Latest in saga of disastrous graft op

[rosemary johnson]

Thanks, Andrew! - I sincerely hope so!! (and I hope it all gets moving inthe right direction before the eye hospital stick their oar in and wreck it all again.O
A further piece of very good news yesterday was that the vet came to our new stables to see Duke - to give him an injection, as it happens, but he also looked at his back hooves (the ones that have the infection) and was apparently very impressed with how much they have improved recently. Except he said the farrier hadn't trimmed them ruthlessly enough when he last came to shoe him, and cut off a lot more himself!
By the time I got to the stables inthe afternoon, DUke was in a definite "I don't like vets" mood.
Rosemary

[rosemary johnson]

Latest: rang new GP's place yesterday morning, to ask why I hadn't heard anything since last appointment. Was expecting letter about appointmnet for scan, also for him/someone from surgery to contact me following their team meeting but not a sausage.
Got phone call back (while in Duke's stable doing the mucking out!) to say he wanted me to make an appointment and come in.
Grrrr. SO left work early (= lost hour's pay I could have done with) and still don't know why we thought I should come in.
ANyway.... recapped. He's going to chase up the MRI scan. He's also, he says, goign to work on two specialist referrals, and try to work out which are the best specialists.
I wait in hope.
Meanwhile, I have a large parcel with most of my last year's records from old GP, though some pages are still missing, and have 2, 3 or even 6 copies of some (this is not what I paid 24 pounds 50 for!!!) - deputy practice manager says she'll sort out. Surprise surprise, something def still missing is records of the "carve me up behind my back" phone calls with the eye hospital people.
Had "We have recived yours on umpteenth inst" type letter in response to my complaint about new consultant
's letter to former GP - pp'd for chief exec by the woman who dumped the paperwork that I hsould be being moved to a new consultant after the op onto the totally-inappropriate, not to mention useless PALS and left it there to stew. Can only hope for better there....
Meanwhile, new GP still ahs not got notes sent on from old GP. Long may that situation continue!!
ROde Duke yesterday. In the manege (all-weather surface arena) and got him trotting some approximately circular circles and doing some nice bits of trot - despite the builders working ont he railway bridge and shunting things about by JCB just outside the arena at one end, and two horses from the "neighbours" coming running to see what we were doing and leaning over the fence to watch us at the other end.
Ended the session with my back decidedly sore, and felt like the proverbial limp rag doll with no strength at all this morning.
Duke must have felt he was exerting himself - he was definitely sweaty through his thick winter coat that is now coming out by the brushful when I groom him.
I can also most definitely confirm he is no longer in dulging in the bad habit he'd taken up before we left the old place of eating his own droppings!! - there were whellbarrow-loads of the stuff to remove - and since he is bedding on woodshavings and tends to kick them around all over his stable, to be found and dug out...... a bit like an unlucky-dip version of a fairground bran tub, but much bigger!
Great news from Cheltenham today, Kauto Star winning back the Gold Cup. (That is, he won it in 2007 and was second last year.) And apart from the historical nature of the achievement, I reckon I've seen him racing "in the flesh" 7 times - it's great when the winner of the top race is one who's an "Old friend" like that. And Denmab who finished 2nd did remarkably well, considering he was off work and under the vet with a heart problem only last autumn.
Rosemary

[rosemary johnson]

