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Care Opinion

Still waiting to be seen

Posted By julybf84

"Still waiting to be seen"

About: General practices in Lanarkshire University Hospital Hairmyres / Rheumatology

(as the patient),

I'd been experiencing quite a bit of joint pain on and off for months so eventually went to my GP surgery last year and they done bloods to test for rheumatoid arthritis which came back negative and never investigated further.

This year the pain was unbearable so I went to my new GP surgery (as I'd moved house) and they wanted to test me for rheumatoid arthritis. I advised them my previous surgery had already done so and they checked my records and informed me that the bloods carried out hadn't been the correct ones to test for rheumatoid so they arranged for more bloods to be done.

This time they were positive.

I explained my symptoms and that the pain is so bad that sometimes I can't walk, dress and am unable to care for my two young children, so they done an urgent referral to the Rheumatology department.

The referral was made in July and I'm still waiting to be seen.

The pain is unbearable, I can't carry out general daily tasks and most of all, my mood is really low because I can't look after my own children properly, I can't even strap my son into his car seat!

I'm at a loss as I'm not coping, I'm just desperate to be seen by a specialist and get some help with pain management and hopefully get back to enjoying life again.

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Responses

Response from Margaret Meek, Director of Hospital Services, University Hospital Hairmyres, NHS Lanarkshire 5 months ago
Margaret Meek
Director of Hospital Services, University Hospital Hairmyres,
NHS Lanarkshire

Submitted on 01/12/2023 at 15:54
Published on Care Opinion at 15:54

Dear Julybf84

I am really sorry to read that you are experiencing pain and the negative impact this is having on you and your family life. To help us understand the status of your referral I would be grateful if you would contact our patient affairs team on 01355 584468.

kind regards

Margaret

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Response from Jennifer Montgomery, Improvement Coordinator, Quality Directorate, NHS Lanarkshire 4 months ago
Jennifer Montgomery
Improvement Coordinator, Quality Directorate,
NHS Lanarkshire

Operational Lead for Care Opinion in NHS Lanarkshire

Submitted on 11/12/2023 at 17:14
Published on Care Opinion at 17:14

picture of Jennifer Montgomery

Dear julybf84,

Thank you for sharing your experience of 2 GP surgeries on Care Opinion.

I am sorry to hear that the first GP did not investigate further following blood tests for joint pain. I am pleased, however, that your new GP did look into this further and arranged an urgent referral.

GP’s are independent contractors and are responsible for investigating and responding to any concerns a person may have about the service; they are not registered to respond directly to feedback through Care Opinion. Can I please invite you to contact the Practice Manager if you would like a direct response about the service.

Kind Regards,

Jenni

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