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Where do you get your health advice from?
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Books/JournalsMy gp is fab, and when I see him he will answer pretty much any questions I have in thickie terms and not make me feel like I'm wasting his time.
I tend to use the net to look up medications I've been given and possible treatments that might help and then I ask him if he thinks something's worth a go or if it's a load of cackWe quite often hav a laugh at some of the stuff on the net but sometimes I do find something useful and he then says ooh, let me know how it goes, I might start recommending it to other patients
anytime I've used NHS direct they've always told me to call an ambulance so I'm not sure how good they areI think they err on the side of caution, just in case
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for my sins I google a lot of symptoms and end up in a panic thinking the worse
and then end up rushing to the doctor. But saying this, I do have health anxiety issues since losing my father. Last year I ended up putting myself through an MRI scan because I convinced myself I had MS - god knows how, but there you go.
I used NHS Direct once - what a waste of time and money because in the end they just refer you to your doctor :mad:0 -
I have to say I'm not a big fan of NHS Direct either, although I think their website is quite informative.
One time I used NHS Direct because DD had picked up an ivy leaf and was chewing it. They sent me down to casualty who were bemused as it wasn't even on their list of registered poisons (Talk about the NHS wasting their own time?)
The second time I was bleeding whilst pregnant, and the NHS Direct told me to lie down and have a rest. When I told my midwife a week later she hit the roof.
I tend to look things up on the internet alot, but you have to sift out the American stuff. For example a close relative has just been diagnosed with metastic lung cancer, and reading around the subject shows how different the treatments are in the US.
If DD has an illness, or has had a temperature for more than 3 days, I'll always go to the GP just to get it checked out. For me, I'd leave it a bit longer before I go the GP - but that would be my reliable source of info. Anything I found on the web would just be background reading if that makes sense.
lexCompetition wins -
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i ask my mum whos a retired nurse or check on the net0
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Alex_of_Swansea wrote: »I'm a nurse, so I tend to just ask people in work for advice. To be honest, I've had bad experiences with NHS direct - which is odd as I know many nurses who work there from whom I'd happily ask advice. But having a friend suffer a 'classic' heart attack (central chest pain radiating down left arm for 8 hours) and being told to take ibuprofen kind of put me off contacting them. I could go on with stories, but that's for another time.
Yeah me too, i have quite often had too see Patients that have been mis-advised by NHS direct !0 -
GP/Healthcare professionalUsually GP as myself and 2 kids are on specilaized medication and the chemist always says, got to the GP.
Last time I rang NHS direct I got told to wait til when the DRs was open. In the meantime my son had began fitting!
Otherwise if it is a small injury but not sure what to do, if she's in the neighbour, she's a paramedic, otherwise GP/hospitalThe "Bloodlust" Clique - Morally equal to all. Member 10
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Books/JournalsAlthough I have had a couple of great GP's recently, I have been a little cautious of them since my mum was misdiagnosed for 7 months with an 'infection' when she in fact had quite advanced Inflammatory Breast Cancer... thank goodness she also had private medical insurance as she would have then had a further 4 weeks wait to discover that on the NHS.
I recently learnt that I have had, what someone else also mentioned above, 'health aniexty' since then... so I tend to spend time looking a lot of stuff up online. I do avoid the American sites tho... and I dont go rushing off to the GP with a list of symptoms or anything - it just causes me stress on a day to day basis.
I also called NHS direct last year when I was on antibiotics as I felt very strange indeed... the woman was incredibly snappy and got me into a right pickle... I was having problems breathing and chest pains and she said if it got worse to call an ambulance!!! Well that just set off big time.. and although I didnt have the foggiest what was going on.. and obviously thought it was somethig awful to do with the tablets I was on... I ended up having a massive panic attack and someone at work called an ambulance! I was so dreadfully embarrassed when it turned up... what a waste of their time! They told me that it happens an awful lot because of NHS direct...
I do think that correct use of the internet can be very useful tho.. GP's cannot possibly have extensive knowledge of more unusual conditions or indeed be expected to know all alternative treatments etc if the established ones arent working. I have a friend who has problems that totally baffle his GP and my friend has been educating him in many ways about possible causes and treatments etc because he has the time and brains to understand online medical journals etc.. obviously not everyone could do this tho.0 -
WebsiteSorry I should have hit healtcare professional as well since pharmacists can be better than doctors (and a lot easier to get hold of!) I know my mum always asks them to double check any prescriptions given by docs for how they might affect other drugs the patient is taking, and has caught mistakes on several occasions, including her 7yo niece being prescribed adult antibiotics!!0
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Call for NHS Direct to be investigated. See here http://www.careandhealth.com/Pages/Story.aspx?StoryID=9f2e2b47-54fc-4a9c-93a0-ef6935da634d.................
....I'm smiling because I have no idea what's going on ...:)
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GP/Healthcare professionalMy GP - or i find the NHS direct helpline very helpfulFriends are angels who lift us to our feet when our wings have trouble remembering how to fly.0
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