DLA Doctor visit.......what should I expect?

if so fingers crossed

What a load of conspiracy theorists we have on here!.

If you do not maximise or minimise your condition and then make sure that the DR has written it down accurately then surely that is all that needs to be done?

I honestly don't believe that they are trying to 'trick' you into anything, and anyway if they have to 'trick' it wasn't strictly honest, was it?

To the OP I would say just tell the truth as it is, warts and all.

zaksmum wrote: »

The DLA doctor who came out to me didn't look around the house. But he DID ask me to go outside in the street with him so that he could assess how far I was able to walk.

Given that I'd have all my neighbours out to watch, I refused. He said it would "look bad" if I refused, and I said he had no right to ask me to undergo a medical examination or assessment in the street.

He shrugged and said "fair point", and asked me to show my walking indoors.

I got the award, although I fully expected to have to appeal.

I would feel the same, I have problems going out anyway on top of my mobility problems so really don't want the doc asking me to do this if I get a medical. Thing is walking in the home isnt as bad for me as its a small house with lots of furniture that I use to hold onto to get around, its not the same as walking constantly along a steet so I'd hope they would take it into consideration. I wondered if I said I didnt want to go in the street a doc might ask me to walk down my garden path instead, I still wouldnt like it though. I know someone else this happened to that had rheumatoid arthritis, the doctor took him around the block of his flat, he did end up getting full mobility though and has a car through the dla, not sure what care componant he got but I thought that was a bit much asking someone with that condition to do that, it seems to me that most with r arthritis get full mobility because of the effect on joints and the pain

Hiya,

I have been attempting to claim DLA for mental health disorders, including obsessive compulsive disorder and depression and a knee condition (chondromalacia patalla? spelling!) which has been gong on for over two years (but apparently isn't chronic!).
Anyway, since I have not seen a doctor about my mental health for a long time now, since I was last hospitalised and told there was nothing much else to help me, DLA decided to send a doctor round to get more information. Fair enough. (In addition, I had previously claimed from hospital, w. doctors notes and a mental health nurse signature, but apparently it is not kept for over two years?)
Anyway, since it took me various visits to the GP to actually determine what was wrong with my knees, I was unable provide the dla doc with my diagnosis /treatment/ doc notes at the time, what luck.
So this doc who comes round wants to find out about the whole shabang. All the time before he arrives, I was flustered cleaning and when he gets here, I have just finished washing and walk out, still not fully prepared and jump to see my boyfriend has let him in and he is standing in the hallway. I sit to talk with him, all the while, looking away and trying to tidy around him. However, he does not seem to notice, since he is not a mental health professional. Furthermore, he even writes in his report, apparently to prove my knees are fine, that I bend down several times to pick up my cat. Yeah... but this does show I was distracted as I did this while talking to him, because I was nervous, i.e. OCD/anxiety?!
Anyway, my claim is not looking good already, I am not receiving any treatment for anything or do I have a proper diagnosis for my knee (yet) apart from 'wear and tear'.
He asks various questions, what is my daily routine, what car do I drive (manual/automatic?) how far do I drive it, blah blah blah.
I am asked to sit on the couch where he examines my knees. My right knee grinds when I move it, this can physically be felt and heard. He does not notice this and says my knees are fine. He asks how long can I walk before it hurts and I say as long as I am walking, it is affecting me, so one step lol. He writes I can walk just fine for up to 800m without discomfort (without asking to see me walk, just seeing me walk around my flat all of about five feet on a flat, even surface). Admittedly, I do look fine when I walk but that doesn't mean it doesn't hurt and I have adapted the way I walk to compensate for my knees, which is not very noticeable. I had to leave my job because my knees were so bad and had to pay high parking/taxi fares to get to work because I couldn't walk the one mile there.
The doctor, however, disagreed. He also said I had no signs of mental health problems. He might have made this assumption on the fact that he asked me misleading questions and omitted various pieces of information from the report (as I believe; I requested the report). He asked about help going to bed at night. I said if I go to bed early, it would be approx. 2am (I had to be at work for 9am and was late daily because of this). Reasons= I clean before going to bed and have to arrange things in certain orders, check locks and doors, check fire threat, blah blah blah wash all dishes, etc. I get up several times to use the toilet even if I don't need to as I can't sleep without knowing I've been. Get up to re-check things. Get drink of water and tissue for bedside table as cannot sleep without knowing they're there. All in all, have very disrupted sleep. He omits this entire information from his report. Instead of being late and not sleeping, I drive a manual car to work a mile away and come home to watch tv.
He asks (in reference to my mental health I presume and not my knees!) precisely WHAT tv do I watch? No, exactly which programs? Comedy, news, drama? Right... so what would I be expected to say to prove I have OCD? I watch 'How Clean is Your House'? is that what I was supposed to say? Or come across sheer crazy and tell him I only watch the static, no channels at all. I mean, honestly. I watch tv, whatevers on I said and he makes me say certain genres or types of programs which I feel is putting words in my mouth cos literally, I just watch whatever. Sometimes, I'm not even watching tv, it's not even on, but I'm still staring at it.
So anyway, they based the whole case on this report, this guy who has seen me for ten minutes, without barely looking up at me to make eye contact and avoiding any conversation apart from asking his questions and looking down at his paper. I think I asked him if he'd like a tea about a hundred times, I felt so awkward!
So now I have to go to tribunal appeal stage to prove I am disabled. And no, you cannot tell from what type of tv I watch, unfortunately, if I have mental health problems or not, or else I could diagnose myself with freeview, which would be very convenient.
Anyway, grr... doctor's visit! Be careful how you act, it's not conspiracy theory, it's human nature that you want to act your best and portray yourself in the best light, hiding your disabilities etc. but that is just what makes you look like you're faking it when a doc sits opposite you and thinks you're just fine n dandy cos you got so good at fooling everyone.