Aaaarghhhhh!!!!
DOn't want to believe this!
Phone call from new GP
s surgery yesterday. Practice manager. Says she's got the stuff about one of the referrals I was promised, and can I come in and collect it.
Pop round a bit later, expecting to be able ot pick up an envelope, or at least three sheets of paper, fromt he reception desk. Get asked tot ake a seat. Ages later am still waiting and as am on my way to station en route to Kempton races (!!) tellt hem gotta go can't wait alld ay.
Went back this morning.
Only 100 yards up yard, so apart from obligatory hat and shades had only front door keys and folded newspaper in case got asked to wait again for right person.
Expecting to pick up 3 sheets of paper and only have to assure person giving them to me I knew what to do with a Choose and Book form as had done it before.
Got called - and must have a word with them about yelling my firt name only across the waiting room! - by same health care assistant person who did the initial health checkup, plys someone who turns out to be deputy practice manager.
HCA sits down at computer and apparently seems intent on registering and booking me in for a choose and book appointment thereand then. Said I thought this had been done, as from phone call I thought I was just coming to pick up the paperwork.
She thinks it hasn't and FPM goes to check and says no, so HCA sets off to put in C&B, starts off by asking where she's referring me to.
I don't know!! Dr was going to be researching this and advising me!
Phone call had said Queen Square, though not the right person/dept and having already been referred twice to wrong people there, didn't want to make that mistake again.
SHehas to work out how to go into my record rather than C&B screen and find that out. Finds just Queen Square written, no dept, consultant or who.
Picks "general" off a list and says QS will move it to appropriate other place within QS when they get it.
Getting really really bad feeling about this.
Meanwhile, she's trying to book me in an apptmt on the spot. No can do! - as I was expecting to be just collecting 3 sheets of paper, I hadn't brought my diary! She's still sitting there saying the first one isn't till 6th May, and if we leave it till I come in again, that may have gone and there not be another one for another age....
"What do you mean, I come in again?" I ask. She prints out two of the three pages I was expecting to pick up, withthe code number, the password and the phone number/URL to book it myself from home.
I ask if I can have a copy of the referral letter now, too, please, and save me another trip later.
She doesn't know if it's been done yet - apparently, they get typed in straight into the C&B web form and sent electronically, not typed as a letter per se into a word processor, so it may still be in manuscript/on dictaphone tape. someone goes to check. Another huge long wait.
SOmeone comes back. Tells me it is the policy of this practice that they do not give patients copies of referral letters.
WHAT??????!!!!!!!!??!?!?!?!?!?!?!!!!!!!!!!
Yup, that was a scream!
Tell them: if he isn't prepared to say something to my face, why on earth is he prepared to write it about me to a stranger? This is 2009 and that is totally unacceptable.
Interestingly on reflection, neither HCA, reception staff, DPM not Business manager (who he?) called in it "explain" tries to argue the point!
Say NOt Having This.
Point out can get it under FOIA anyway; woudl they like me to write out request? SOmeone gets me paper and pen. I write out formal requests as per legal rights 1. to all the medical records they old on me, under DPA, 2, under FOIA to anything the may wish under terms of DPA to withhold from me under 1 about and 3. under FOIA anythign else they hold on me and while I'm writing, add refusal of permission to have records put onto national data spine or anything similar.
I await with interst for signs of cats among pigeons!
State my understanding to Bus mgr that though they may withhold items under DPA, they have to tell me what they've withheld and cannot withhold them if I then request those items under FOIA so have done them both now to save time. Bus Mgr says he thinks they can't refuse to let me see something if I ask to come in and look at it there; I say Fine, and I'll be happy to do that and copy down thebits of relevance...... but he'll have to make sure they have copies for me to look at whch I can actually read as I'm partially sighted and can't read their computer screens. As far as I can tell without my contact lenses, he looks flummoxed!
Go home, get out diary, find 1st apptmt HCA was offering is a day I can't make it so good thing she didn't book it; ring and book in, have lengthy caht about not sure it's the right dept and have been referred to wrong person there twice already so don't want to repeat the experience!
Thinking about this more later, am finding it more and more offensive!
Anyone else this is all as completely beyond the pale as I do????
ANyone got any suggetions as to what I do about it?
My thoughts on reflection: I've spent all too much of last 15 months with various medics trying to carve up my health, wellbeing, reputation, and generally screw up my chances of getting the health care I need
and have changed GP on account of all the bullshit thus being spread around - partly cos GP on receiving end gave out rapid signs of wanting nothing to do with this or me, but changed practice in attempt to stymie hospital's gravy train.
Severe issures of breach of trust there - apart from breach of trust in causing damage in first place.
Now find new GP thinks it OK to be writing letters off to total strangers and not give me a copy.
After last 15 months this is last thing I want or need!
And no basis of a trust relationship required for good health care.
Don't want to have to find ANOTHER new GP...
Thinking of ringing practice manager in morning,and saying, if it hasn't gone off to QS yet, please don't send it; am not prepared to have anyone sending any letters (or phone calls, faxes etc!) to third parties they are not prepared to copy to me. And what do you suggest I do about this??
Which could make it very ihteresting with QS of course.....

aaaaaaaaarrgghhhhhhhh! This is just what I don't need.
Rosemary

[Hilary Johnson]

I'm sure it must be very irritating and annoying to be messed around like that.

But I'm also sure that reacting in the way you did is not going to help you establish a relationship of trust with your new GP. They won't trust you not to get all litigious, and you don't seem willing to trust them at all - how is that going to work? You have to do your part of building a relationship too.

I suggest you speak to the practice manager, not to rant at her, but to tell her that you went in to collect stuff, as asked, and there didn't seem to be anything to collect, and ask her if she can find it for you, whatever it was. Give her a chance to sort it out, before you get fired up. Maybe just maybe it was just put aside somewhere that no-one could find, and there was never really a problem in the first place.

