GP surgery rant!

Just spent over half hour on phone to learn the following:

1/ The ‘NEW system’ the GP surgery have for emailing for repeat prescriptions has somehow lost my request for repeat prescription. I have just now on their advice sent in another request using the ‘OLD system’.

2/ Two months ago I asked my GP to refer me for a wheelchair. I have just heard that the GP wrote in my notes “I have spoken to patient and she would like to have a wheelchair”. She then did NOTHING further.

So for 2 months I have been waiting for a letter of phone-call about my wheelchair for nothing… and my repeat prescription won’t now be ready till Monday. Luckily I put it in early enough so I have just enough med’s to do till Monday.

The proverbial pi££ up in a brewery comes to mind…

Rant over.

Pat x

Tea party and chimps ??!! Xx

Hi Pat

That’s awful, if you have an OT get in touch with them, cos

they would be able to mark your wheelchair referral as urgent.

My GP told me a long time ago that I could phone repeat scripts

through, but every time I do, the receptionist from hell asks me who

gave me permission to do this. Surely a marker against my name

would stop this automatic interrogation, but that seems too much

like common sense.

Hope they sort things quickly for you, take care

Pam x

Our ‘old system’ for ordering repeat scripts was great. Then they decided to modernise the system - yes you can guess the outcome. New system is cr8p. Before, we could request for the script to be forwarded to the pharmacy [next door] - now we can’t. So you can only get your meds if the surgery is open. Then last month they informed us all that they were changing it all again and that we would need to ‘double up’ on our meds to last us over the two weeks it would take for them to get the system up and working.

Hopefully, they will go back to the original system - why fix what is not broken.

F.

It’s not just me then…

And another thing…

Morrisons pharmacy talked me into filling a a form so prescriptions could go through their NEW electonic system. Sounded good.

Next time I went to GP she sent a prescription on new electonic system. WOW… how great! No paper prescription needed!!!

Normally I would take a paper prescription to the pharmacy and they would have the med’s ready in about half an hour.

Went to pharmacy for my electronic prescription. It hadn’t come through yet. They eventually got it 5 hours later… meaning that I had to go home and then go out again.

Has the world gone mad???

Pat x

New systems and technology seem an ideal thing for disabled people - to make their lives easier. Instead, it appears that they make things twice as hard! Teresa xx

Bring back the fountain pen and ledger!

Hi Pat, just wondering…could the pharmacy have delivered them to you at home? Our`s does.

luv Pollx

Hi Poll, I did have Loyd’s but the bloke that runs our local one is useless. Kept messing my prescription up.

So now I’m on the electronic system which seems to be a total mess. Actually as I was typing this Morrison’s chemist phone to say they have still not received the electronic prescription!

My next plan is to come off the electronic system and go to yet another chemist that does deliver.

I dunno hon I just seem to be jinxed!

Pat x

It’s soooo stressful when we can’t do without these things, and it all goes wrong.

I used to have dreadful problems with Boots. I used to have some things that were on automatic repeat, but others were “take-as-needed”, so I’d get through them at varying rates. They couldn’t seem to understand the difference between the two, so they’d automatically re-order the “take-as-needed”, and then get pissy if I was reluctant to accept them, because I didn’t want to stockpile. That was in the days before I did pre-pay, too, so it’s a bit of a damn cheek ordering drugs you haven’t said you need, and then expecting you to cough up the money! They didn’t like it if I said: “No, I haven’t asked for these!”

Then, another time, they tried to give me a complete stranger’s prescription, and insisted: “But you usually pick it up for him!” WTF? Not that I’m unwilling or unable to, if asked, but I didn’t even know the person, and had certainly never been authorised to collect his prescription for him. How bizarre!

Then I swapped to a local pharmacy, on the recommendation of the GP surgery, and straight away ran into problems with them too. They couldn’t seem to source Baclofen. More than once, I was on the last dregs, and having to taper, to avoid running out altogether. It then turned out that - just my luck - they were in administration. So they either wouldn’t or couldn’t buy new stock, because they didn’t have the money. So they were phoning round every branch (it’s a franchise, I think), trying to get dribs and drabs of whatever was left on shelves all over the country, so they wouldn’t actually have to buy any. No wonder it was taking a month of Sundays!

Finally, after they got taken over, things seem to have settled down at last (not wishing to tempt fate, here).

The only recent(ish) problem I had was I couldn’t get steroid eye drops (prednisolone), because apparently there was a nationwide manufacturing issue with those. So had to go all the way back to the doc, and get her to issue a 'scrip for something different.

On the whole, the surgery has not been at fault in all this, although I would expect them to know if there’s a nationwide shortage of something, and to avoid prescribing that thing. Also to know if a pharmacy they recommended is in trading difficulties, and might have difficulty fulfilling prescriptions.

Tina

Good God Tina what a list of mistakes and mess ups!

Some of my neighbours also get given the ‘take as needed’ med’s every single time. The woman downstaires is a great source for Paracetamol. She’s always got a huge stockpile!

I don’t see why the ‘long term’ drugs aren’t easier to get. I understand that they might not want to give you 6 months worth at a time, but surely there could be a system where you could go to the pharmacy and get them without all the repeat prescription hassle.

I suppose the electonic system is meant to make it easier… but even the woman from Morrison’s pharmacy says she feels guilty that they talked so many people into signing up for it when in fact it seems to be a total mess.

Well Tina at least I know it’s not just me… but really I think the system is too complicated. I actually rather dread it every 2 months when the whole hassle starts again.

Pat x