Annoyed

[Mark B]

Aaah.

Why are some people in the so called caring profession so rude and un-caring??

I just called my Hospital contact lens centre to say i am having trouble with my left lens and could i see someone before my next appointment in 3 months.

I had my head bitten off! I was told that they are far to busy and that its normal for some pain and that i should just wait and see if it gets better.

I have nothing against the Hospital its just some people, the receptionist who thinks they own the bloody department, the nurse who thinks your taking the p when you say what chart!

Sorry all i am having a bad eye week and needed to let off some steam but what do i do now? call back tommorow and hope its her day off, go three months with no lens seeing not much or put up with constant pain???

And if one more person says why dont you just get some new glasses i think i will explode.

Aaaaaah

[GarethB]

Most of resort to going to the eye casualty department of the eye unit.

You should try and get the name of the receptionist and report them.

When I had pain wearing my lenses June last year, I phoned up, explained the problem and the fact the lens was on top of my graft from 1989 and they put me straight through to an optom who advised me to go straight to eye casualty to get it looked at.

If there is constant pain that has been there for more tah a day, then you MUST go to eye casualty just incase there is a problem with the lens that may potentially be damagaing or if the discomfort is due to an infection or such like.

The nurses will go through the usual routine of what can you see, put your lens in and do the eye test again. When I did the latter said what I could see and described the pain, what it was like, where it was, what made it worse and so on.

Had to put up with the discomfort while waiting for the doctor, but at least he could see if it was due to the lens. For me, it was a reaction to the lens material.

Good luck with the eye casualty, sorry you will have to endure some more discomfort, but if it means the situation can be resolved, it will be worth it in the long run.

[jayuk]

Mark

You have my total sympathy!

I went through this at Moorefields time and time again!...Where I gave up hope and had to resort to paying and basically creating my own Public-Private Treatment initiative! lol

Beleive me when I say that I have really gone mad on occasions and have had to get myself off the fone when asking for revised appts because I REALY am in pain and cant work.......I could write till the cows come home on this issue.....but it all boils down to

a) Not enough understanding and training
b) paying peanuts getting monkeys!

I can recall untold stories where I have sat in Clinic 4 and there have been people that really did need attention and they were all told to come back or stick to appts....to the extent where I saw actual staff have to come out and intervene as they understood what the issues were!

The only solution you have is to go to the Eye unit Casualty and wait it out.....then they have to do something!

Jay

[Mark B]

Can i rearly go to casualty just because the lens is hirting. I would feel a bit of a fraud when there will be people with proper injuries there?

do we ( i mean us special few with KC ) go to casualty if we get an eye infection or just to our doctors?

[jayuk]

Mark

I have had to go to Casualty, from memory, around a total of 12 times over a 30 month period...this was towards the end of my KC cycle in my right eye.,.......I didnt feel guilty as I ONLY had one eye to see from, the other had hydroped!

Dont feel that you will be a fraud. I think that if the issue causes you to stop working/functioning than Yes def go to Casualty in the Eye Unit.

J

[GarethB]

The eye unit go to have said even if I get a simple eye infection I should go the eye casualty.

1) If you have KC, just to treat it early and properly so to avoid agrevating the condition.

2) If you have had a graft like me, to make sure an infection does not lead to rejection.

Te staff in the eye casualty see you as someone in distress in need of help, no more no less.

[Louise Pembroke]

Support everything the guys have said, if your lens hurts and stops you from functioning properly I would go the eye A&E because you don't know what the problem is, if you need drops waiting 3 months could be harmful. Grafts always get a priority too, and I won't take risks with a GP. Specialist problems should be seen by the relevant specialists, and don't feel guilty about going, I wouldn't. I'm just so annoyed people have these difficulties.