Using A & E to see a specialist?

124

Comments

  • benjus
    benjus Posts: 5,433 Forumite
    First Post First Anniversary
    My wife has also found the British health system rather hard to get used to - she's from Argentina and generally prefers the system they have there. I'm not really familiar with how their system works and how it is funded, but she could basically go and see a specialist whenever she wanted to. The system of having to go to a GP to get referred to a specialist was rather difficult for her to adapt to, especially when GP appointments are so hard to get.

    I have a private GP service paid for by work which I see far more than my NHS GP, because I can usually get an appointment the same day, the doctors are on time, and it's very close to the office where I work. My wife doesn't have this - I've suggested that she might be better off paying for it (it's not massively expensive at £30/month for unlimited appointments) but for now she's sticking with the NHS. Of course, if the private GPs prescribe you anything expensive then you'll have to pay the full cost of the medicine.

    I also have private medical cover with work which covers us both for many specialist consultations, although there still needs to be a referral from a qualified doctor (so usually a GP). So things are better for her now than when she first arrived here, but she still finds the whole process a hassle (getting the GP referral, then dealing with the insurance company) compared with what she was used to.

    So I do understand why people get frustrated when they are used to other systems. Not that I would recommend going to A&E to try and see a specialist. And the implication that specialists in this country should charge a similar amount to what they charge in Turkey also seems rather bizarre.
    Let's settle this like gentlemen: armed with heavy sticks
    On a rotating plate, with spikes like Flash Gordon
    And you're Peter Duncan; I gave you fair warning
  • ska_lover
    ska_lover Posts: 3,773 Forumite
    Combo Breaker First Post
    Unless your condition is an emergency, you will not get seen by a specialist, you will get seen by a duty doctor, and your gp contacted to make a referral
    The opposite of what you know...is also true
  • Red-Squirrel_2
    Red-Squirrel_2 Posts: 4,341 Forumite
    adandem wrote: »
    it's not always advisable to wait for a GP referral.

    Well no, obviously not when it’s an actual emergency. :cool:
  • elsien
    elsien Posts: 32,661 Forumite
    Name Dropper Photogenic First Anniversary First Post
    You can see a specialist here any time you like if you want to - you just need to pay for it instead of expecting an overburdened NHS to continue to clog itself up with the worried well. I have a relative who'd work there way through every department in the hospital, given half a chance.

    And with the sleep apnoea example - losing weight is one of the things that will make a difference, so it's not unreasonable of the GP to make the suggestion.
    All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.

    Pedant alert - it's could have, not could of.
  • adandem
    adandem Posts: 3,592 Forumite
    Combo Breaker First Post First Anniversary
    Red-Squirrel wrote: »
    Well no, obviously not when it’s an actual emergency. :cool:

    That's the point. Mine was an emergency but A&E still insisted on a GP referral.
  • Red-Squirrel_2
    Red-Squirrel_2 Posts: 4,341 Forumite
    adandem wrote: »
    That's the point. Mine was an emergency but A&E still insisted on a GP referral.

    That was a mistake, they do happen sadly, it doesn’t mean that’s the norm!
  • textbook
    textbook Posts: 574 Forumite
    Name Dropper First Post First Anniversary Combo Breaker
    edited 27 March 2018 at 10:25PM
    benjus wrote: »
    My wife has also found the British health system rather hard to get used to - she's from Argentina and generally prefers the system they have there. I'm not really familiar with how their system works and how it is funded, but she could basically go and see a specialist whenever she wanted to. The system of having to go to a GP to get referred to a specialist was rather difficult for her to adapt to, especially when GP appointments are so hard to get.

    I have a private GP service paid for by work which I see far more than my NHS GP, because I can usually get an appointment the same day, the doctors are on time, and it's very close to the office where I work. My wife doesn't have this - I've suggested that she might be better off paying for it (it's not massively expensive at £30/month for unlimited appointments) but for now she's sticking with the NHS. Of course, if the private GPs prescribe you anything expensive then you'll have to pay the full cost of the medicine.

    I also have private medical cover with work which covers us both for many specialist consultations, although there still needs to be a referral from a qualified doctor (so usually a GP). So things are better for her now than when she first arrived here, but she still finds the whole process a hassle (getting the GP referral, then dealing with the insurance company) compared with what she was used to.

