Am I asking too much of my GP?
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I would have thought it unlikely that you would have three bad doctors in one practice.Oh I can absolutely believe it.
At my previous surgery most if not all of the GPs were useless! Thankfully I was able to change surgeries.
OP I would try and change to the better surgery if I were you, though you may have to insist a little. 0.1 miles is not very far and if you agree to no home visits they may take you on.0 -
Why on earth would they not like benefit claimants? What difference does it make to them? You don't pay them after all. Would they even know? As you said, maybe the substance abuse aspect is the real reason. If that doesn't apply to you, disregard it..
From what I have heard from various people about that surgery is that if someone on benefits needs something like a report or letter for a disability assessment the GPS get quite grumpy with them, not just one not just even two even three people have said it., and generally treated like the person is wasting the GPs time, to be fair seems almost same issues I am getting at mine bar the actual grumpiness from the GPS about benefit issues again more than one has told me they have gone to that GP mentioning they have like a ESA assessment and the DWP may contact the GP and they refuse to get involved and say its not their problem.At my previous surgery most if not all of the GPs were useless! Thankfully I was able to change surgeries.
OP I would try and change to the better surgery if I were you, though you may have to insist a little. 0.1 miles is not very far and if you agree to no home visits they may take you on.
I asked around originally when I moved here, all the GPs the next town over told me they only cover their own town even apologised for it one even said the same, I was literally on the border for the services so couldn't be seen.0 -
From what I have heard from various people about that surgery is that if someone on benefits needs something like a report or letter for a disability assessment the GPS get quite grumpy with them, not just one not just even two even three people have said it., and generally treated like the person is wasting the GPs time, to be fair seems almost same issues I am getting at mine bar the actual grumpiness from the GPS about benefit issues again more than one has told me they have gone to that GP mentioning they have like a ESA assessment and the DWP may contact the GP and they refuse to get involved and say its not their problem.
GPs aren't always happy about having to do letters for benefits etc. because they feel like they are being asked to work for the government and use their time propping up bureaucracy rather than actually helping patients who need medical care.
That said, its not the claimant's fault so they shouldn't be letting their frustration show too much! Although it sounds like this is just rumour.0 -
There are many comments already so accept my apologies if this has already been said or is stating the obvious, but different GPs will work in different ways as with many professions.
You have experienced something that did work for you and are now experiencing a way of working that doesn't work for you, if I were in your position (and without making this reply too lengthy with examples, I have been in the past), vote with your feet and ask either for a different GP at the same surgery or find a new surgery.
It may be at an inconvenience to you if you need to travel further or take time to find someone who works a way you find fits, but it does mean that gnawing feeling of stress or anxiety that something is being missed or ignored wont be as prominent.
If you need help finding a new GP the NHS website will have information which can help but for me I just changed who I saw at the same surgery- despite their being from the same service, I've found GPs at my local surgery (for an example) work differently enough to go from having a bit of a break down during one appointment (long story involving a long wait and a lot of "chronic"-their description, pain which later turned out to be a "very obvious"-words of the consultant, stress fracture which could have been requested for if on the grounds of my prior diagnosis of osteoporosis.)
I hope you feel able to move because waiting for a GP to realise they are not serving you or even failing you is a bit like waiting for the sky to turn red with green stripes. GPs have hundreds or even a thousand patients on their books and I can imagine many like yourself will fall through the net. This is not to say the service isn't working, just to say that it does rely on you using your gut to decide to move if something isn't working or doesn't feel right and if it all turns out the next person you see also doesn't feel helpful, move again. Bare in mind the previous GP you saw did work for you, you know it can be done and will have something to compare to. You shouldn't be looking for perfect, just something that covers what you need to keep you well.0 -
I would have thought it unlikely that you would have three bad doctors in one practice.
It's nothing to do with the probability of three at one practice, once you have been labelled a timewaster or a hypochondriac you will be treated the same way by all who read it. There's no way you will ever be able to find that out, let alone challenge it or change it, so your healthcare is blighted for life.
My heart condition was diagnosed by a consultant in Resus who presumably hadn't read my notes carefully enough, and wasn't "on message", so by the time I got to cardio outpatients they just lied, and denied that I had ever been taken to A&E.
It's so obvious what's going on, because of difference from the staff who haven't had prior sight of your records.it just seems they don't seem to want to diagnose anything.
