"Consultant complained about how much I was costing"

I am in my 60s. I live in N Ireland. 2 years ago I developed severe symptoms of atrial fibrillation.  While going on a Hill Walking trip which I did regularly I suddenly found I could not walk up hills.  I later tried going on a cycle trip and again found I could not do hills.  I went to my GP who did an ECG on me and sent me to hospital.  I was in hospital overnight and I was given various medications, but this did not stop my AF.  I then had various outpatient visits with my medication being adjusted.  They could not stop my AF but they said I would just have to learn to live with it. 

When I asked about Ablation to treat my AF my consultant said they did not have the budget. They also told me they had spent my budget.  I tried to live with AF but I could do nothing. On one occasion I collapsed and was taken to A & E in an ambulance. I later seen my cardio consultant and they complained about how much I was costing, they told me if I collapsed again I was to stop anybody calling an ambulance as it was a waste of NHS resources. 

Later my GP made another appointment with the cardiologist.  Their attitude was very negative, they asked what my GP expected them to do. I was seriously starting to consider Dignitas, I could not live with this. 

 Later I went to see another consultant privately.  This consultant was much more positive. He said he could get something done on the NHS, possibly a pacemaker.  Strangely after I had Covid my heartrate dropped below 100 beats a minute.  This seems to be a threshold for not doing certain treatments and below giving me a pacemaker.  The private consultant told me he could do nothing yet. It was the way he said YET that made me think.  When I asked him about private ablation he said he could not consider it as he had younger people needing this treatment.  I was in my 60s.   

I did a bit of research on line and discovered that there was a new ablation process that was having considerable success.  It was called Pulsed Field Ablation. I read that lots of people were coming from all over the world to have this done in the South of France, even the USA.  I then discovered that they had started doing this in Dublin.  I emailed the private consultant and all he said to me was yes, they are doing this in Dublin.   I contacted the private hospital in Dublin.  The Dublin consultant confirmed they could possibly do something but told me it would be expensive. I was desperate so I went ahead with arranging treatment. 

After running down to Dublin on the train for tests a few times I went in for an overnight stay to have the Pulsed Field Ablation procedure done. All went well and I knew the minute I woke up from the anaesthetic that things had changed.  From that day things have been great,  I can cycle and hill walk again.  I have not been aware of any AF at all.   I now realise that my heart has always been strange.  All my life I have been aware of my heart beat and I can remember asking my mother when I was a child about my heart fluttering, she told me that was normal.  I did not realise that these things were not normal. 

It is now nearly 9 months from my procedure.  I feel great.  It is just a pity that the NHS did not treat me properly.  Most people would not be able to afford to do what I did.  I don't think I could have lived the way I was.  I hope it lasts.  The NHS really needs sorted.