Can anyone help me please as i cannot get a GP as i received a letter on the 4th October telling me that i was not in their catchment area - after having been with them for eighteen months - i have tried other practices but they say i am not in their areas either - NHS England gave me two surgeries to try stating that they were in my area and i was told by the surgeries that i was not. I was supposed to have a colonoscopy ct scan in September after taking gastrografin which was was handed to my grandaughter at the hospital not in proper packaging and without instruction - i rang the hospital and was told to take it over two evening before going for the ct scan which i could not do as i could not leave the house because of the terrible diaorhea and am still not able to leave the house because of taking it also i should not have been given it as i only have one kidney and COPD also my one kidney is at stage three kidney disease and i am told according to blood tests that i am hyperparathyroid - i got on to the manufacturers and they said i should not have been given it. Sorry this is so long but i am just feeling so lost and lonely now - thank you for any input as to what my next move can be.
Please help - i cannot get a GP: Can anyone help... - Thyroid UK
Please help - i cannot get a GP
You could try contacting your local PALs
nhs.uk/common-health-questi...
Thank you for the reply - i am running out of people to ask - NHS England do not want to know - i was told to go to Cricklewood (in London) Barnet (in London) Balham also London and then Mitcham in Surrey - so i tried them all and of course the London surgeries are way out of my area as is the next one in Mitcham which is Surrey - but even they said i am out of their area as i live about ten miles from Mitcham - so i will try PALS on Monday and see if i get any joy. I keep trying to add my postcode but they say it is not recognised - i do not want it on show - but i tried to complete my registration on this site. Hope you are keeping well.
Daft question alert. Have you checked with the Post Office that your postcode is correct?
No - i had not thought about that - would they be able to tell me then because the CAB and Age Concern both say that i am in the catchment area as it comes under the area i live in - how do i find them are they online please. Thank you.
You can check your own postcode online - you just have to enter part of your address, pick the one that matches :
If the postcode finder can't find your address (which happens sometimes in the case of, for example, rural addresses) then you can report it to Royal Mail. Look for that option under the section "Need Help?"
Thank you so much for finding that for me - i really do appreciate it. Keep well.
Hi there - i found that we both come under the same town and constituency - do you think that they can argue the point on that. Thank you for your time.
Sorry, I don't understand the question. Your constituency is not relevant to looking for a doctor.
Doctors are told what their catchment areas are by their local CCG (as far as I know). You could ask your local CCG where you can get a doctor. I'm pretty sure they have a legal duty to find you a doctor.
Look up your local CCG with this link and note down the name of the CCG and the NHS Code.
stephenkeable.github.io/ccg...
Then search for your CCG information on this link using either the code or the name :
This should then give you access to your CCG's website and you can find out who to complain to or who to ask for information.
A quicker alternative to all that stuff I've just written is to use this link :
nhs.uk/Service-Search/GP/Lo...
If the surgeries it comes up with refuse to take you on as a patient then you would need to speak to, write to or email your CCG. You are legally entitled to have a GP. So someone is ducking out of their legal responsibilities.
I would just show up in person to the closest facility to you and take proof of your address ....what doctor prescribed the testing meds ?
Hi there - thank you for your input - it was so embarrassing when i turned up at the one who said i could go there and then they decided i was out of the area - so i will not put myself through that again. What testing meds do you mean - if it was the one's for the hospital then it was the hospital that supplied them for the colonoscopy - but it had iodine in it and i am not allowed that as when i had a colonoscopy before it got stuck in my one kidney and made it partially collapse - i got onto the manufacturer of the medication as there was no leaflet stating who could take it and what side affects there would be and as i have had bad diarrhea ever since i took it in September - i did tell my GP when i last saw him on the 3rd of October - he ignored it and then i got a letter the next day telling me i was no longer at that practice. Keep well.
Your test and meds ...which doctor prescribed them and can't you go back to this person?
Hi there - no i cannot as it was my GP at the time - i did ring the surgery and asked if i could have another prescription as my COPD has been bad and i have no inhalers left - but it was a no - so i am trying to source the inhalers on line and i have found some but they are really expensive - just one is a penny under fifty pound and i need three as that is what they had me on for years and i will not get a referral for my test as i am no longer at that surgery, Thank you for your input - keep well.
Hi there - i have contacted PALS and they cannot help and referred me to the British Medical Council who are for GP's only and not for ex patients - so onwards and upwards now to try the Ombudsman.Thank you.
