Here is why our NHS and Local Government is utterly shafted

This part of my story starts in October, the last time I visited my GP - we had our usual discussion about my condition and medications and she agreed that all medications were still valid and should continue. I asked if she could adjust the repeat prescriptions to that they all renew (when the appointment is needed) at the same time, rather than having to waste two or three doctors appointments just to renew prescriptions - she agreed. My GP surgery is closing in March, so she advised that I wait until I have just obtained a repeat prescription before going to register with a new GP - fair enough.

Three weeks ago, I went online to submit a repeat prescription to find that one item (we will call it Drug A for now) had not had its repeat renewed - so, in the other requests box, I left a note for the doctor asking for it to be added to this prescription. A few days later, I collected the prescription and as there were two sheets I didn't think to read it all through until I got home - then I found that not only was Drug A missing, but also one part of my blood pressure medication was missing (I get two different sizes to make up the dose).

As it was getting near to Christmas, I though I would just carry on with a slightly lower dose of the BP meds and sort it out in the New Year - however, the need for Drug A was becoming a bit critical as I was running out. I checked online, no appointments available for weeks (no surprise, and I didn't really need one anyway, so I rang the surgery and spoke to the receptionist and explained that I needed Drug A quite rapidly but didn't want to waste a doctors time, particularly at this time of year. No problem, just send us an email and we can have it ready in 48 hrs....... email duly sent, also mentioning the BP tablets that were missing. Today, 72 hours later, I popped in to pick up the prescription (our surgery is one that is attached to a hospital and a walk in centre so is open almost all the time); the prescription I was handed was a duplicate of the one I picked up a few weeks back - still no Drug A or the BP tablet.

Speaking to the receptionist, she informed me that it was taking longer to get prescriptions as there were fewer doctors and I might have to wait. I asked when it would be ready, bearing in mind that they had already been asked twice over the past three weeks or so. I got a load of waffle from her, so simply asked what I needed to do to get the prescription, and asked if I needed to collapse and get carted in by ambulance?

Long story short, I had to be booked in as a walk in patient to see a nurse who agreed that I was chock full of a heavy cold which had done what it usually does with me and give me a raging chest infection, and agreed that there was nothing more they could give me for that than I could get over the counter - she also agreed that I was otherwise OK, and that all I was really wanting/needing was a prescription for Drug A which had been ballsed up by the GP's. She went off to speak to the prescribing senior nurse, and came back not with a prescription but with a box containing Drug A - - all sorted.

Why did it take all of that nonsense to get this sorted? What a waste of my time and their time that someone else could have been benefiting from.

Drug A then - some heavily regulated, rare drug? Morphine maybe?












No - a Ventolin inhaler!

I will come back to my other observation later in the thread.

 

Observation 2 - after the saga with the doctors, I then had to find an open pharmacy as Mrs C is also stricken with this cold/flu/'Good God what is this' thing, which I finally managed quite a distance from home. On my way back, just as I passed back into the borough boundary I spotted a heap of old car tyres dumped on a grass verge, with some more detritus further along on the same verge. It seems that my earlier thoughts about the council charging to dispose of various items is already coming true. So now, after a while it will get reported to the council, they will send out a highways inspector (or 'Street Scene Officer' as they are now called!) who will confirm that yes, there is a load of rubbish at the roadside that needs clearing before retiring to his office. He will then email someone else who will send a team of people out in a van with disposable PPE to uplift the rubbish (after completing a risk assessment, of course) and then take it to the very same dump that charges for people to drop them off by themselves.

No wonder this country is eternally broke! Stupid bloomin' rules, procedure and cuts to services that simply sees the costs move from one budget to another, whilst those who are using those services are not only paying more for less, but getting increasingly more frustrated as the end result could have been achieved without a load of rigmarole and extra cost.

 

I'd be changing chemist, fast. If they are counting wrong, who is to say that they are actually putting the right medicine in, or how long until they get that wrong?

 

@Jack McHammocklashing How about checking the prescription before you leave the desk each time? It's the only safe way to do it.

Mrs Shiney has repeat prescriptions. Our village surgery has its own dispensary and they have two ways of dealing with repeats. One is the same as with Dai, a postbox for putting the script in. The other is by ordering it by email. They ask for three working days but can get a practice nurse to authorise an immediate script if there's an emergency (lost your pills etc.).

Even with the good service (they don't always have it ready when they say) she still checks it at the desk. That was a good thing the other month because she found that the doctor had changed her medication. It was another form of the same thing but Mrs Shiney knew that one would require her to test her blood before driving! (She's studied pharmacology) She refused to accept it and insisted that she have the prescription that is on her repeat form.

They said that she would need to make an appointment with the doctor so she said that she would just stand there and wait for the doctor to come and see her as she needed her prescription now!

The doctor saw her in three minutes. It turned out that it was a new doctor that had taken over their diabetic clinic and she said that she had changed her prescription because that is what she has always prescribed in her previous practice. Mrs Shiney said that she had no right to change it without consulting her first and that she taking the best interest of her patients into account as it would create a complete lifestyle change for no reason - as the drug doesn't bring anything extra to someone at her stage of diabetes. She then said "does the manufacturer give a bonus?". Her prescription was altered immediately on the computer and she picked up the correct drug on the way out.

We have a very good surgery and this is the first major problem. Mrs Shiney had a private word with the practice manager and they reviewed what was happening. Mrs Shiney is on their patient review panel.

They gave up years ago trying to put me on statins and have it on my record as 'refused'. My doctor has got used to discussing with me all about any drug that he might prescribe and how efficacious it might be (I do have some knowledge of drugs and if ill, check up before I go, on all the drugs that may be prescribed for that illness. I don't take anything that isn't absolutely necessary.

 

No post box at our surgery, but them getting the request isn't the problem, they clearly did not read it or check it in any way. If we have GP's that cannot read, then that really worries me.

We are hearing on the news that A&E units are stuffed to bursting, and there is even a campaign telling us all to 'stay well' this winter and deal with things like colds ourselves, and not take GP appointments for things like colds - - and yet, no matter what I tried to do it ended up with me having an on the spot appointment to see someone just to obtain Ventolin. Thankfully, I do not have to use Ventolin much, but when I do, I really need it; many other people depend on Ventolin much more critically than I do, and it has to be almost as common in this country as paracetamol. The difference, of course, is that not having Ventolin can result in death.

Maybe there should be a list of fairly basic but critical medications that pharmacists can look at to see if you have been prescribed it in the past, and if you have they can prescribe one there and then with your GP being automatically notified so they can get you in to see someone as appropriate?

 

Doesn't your surgery provide you with a printed repeat prescription each time you have your script? Then you should be able to use that at the chemist. There should be an automatic stop on their computer when it's coming time for your prescription to be reviewed. It should point out that this is the last repeat without reconfirmation from the doctor.