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"Not taken seriously"

About: Lincoln County Hospital / Pain Management

(as the patient),

went to see dr. about having fibromyalgia tests. was hardly in there any time at all. after seeing my back x-rays he pressed down on both sides of my back from the waist downwards, this was very painful for me. he was more interested in the x-rays and my lower back pain than anything else. he was not interested in doing any of the tests for fibromyalgia. he quickly brushed his fingers over parts of my legs - possibly to see if there was any nerve damage from the problems I have in my lower back. he also did the same on my neck. I tried to tell him about the stiffness and pain I'm in first thing in the morning and he was very dismissive about anything I tried to say. I did not get the chance to tell him that I get very tired very quickly, I ache all of the time as though I have flu, I have carpal tunnel in both wrists (for which I wear braces), some mornings I don't want to get out of bed because I'm already in pain, my hands, knees and feet get painfully cold, my sleep is very bad, I have depression and anxiety issues, I constantly forget things or what I'm about to do or words mid-sentence or the whole conversation, I have calcium deposits in my left shoulder and upper arm which can be very painful to move upwards and sideways. he said that he did not think I had fibromyalgia without doing any tests. he said something about my upper body strength not being so good as I am on crutches because of my back and knees (I wear knee braces). he recommended I go swimming and take amatriptaline at bedtime. I felt that I had been rushed in and out of the appointment and as though all my symptoms and pain were not important.

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Responses

Response from United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust 7 years ago
Submitted on 25/01/2017 at 10:49
Published on Care Opinion on 09/02/2017 at 11:46


Dear Sdb1,

Thank you for leaving this feedback, please accept my apologies for the delay in acknowledging it.

I am sorry that you felt your concerns were not taken seriously when you attended Lincoln County Hospital. Whilst you have posted your comments anonymously, from the details you have given I believe I recognise your case.

I recall we had a 40 minute appointment, during which I took your detailed history, examined you and looked into x-rays and scans before I came to my conclusion of mechanical low back pain. I went on to suggest a course of action to try and alleviate your pain based on this diagnosis.

The diagnosis of fibromyalgia is based on clinical findings and not blood tests or any other type of test as you seem to believe. This is best done by the rheumatology team under Dr Obaid.

If you would like to contact the PALS team at Lincoln Hospital on 01522 707071, or by e-mail to pals@ulh.nhs.uk, they will be able to talk you through the steps required to obtain a referral to the rheumatology team.

Once again please accept my apologies if you felt I did not take you concerns seriously; I can only say this was definitely not the case.

Vineet Mahajan,

Consultant - Lincoln County Hospital

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