Xeena, who’s your (new?) MP after yesterday’s shenanigans? Because I think I’d start there. It’s appalling that you can’t get a GP surgery to take you on to their books. Time for Boris to put his money where his mouth is?
Hi there - i do not know yet - i will have to find out - perhaps i should email Boris and ask for his help (NOT) i will have a look online and see if i can find out. Thank you for the input - greatly appreciated.
Would definitely do that. Strike while the iron is hot and they’re all keen. Someone has to know the answer.
Hi there - thank you for the input - i did ask for help nearly three years ago when i moved in to this flat - but is was the Lib Dems who had the power then and all i got told was to go to A&E to get my mental health problems sorted - all i asked for was to have a window in my lounge made into a door so as i could access the garden and i even said i would pay for it - all i got was the above insult and a firm no. Keep well.
i seem to remember that you used to go through whichever organisation used to issue your NHS number. But then, I remembering pre internet.
nhs.uk/Service-Search/GP/Lo...
is this where you ve been searching xeena
Official NHS England advice is:
If you have problems registering with a nearby GP practice, contact NHS England's Customer Contact Centre.
nhs.uk/using-the-nhs/nhs-se...
Members of the public, patients, and their representatives should contact our Customer Contact Centre.
You can contact us by:
Telephone: 0300 311 22 33
Email: england.contactus@nhs.net
General Post (including complaints): NHS England, PO Box 16738, Redditch, B97 9PT
Address for service of legal proceedings and formal letters of claim: NHS England, Legal Team, 4W08 4th Floor, Quarry House, Leeds LS2 7UE.
Our opening hours are: 8am to 6pm Monday to Friday, except Wednesdays when we open at the later time of 9.30am. We are closed on bank holidays.
No idea what then happens!
Hi there helvella - i have tried NHS England and they sent me a letter with two surgeries that i could go to - one of them i tried to register with said that i could as they already had patients who were out of their area - i waited two weeks after applying and filling in the appropriate forms - they said they would ring me but after the two weeks of waiting to hear back from them i rang and asked them was it all okay and was i now registered with them only to be told no as i was out of the area and they could not take me on - there is fifty two seconds (driving) between this surgery and the one i was at in the first place - i was also told that this surgery and the one that i used to be at were actually going to merge - so the mind boggles. The other surgery that i was told i could register at is on a very busy main road with no where to park as all dropped kerbs and red route with no patient parking - i am disabled and use two crutches to walk with. I wish i had not moved to this place as i am not even allowed to have a mobility scooter (i wanted to buy one) as i live in a small block of flats.
I am wondering if i can try for medical negligence as i have been on diazepam for over forty years and am now trying to buy it on the internet as i cannot access any of my repeat scripts - i also am buying my inhalers for COPD and asthma and other medications that i need - but it is hard to get them and even harder to know if i can trust the suppliers - i have just started buying my B12 injections and vitamin D as well - so they well and truly left me in the dumps. Sorry for the long post - keep well and thank you so very much.
Diazepam is now a Controlled Drug (though Class C) so possession (without prescription) is illegal. (This is only so that you know - I fully understand your situation.)
release.org.uk/law/list-con...
I think you have done everything I could suggest - so can only say that you probably need to go round CAB, NHS England, PALS, and everyone else yet again - this time emphasising that it is second time round and that you are desperate.
Thank you for the reply and yes i know that diazepam is a controlled drug but i was kept on it since i was thirty years old - they just kept on giving it to me along with a load of other medication that i know was doing me no good - but i am hooked so as to speak - i lost one of my kidneys through doctors neglect and in my notes it says that i have had three abortions - which is totally untrue - the doctors kept telling me i needed to take the medications as i had a traumatic childhood and the same with my marriage - so i am totally lost now and ready to give up - i thank you for your patience with me and all my questions - it really is appreciated. I think the reason for my last GP excluding me from the surgery is because i saw on Patient Acces the results of all my blood tests as they had all come back as abnormal and when i questioned him about it he said he was sending me to the endocronologist as i have got hyperparathyroidism - but that will not happen now. Thank you so much for all you have done to help me - have a lovely weekend - bless you.
You could also try your Local Healthwatch, just Google Healthwatch and the name of your district. Don't know if they can help you but worth ringing them to find out.
Could also try the CQC who are the regulators.