    So I do understand why people get frustrated when they are used to other systems. Not that I would recommend going to A&E to try and see a specialist. And the implication that specialists in this country should charge a similar amount to what they charge in Turkey also seems rather bizarre.


    It's hard to get used to because it's crap. If I have a worry about my child I want to go to paediatrician not a blase GP who probably got pass for his medical degree. I wanted someone to see my three year old and he recommeneded that nurse who monitors a childs development. What's she going to know about tricky anatomical issue? (That was what I wanted looking at.)

    Not saying Brit docs are bad. They're pretty good- not as good as in the US or France but ok. Other problems are it's all too closed, it's hard know which doctor is good and which one has a trail of malpractice as it's all covered up and hidden. The docs also seem to leave things too much and not be proactive in doing something.
  • textbook
    textbook Posts: 574 Forumite
    Name Dropper First Post First Anniversary Combo Breaker
    edited 27 March 2018 at 10:51PM
    C_Mababejive wrote: »
    The real danger is that if a GP takes a conservative approach to your malady, it might get misdiagnosed due to the limits of the GPs knowledge and lack of diagnostic equipment. You might then advance and be in a worse position when finally diagnosed ie premature death.

    All the kit is at the hospital.

    Do you want to gamble?

    GPs have their own budgets to manage. Maybe they are influenced by this?


    Exactly. They are trained to be more conservative and leave things compared to US docs. I just get frustrated being back in Britain after seeing some specialists in the US who were excellent and also who were reasonably priced. Half what it is to go privately in the UK.
  • textbook
    textbook Posts: 574 Forumite
    Name Dropper First Post First Anniversary Combo Breaker
    elsien wrote: »
    You can see a specialist here any time you like if you want to - you just need to pay for it instead of expecting an overburdened NHS to continue to clog itself up with the worried well. I have a relative who'd work there way through every department in the hospital, given half a chance.

    And with the sleep apnoea example - losing weight is one of the things that will make a difference, so it's not unreasonable of the GP to make the suggestion.



    oh come on. The guy had the second worst case of sleep apnoea ever found at the sleep clinic in Brazil!! The Brit GPs saying just lose weight and not identifying his problem is terrible. Typical of them- leave it and make light of itu. In some cases you really have to go out and deal with this yourself and pay money and research who to see.
  • GlasweJen
    GlasweJen Posts: 7,451 Forumite
    Name Dropper First Anniversary First Post Combo Breaker
    As a teen my mum paid a fortune for me to go see a specialist cardiac electrphysiologist in Toledo. At this point I had a useless diagnosis from the NHS and was being treated on corticosteroids and a drug that wasn't licensed here in the UK but I'd got a special medical panel to approve it's use in my case.

    So off we go to Toledo with my full medical notes and a long letter from a supportive professor of cardiology who we'd seen privately here in the UK (professor Sutton, Mum had thought we'd try London before going abroad but he'd said my only hope was a pacemaker and even then it was only likely to be 30% successful).

    We sit in the waiting room for 2 hours, I have an ECG (had to take our own paper), then a cardiac stress test (charged for the sticky pads for the ends of the ECG). 5 hours later I saw a resident (junior doctor) who asked me if we'd tried the drugs that I was already on! My mum wasn't amused and asked to see the person we'd actually paid to see. He basically rhymed off what prof Sutton had wrote in his letter!

    Now had I been English (I'm Scottish) I would have seen prof Sutton on the NHS at some point. The Americans had nothing to offer me except more expensive tests which didn't give any different answers compared to what we were told in the UK. They didn't predict that I'd need a transplant, they didn't tell us it was degenerative. It was a total money grab at every turn.

    People can say the American system is better but as far as cardiac is concerned unless you're looking for a specialist in hearts clogged up with 60 tonnes of grease I'd rather speak to a British doctor than an American doctor.
This discussion has been closed.
★ ★ ★ Meet your Ambassadors

Categories

  • All Categories
  • 343K Banking & Borrowing
  • 250K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
  • 449.6K Spending & Discounts
  • 235.1K Work, Benefits & Business
  • 607.7K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
  • 173K Life & Family
  • 247.7K Travel & Transport
  • 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
  • 15.9K Discuss & Feedback
  • 15.1K Coronavirus Support Boards