I also suggest:
1. that you accept it is inevitable that people will talk about you behind your back - because it is. Just make sure that the way you behave towards them doesn't give them so much to talk about!! If you don't want them to say you have mental health problems, don't act paranoid and histrionic...
2. accept that people will not always call you what you want to be called - because they don't. Tough. Does it really matter?

H

[rosemary johnson]

I have now spoken to the practice manager - twice, and she says she'll call be back tomorrow.
It would seem that is really was the intention to get me to come in and do the appointment booking there and then. That is probably practice general practice (as it were) - and in a very mixed multiracial area where many of the patients are not native ENglish speakers, may be recent arrivals and might well struggle with the process with help. If/when any more referrals come up and I get a simialr call, I'll just ask them to phone me through the code number and I'll handle it.
Practice manager seemed to have no problem at all with saying, hent he referral letter was done, she'd pop a copy in the post to me.
She also seemed vaguely surprised to hear I'd been told that no, I couldn't have a copy, it wasn't allowed, the practice policy was not to give referral letters to patients.
She did say that very few people ask for them - and they don't give them to people who don't want them. Fair enough, save trees, save paperwork......
SO am hoping this was a mistake based on a piece of Chinese whispers.
Or at least, that someone will claim it is, and OK, if so, let's take it as such.
As regards trust - ha! I've already had one person (who shall be nameless, and may or may not be reading this) trying to lecture me on needing the trust of the medics. Excuse me? I've told him. What about the medics needing MY trust??!! NO disagreement there.....
Well, if we can come to the conclusion it is a Chinese whispers style misunderstanding, fine.
I'd been intending to do a DpA/FOIA request soon, and the Not on Naitonal SPine letter, anyway. And to make request that once my old records arrive from old GP's, I wanted to come in and see them. If only because it will be interesting to see if their copy is the same as mine......!
I await developments.....
OTHER MATTERS:
just had letter from (well, prepared for....) hospital chief exec. They apologise for sending letter to wrong GP, and have apparently noted me as not wishing my GP to be sent updates, which is the only way they can go, as their rules, they say, preclude them sending GP update letters to me for passing on. Which will mean, if there are no GP update letters going out at all, I won't be able to pick up any misunderstandings. But better than GPs getting mis-info. And better for the other person concerned than my GP getting a letter about completely the wrong person, which has happened before.
As for the content, he says, that is new consultant's clinical judgement and he can't say anythign about that.
HUH?!????!!!!!!
SHe doesn't think to ask me what the medical problems actually are, and nor does anyone else. She never has. When I've spoked to her about getting the record put straight in my notes, she's referred me to the anaesthetic department (who appear to keep their own records and never put anything in my notes). Neither she nor her nurse-practitioner on the day of my last appointment asked what the problem was, and no-one in 14 months at that hospital has asked what they could do to help. ONly thing she asked was, did I want her to appraoch my GP for me, and I said No Thank YOu, I thought it was better to approach my new GP myself.
SO she's been doing precisely the opposite! - and based on no actual info, but on the mis-information being spread round 13 months ago, in a letter the CE has already had formal complaints about, which itself was based on absolutely no consultation with me at any time, and only on Chinese whispers from people also only tangentially involved.
And this is clinical judgement??????
This is the clinical judgement to which I'm supposed to be entrusting my health???? - even if it is only the health of an eye I've long since given up on and care about far less than the hospital seem to do!
If it were remotely funny, it would be a joke......
I;m sorely temot
tempted to ring and cancal my next appointment.
If I do, how do I get my titch tamen out?
Sorry, Stitch taken out.
Answers on a postcard........
Rosemary

[rosemary johnson]

PS to above: have no problems at all being called Rosemary by anyone who's happy to be called Susan or Debbie or Laurie or Caroline. It's jsut that when I head this distant voice yelling "Rosemary!!" apparently along the full length of a very long,thin and crowded waiting area, I do think "EH? Does someone want me? Is it me they want? WHo and where are they anyway?"
Dr himself keeps calling me Mrs Johnson. I've gentlya nd firmly corrected him. If he does it again, I'll stop him, ask him to doble check it is correct on the records and point out why it is dangerous (the new tenants in the flat upstairs are by pure coincidence a Mr Richard and Mrs Johnson. Anything sent to me addressed to Mrs Johnson will get picked up by them and not get to me.)
By contrast, I've recently been plagued by phone calls from Barclaycard call centre wanted the guy upstairs - even after going in to Barclays bank in person to complain about nuisance calls. I think these call centres look up the address on one of those gazeteer sites and aren't apparently intelligent enough to know that 92 and 92a are different properties.
Grrr.
Rosemary