading in March 2020 was 7.9 who do I believe? I will chase up the surgery but it fills me with no confidence in them nor does the still persisting locked surgery doors, one receives blood test forms etc through a small high up window!!
Unfortunately it happens all the time and it infuriates me. A while back I had a blood test to check my long term blood sugar level before a diabetes review and I had a call from the GP out of the blue to say my inflammation level (ESR) was elevated and was going to refer me to rheumatology.! I said well it's quite often elevated because of my rheumatoid arthritis! SILENCE..... The GP said oh yes...... . didn't notice that. I said thank you anyway.🤣 She obviously hadn't even looked at what medication I was taking already.
It is an absolute disgrace.. they literally get paid for nothing ..I was brought up as a child that's drs mend/fix you ..what a load if bollocks that was ..I've been seriously ill now for 3.5 year go s have no idea what is wrong with me so the obvious diagnosis of anxiety is used ..the only way I believe now is not take their poison and heal your own bidy naturally cos as far as I'm concerned in the long run its these so called drs that kill you with all their toxic medications that only plaster over the problem..never do they actually get to the root cause ..they give you a tablet that yes might release some of the symptoms but that tablet gives you some other problem which will in time need a different poison and turns into a vicious cycle ..but its all about money money money ..I don't trust them now n I never will again ..my motto is now "they don't heal they destroy"
I agree, I’ve totally lost faith in doctors now. I said to my husband only last night that nowadays doctors don’t seem to have any curiosity about listening and trying to solve your problem - husband said ‘it’s not lack of curiosity- they just don’t give a toss’. It’s tough and sad to realise it but he’s probably right.
Yes they should go through notes first especially before prescribing drugs. I understand your concerns and frustration. I too have been there and long before covid. Fortunately I have a great Pharmacist who refused to give me tablets that could have caused toxicity with methotrexate. Fortunately these situations are far outweighed by the excellent treatment from GPs generally in my surgery.
Don't start me off on the doctors, i have given up ringing them because you just can't through and if you do you have to go through a barage of questions from automated system before you even speak to the receptionist, then you have to hope you will get the dr to ring you. xxxxx
We seem to be very much of the same opinion “things aint what they used to be”, I can’t quite get my head around what’s happening, we all know how devastating the pandemic has been and we still need to be careful, but we’re all trying to get back to the new normal, but some things have changed dramatically, on previous visits to the Doctors with my aunt we would let the receptionist know we were there and take a seat in the waiting room along with 15 to 20 other people waiting, now we tell the receptionist she asks what car we are in and asks us to wait outside along with 3 or 4 other people waiting, so gone are the times when you couldn’t find a chair in the waiting room to just a trickle of people waiting to see a Dr, they say they are so busy but is the system they are now working to is so slow they see less people in a longer period of time.
Masks are now optional but I still wear one, Dr surgeries along with some businesses ask us to wear a mask I haven’t got a problem with that, but I’ve had to be brave and go to the barbers and other places I’ve previously been avoiding throughout lockdown, but I might be a little harsh when I say it’s almost if GP’s don’t want any direct contact with us, my RA appointments are now audio I get a letter telling me what day what time they will call me, we’ve all got a lot of respect for the NHS especially after recent events but my worry is are the procedures brought in because of the pandemic going to be the new norm, it was difficult before to see a doctor or get a hospital appointment it’s very near impossible now.
Totally agree Pitbull, times have changed. We're still on phone consultations at my surgery, which should be more efficient. I rang for a routine appt on 12th August (requested to do this by the surgery), the next available phone appt was 8th September!
Agree, my consultant stopped my biological as he was going to change it , I saw him a week ago he told me to carry on with the biological injection I told him I have none , he asked why ? I was later told by the nurse the cons stopped it , 2 wks on still no medication and in pain , just told its with the chemist , does anyone care ? don’t the understand we suff from Chronic pain. I feel I’m giving up with them all .
Yep, I can’t even get an appointment with GP but they have gotten information about me wrong so many times in the past. I just despair. It is an absolute safety issue and I think on the basis of what you’ve said an email to practice manager is in order.
I have lost all trust in my GP. Even when the surgery have made the appointment she hasn't checked the notes so has to ask why we need her. I no longer feel I can talk to her and besides my R A being diagnosed in the last 18 months my husband has had a really tough 2 years with bladder cancer and I just feel unsupported by her. On the matter of drugs, she prescribed me statin s recently, needed I agree, but despite knowing that I also have fibromyalgia and have had back pain ever since I have known her, she gave no thought to which one she put me on it and didn't start on a low dose. I have since had it changed by the surgery pharmacist, yet another new professional to negotiate, due to pain and in changing drugs she doubled the dose. I checked it out on the instructions and checked with the dispensing pharmacy and they agreed.I had to contact the surgery again to have it reduced. I feel I have to check everything for both my husband and myself and I find all the effort and anxiety exhausting. I dread the future. I know doctors at both our local surgeries and no longer completely trust any of them
Oh don’t get me started about GP’s a mistake made by GP put me in A&E and I had a fit for 7 hours after I had already explained to doc I was allergic to a certain antibiotic fair enough it wasn’t the one stated just contained twice as much of the ingredient I was allergic too which for a lay person was obvious. Then I’ve been prescribed oramorph at a level that if I’d taken it it would have killed me queried it with surgery and they said no it’s ok but I had actually listened to dosage GP had recommended and he actually prescribed 10 times the dose by mistake and I got a very rushed phone call apology for their mistake. Not to mention recently I had to point out the reason I was ringing them back was because I was only given a 5 day course of antibiotics and immunology has written to them twice saying at the first sign of any infection I should have two weeks course because of my immune system being in my boots as a consequence I have had a chest infection for a blooming month and why the hell was I so apologetic for bothering them again ??
So frustrating!! It’s a good job you were on the ball and knew your aunt’s medical history. My gp surgery have implemented an online e-consult form where you fill in all the details of your problem and a doctor will get back to you within 24 hours. Anyway, I filled one in and my gp replied and spoke about a drug that I have been off of for months, I mean really? How am I supposed to have faith in her when she can’t even get my meds right??
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Methotrexate injections
upset after speaking to dr… 
Explaining RA to children
Tapering off Naproxen 
Argument with GP practice today