NHS Wales - same problem. My mother had been with a GPs practice for 65 years, went into hospital and then out to a nursing home. Practice manager said she was then out of their area and had to leave, even though the nursing home was same distance from them.
I guess they just wanted to get rid of her as she was now going to be very 'expensive' requiring house calls! Whatever the reason this was shameful and shouldn't happen to an 89 year old.
Thanks xeena
20 years ago we moved into a new build that was inside my catchment area so no issues there but I was getting fed up with folks saying they couldn’t deliver as my post code didn’t exist! I’d waited in an empty house all day so I wasn’t best pleased either. Finally I was told to contact the police which I thought was strange but it worked. The next day the police turned up to have a look around and so did the fire brigade. The fire brigade as you can imagine were very thorough. So it’s important to follow these things up. Not of us want a serious fire and the brigade can’t find us or a life threatening illness and an ambulance going around in circles! The police also turned up and thanked me for making contact as well. I’m on a cul de sac of 12 houses so not easy to find if not got a clue. My surgery boundary is the main road my road comes out to! Cutting it fine but my husband was still with us then so staying with the same GP was essential for his care.
That is the same situation that i am in - i live in a new build that is approx four years old - a ground floor flat in a small block of five and there are two car parks either side of my flat with another small block of four flats the other side of one of the car parks - my flat looks up the road and there are six houses either side of the road - i am one road back from the main road and when i rang the surgery and asked if i could join them they said yes and then rang me and said no - but when my grandaughter went along to try and get me registered with the surgery in question they said i was right on the borderline and that yes i could go to that surgery - then eighteen months later they decide i am not in their area - they are stating that they are taking on new patients - so it is not as if they are full up and i never did ask for a home call and never would - i have the same problem with my post or if i order anything online - they say they cannot find my postcode - even the council workmen ring me to ask how to get to my home - so should i ask the police to come and confirm my postcode. Thank you for the reply - have a nice Sunday.
go to citizens advice centre, you are entitled to a GP and they can't remove you at whim. They will sort you out with a GP you can go too. In the meantime, find your local hospital walk in centre, they will give you emergency prescription drugs if you go to them with the right problem - eg. you need your inhalers - tell them you can't breathe... etc
Hi there - thank you for the reply. The CAB is where i first started and i was told by them that i am in the catchment area - but the surgery said i was not. The CAB gave me lots of numbers to ring including a solicitor and i tried them all and basically they just did not seem to care especially the solicitor - she asked why i was ringing her and i said that i was told to try getting her help by the CAB - she said no she could not help me - so i am at a loss now as to what to do. I really appreciate you trying to help me.
It's definitely worth going back to tell them what has happened. The CAB may have their records wrong and would be glad to find this out. However if their advice is correct they can write letters etc for you which you can take to these people and this will help you.
Hi there - i am going to phone the CAB again today and NHS England and Pals - i have tried them all but i am going to try them all again as i desperately need a GP to get eye drops that can only be given by a GP - i have been buying my eye drops but i had my eyes tested yesterday and the optician gave me a letter for my GP - i said i do not have one and that i would buy the drops but he said they can only be dispensed by a doctor and that i must have as soon as possible as the ones i have been buying are not the right one's for my eyes. Thank you for the input - have a nice day.
All the messing about you’ve had, I’d go to my MP or the papers!
Hi there - well i have just come off the phone to the CAB and after nearly an hour they say that they cannot help me as i am in the GP's catchment area according to them and they also state that there are no boundaries anymore with surgeries - i asked why was i not told this when i first rang them to which he replied " i do not know" so he has told me to get onto NHS England again which i am going to do now - he said that they have a duty to help me - so here i go again. I will post how i get on with them. Thank you for your help - very much appreciated. Have a nice day.
Hi there - well i have been on the phone for most of the day and the CAB say yes i am in the GP surgery area and they cannot do what they have to me - I have been on to NHS England they tell me i am in the area for the GP both the surgery and i come under the same town - i have been trying to get through to PALS and they just are not answering - so left a message for them to ring me - still waiting - tried the surgery that NHS England said was in the catchment area - no answer - just engaged all the - rang NHS England back and they tried getting through to this surgery but it was engaged all the time - i have been told so many things by all of these places that are supposed to be there to help - but at the end of the day none of them want to know - i am at my wits end - will try the MP when i can find out who they are - if they cannot help then i will go to the papers - hopefully that will get me somewhere. Thank you all for the help and advice - you are all so very kind - Bless you all.
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