B12 refusal : Hi so like many of you I... - Pernicious Anaemi...

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B12 refusal

Zeldaxxx profile image
4 Replies

Hi so like many of you I’ve had my b12 cancelled!

I’ve put up a strong fight by

A, referring them to my medical records during 2008/2009 as this showed them just how Ill I was.

B, wrote to the CCG

C, attached new BSH guidance

D, told them I would buy from the internet

I’m not sure which one persuaded them, but very reluctantly they have agreed I think it’s probably from how ill I was

So stand your ground, be prepared with information Don’t except a No

Good luck all ready to help anyone who needs it Z x

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Sleepybunny profile image
Sleepybunny

I'm pleased that your determination paid off.

For anyone else reading this thread whose B12 injections have been stopped/delayed or swapped for oral tablets.......

I copied most of the info below from a reply I left on another thread.

Have you considered joining PAS?

They should be able to pass on useful info.

PAS (Pernicious Anaemia Society)

Based in Wales, UK. Has members from other countries.

pernicious-anaemia-society....

There is a telephone helpline for PAS members to ring.

PAS support groups in UK

pernicious-anaemia-society....

Support meetings are cancelled during pandemic.

There are useful leaflets/articles that PAS members can access in library section on PAS website eg "Treatment is for Life"

pernicious-anaemia-society....

Concerns about Treatment

Have you also considered putting any concerns about treatment into a brief, polite letter to GP?

In UK, letters to GP are supposed to be filed with medical notes. Letters could contain symptoms, test results, personal and family medical history, extracts from UK B12 documents/articles, info from PAS etc.

Keep copies of any letters written. It is useful to have a paper trail in case there is a need to complain in the future.

Letters to GPs about B12 deficiency

b12deficiency.info/b12-writ...

Point 1 in above link is about under treatment of B12 deficiency with neuro symptoms.

Make sure your GP knows about any neurological symptoms you have.

CAB NHS Complaints

citizensadvice.org.uk/healt...

MPs

May be worth informing local MP of any difficulties in getting treatment and contacting AMs in Wales, MSPs in Scotland and MLAs in Northern Ireland.

People whose injections have been stopped/delayed may want to think about drawing GPs attention to the potential for permanent neurological damage if a person is under treated.

Neurological Consequences of B12 Deficiency

PAS news item

pernicious-anaemia-society....

PAS article about SACD, sub acute combined degeneration of the spinal cord, access to PAS members only.

pernicious-anaemia-society.... See Page 2.

If people start to suffer deterioration in symptoms due to injections being stopped/delayed/swapped for oral tablets I think it is important to keep GP informed.

If I need to do this I will be writing brief letters informing GP of any increase in/return of symptoms.

Impact of Pandemic

Unfortunately this is an extremely hard time to argue for reinstatement of injections.

Many on forum have had B12 injection stopped/delayed or swapped for oral tablets during Covid crisis.

Many on this forum have been put in a situation where they have no alternative but to source their own supplies and self inject.

Injections stopped due to pandemic

Have a look at these two links which both have ideas on what to do if jabs cancelled because they are seen as non essential during pandemic.

From PAS website

pernicious-anaemia-society....

There are lots of comments under the posts as well.

From B12 Deficiency Info website

b12deficiency.info/blog/202...

Blog post below asks for people to leave comments if their injections have been stopped due to impact of pandemic.

b12deficiency.info/blog/202...

Most recent blog posts/news items about stopped injections

From 1st April

b12deficiency.info/blog/202...

PAS statement published 11th April

pernicious-anaemia-society....

Blog post about Covid crisis from B12 Deficiency Info from 18th April

b12deficiency.info/blog/202...

Blog post about e-mail campaign from B12 Deficiency Info from 19th April

b12deficiency.info/blog/202...

BSH guidance

If you're in UK, be aware that the British Society of Haematology (BSH) has issued advice about B12 treatment for doctors to use during pandemic.

PAS news item about BSH advice published 25th April

pernicious-anaemia-society....

Latest version of the BSH advice for GPs etc during pandemic.

Be warned that your GP may not know that BSH have revised their advice within last few days and they may be using an earlier version.

b-s-h.org.uk/about-us/news/...

Click on General Haematology tab in link above

then

Click on BSH Advice on Supplements tab

I think long term that some UK forum members will struggle to get their jabs reinstated after pandemic has ended.

There are moves afoot in some areas of UK to make a permanent change to oral tablets.

See link to another forum thread below about treatment in Gloucestershire.

healthunlocked.com/pasoc/po...

Alternative B12 treatment

Some people get injections from private GPs and some find that high strength oral b12 eg tablets, sub lingual lozenges, sprays, drops help a bit. I think most people on here find that injections are more effective than other methods. Some on forum source their own supplies and self inject.

At the moment, GP surgeries may argue that these are exceptional times and they cannot offer injections at the surgery. Some on forum have asked their GP surgery if they can be taught to self inject.

WHO (World Health Organisation) classifies B12 as an essential medicine so in my mind, people should not be denied treatment.

B12 article from Mayo Clinic

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...

Suggests

1) No proof that oral b12 is a good at treating B12 deficiency as B12 injections

2) Many current diagnostic tests eg serum b12, active B12, MMA, Homocysteine, are not totally reliable

3) Successful treatment should not be stopped

Symptoms Diary

I think it's worth keeping a daily symptoms diary which tracks changes in symptoms over time and when any treatment is given. It could be useful evidence of deterioration ( or improvement) in symptoms that could be shown/copied to GP if necessary.

I wrote a very detailed reply on another forum thread with links to symptoms lists, causes of b12 deficiency, info about PA tests, B12 books, B12 websites, UK B12 documents and other B12 info which you might find helpful.

healthunlocked.com/pasoc/po...

I am not medically trained.

Nackapan profile image
Nackapan

Well done.

Hopefully lots of CCGs will have recieved letters now.

As reinstating b12 injections at a later date I think even a bigger fight than fighting g to keep them now.

Cherylclaire profile image
CherylclaireForum Support

I am glad that your practice have (albeit very reluctantly) changed their minds about your injections because of your strong fight, and it is lovely of you that you have offered to help. But you should not have to and they should not have to ask you.

I am getting increasingly angry that only someone capable of such a fight can get their injections reinstated. This shouldn't be a one-on-one fight. This shouldn't be happening.

Can we stop having to beg individually for our injections ?

I remember a time, and I doubt if I'm on my own here, when I could not carry out my own research, I could not concentrate sufficiently to read even in the library, I couldn't understand what people, including my GP, were saying to me, and would not have been able to put a coherent argument together to save my life.

These are the people who are currently the most vulnerable; the ones who do not yet know what exactly is wrong with them, what it might mean not to have an injection, and who to go to for help. What B12 is and why it matters so much when you're deficient.

These people haven't all found us yet - and we were them once.

Can everyone who is capable of writing a letter, on behalf of all those people not yet able, please write to their Practices to ask that B12 injections not be withheld from anyone who has had to rely on them previously ?

Even if you self inject and no longer need the NHS frequency yourself - which, after all, will probably be the reason that you are able to put a letter together in the first place.

Enough now.

Zeldaxxx profile image
Zeldaxxx in reply toCherylclaire

Cheryl Claire. You are so right! Every thing you’ve said is so right.

11 years ago I would not have been able to fight like I have, and quite probably I may not be here now due to how bad my mental health was.

Now that’s why I want to help anyone who needs the strength I have.

We all need to be writing to our local CCG so it becomes a National standard again! Not a postcode lottery!

We should not need this fight. It should never have come to this regardless of C19.

Stay safe stay strong.

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