GPs offered bribes not to refer patients to hospital.Why on earth would they not like benefit claimants?
I recall an interview with a woman who fell on hard times and had to move from a middle class area to a sink estate. She found that she went from being involved and consulted about her healthcare, to getting what she was given like it or lump it.
"Diagnostic overshadowing" is the technical euphemism for doctor's prejudice. Google it. Patients with a mental health history are four times more likely to have their physical healthcare neglected until it becomes an emergency.I asked around originally when I moved here, all the GPs the next town over told me they only cover their own town
I got told "we don't poach other doctor's patients".0 -
It's nothing to do with the probability of three at one practice, once you have been labelled a timewaster or a hypochondriac you will be treated the same way by all who read it. There's no way you will ever be able to find that out, let alone challenge it or change it, so your healthcare is blighted for life.
My heart condition was diagnosed by a consultant in Resus who presumably hadn't read my notes carefully enough, and wasn't "on message", so by the time I got to cardio outpatients they just lied, and denied that I had ever been taken to A&E.
It's so obvious what's going on, because of difference from the staff who haven't had prior sight of your records.
GPs offered bribes not to refer patients to hospital.
I recall an interview with a woman who fell on hard times and had to move from a middle class area to a sink estate. She found that she went from being involved and consulted about her healthcare, to getting what she was given like it or lump it.
"Diagnostic overshadowing" is the technical euphemism for doctor's prejudice. Google it. Patients with a mental health history are four times more likely to have their physical healthcare neglected until it becomes an emergency.
I got told "we don't poach other doctor's patients".
The out of hours one said he didn't have access to my full records, so sounds about right, put it this way I didn't go to the doctors for about 3 years at one point at old town then got a good doctor (very laid back, even used to rub her feet in the middle of the consultation!) she was the one who got me a psychologist, the autism assessment, diagnosed the skin cancer,(benign) got me MRI scan, regular bloods. referred me to local mental health group, wrote letters for DWP etc.
Current one I heard didn't even respond to DWP requests, never does bloods, and all 3 just give you "its a virus" line or at most check chest and ears and say they look clear they only do something when it reaches its extreme and even then not much else.
Anyway tried changing surgeries today to a nice new one, should of guessed as its a nice one, and in posh part of town they have a backlog of people wanting to register so turning new patients away UNLESS you are new to the area which feels unfair in some ways.0 -
I've went from the opposite, living in a rubbish area and diagnosed as a munchausens victim to living in a posh area and married to a doctor, my care hasn't changed much at all.
Some GPS won't do any letters for benefits at all - mine won't. It's not part of their service and no amount of money will get them to do it. It takes up time that they're not willing to give up.
Do you actually have a medical condition that you're not being treated for? If so write to the practice manager asking that you're recommenced on the appropriate treatment, if they refuse you can complain and if that gets you nowhere you can write to your health board and ask them to intervene and assign you a GP as your relationship has broken down where you are. They won't move you to another health board area so if you're on the border between 2 boards you might be assigned a GP miles away even if a GP surgery is closer but belongs to the other health board.0 -
First of all,doctors are encouraged not to use antidepressants for more than a short span as they don't cure depression, but help people to begin coping with the condition. Many have been accused of giving tablets instead of help to get better.
What do you call regular blood tests ? It's common to have regular ones , at first, for measurement or diagnostic purposes, but then they are only needed at longer intervals,as checks..
I have one annual batch of test for diabetes, hypothyroidism , B12 and associated functions (eg liver) ,with the odd repeat after 12 weeks,should a result be very abnormal. Testing more often would be costly, with no worthwhile benefit.0 -
Sorry forgot I posted here, regular doesn't mean weekly even monthly but its now been almost 4 years since my last blood test, i used to get weekly with hormone, even every 2-3 months would be understandable or even when I get to the cold months of year when I am at my worst. For the anti depressants I was outright told cold turkey as they don't believe in prescribing them and everything can be cured with diet, routine and a good nights sleep.
Hard to tell about medical conditions as each time over the past 10 years if not my entire life I only generally get diagnosed if I get blood tests or something is obvious, but the times I do get blood tests they say something isn't right (but the rest come back perfect) thats how I got the hormonal tests done, and I was still getting checks done at old surgery when I tranferred (had to cancel bloods arranged) but new GP just outright refused.0 -
If you are depressed, this is well worth a read.0
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