are all GPs hopeless?

[shirlthegirl43]

I actually have a very good GP, he takes the time to listen to my grumbles and does what he can to alleviate the problems I have due to chronic fatigue syndrome. However, thanks to government targets etc, it is very difficult to get an appointment when you want one.

Madmax would like to re-train to become a GP (he has a medical background from years back) but since we are not wealthy and I would have trouble working full-time to support the family, he cannot - there are no grants or support for him to do this.

[SueA]

Hope your O.H is feeling better now Two Sheds.Luckily I rarely have to go to our G.P. & when I've had to they've been fine. A while ago my O.H. was vomiting & feeling dizzy/faint/head spinning & I was worried so rang the doctors to get him an appointment. I was told the usual end of next week type stuff but when I said could he be seen earlier she asked if it was fairly urgent, I said 'yes' & he was seen later that same day. It turned out to be just vertigo & he was given antibiotics which eventually cleared it up but it just shows if you're polite & persistent you can sometimes get through to them. I think locums tend to be a bit over the top with their diagnosis as I think they're worried about missing something & getting the blame & some of them are newly qualified & keen to put into practice what they've learnt (as in the case of the 'asthma' diagnosis, asthma's on the rise nowadays - someone's coughing - must be asthma!)

[MrsC]

Got to admit that the GPs I see at my health centre are fantastic, straightforward, down to earth and listen, there is only one GP I won't see because I don't think he really lives on this planet. A few years ago I went to see him about a swelling on my neck to which I was told it was the glands which were swollen (I had had a cold). The lump progressed to the size of a tennis ball within a week and I felt really ill. When I went to see him he said ....'My that's a big one!' and then picked his mobile out of his doctor's bag and asked if I knew how to retrieve text messages! I walked out at this point and complained. I saw a locum the same day who had me sent to hospital and they put a drain in, I was operated on within 2 weeks, luckily it turned out to be an abscess in my lmyph node which I had removed, apart from that GP I have always had good experiences.

[Polly Fouracre]

All our G.P.'s are wonderful.It's getting past the receptionest that is life-threatening. Dragon or what!!!!

[MrsC]

All our G.P.'s are wonderful.It's getting past the receptionest that is life-threatening. Dragon or what!!!!

Got to agree with that Polly

[Two_Sheds]

An update: we Googled OH's symptoms and discovered that a chronic cough is a common side effect of his hypertension meds. After being persistent and insisting that he hadn't developed asthma overnight, he got his meds changed (they are reluctant to do this as the new meds is v.v.expensive).
We have since discovered on Google, that simple Iron tablets could have alleviated the cough (its technical)
So, if the GP had been familiar with OH's history, and if he had believed what we told him, and if he'd had the time to use Google (!!!) the NHS could have saved a shedload of money, by prescribing iron supplements instead of this new expensive drug that he's now on.

BTW. I know that all GPs aren't useless - and its a hard job, (but it is their job to diagnose and treat patients) - but every GP bar one I've ever seen (over 20?) hasn't been, how can I say, "fit for purpose". It must be the system at fault, not the individuals?

[beefy]

Good to hear your OH is getting sorted out TS.
When I read this thread and talk to people who live in the "big" cities and towns I feel glad that we have a medical practice two miles away with about five doctors who all know all the patients and live among them . Your as likely to bump into one of the doctors when your out for a walk on a Sunday morning and they all know you by name (not a good thing when your out for a night on the tiles).Nine times out of ten you will get an appointment the same day or first thing the next morning but if you have an hour you can just turn up and wait to be seen.

[Two_Sheds]

I used to have a nice GP when I lived here in the 1980s. I came back 3 years ago, and that GP is still my localest (?) surgery, but I can't get on their list. So, I can't see the GP who has known me since I was born almost.
I now have a surgery in a rough area (most of their clients are on methadone apparently). I have never met "my" GP, and every time I go in I see a different face, usually Indian or Nigerian (no problem with that, but where are the British doctors now?). The Nigerian doctor actually told me I had nothing to be worried about, things are much harder in his country...

[Polly Fouracre]

So,bring back the "Wise Women"??

[shirley]

We can all relay stories of poor practice. On the whole the local GP is expected to know conditions which relate to humans from before birth right up to the eldest patient. Some I agree should never have gone to med school in the first place as they are useless and really are unable to show any bed side manner. But be honest....most do a good job.

The problem with the NHS in general???? come on lets be honest is the interference from the goverment and the endles Targets which they have to meet..

[NOG]

Yes, it is crazy, however, if you were a teenager choosing what career to take, would you chose to become a GP after reading these posts?

No I would become a Dentist theres more money in it. For less training and you don't have to do home visits (not that GPs do) and you don't have to work evenings.

[valmarg]

We can't fault our GP service. If you need to see the GP the same day you need to ring up as soon after 9.00 a.m. as possible, AND you get through. You usually get an appointment between 10.30 and 11.30 a.m. Repeat prescriptions are easily obtained, but you will need to see the GP after so many repeats.

Also I think the sign of a good GP is one who is not too proud to refer you to a consultant, ie to accept that they don't know it all.

NOG, don't get me going on dentists!!

They are the most useless branch of medicine.

I have seen a dentist roughly every six months for the last 50 years. My current NHS dentist shrugged his shoulders and with a stupid grin on his face told me I had gum disease, and I was going to lose the lot. Those who cannot get an NHS dentist should be grateful.

I understand that George Washington - 1st president of the USA had a set of false teeth made from wood. In the ensuing 300 years the only advance in the dental practice is that they have changed the wood to plastic. They have not made any advance in the treatment of gum disease, or come up with a treatment to prevent it!!

At least medicine has made considerable advances.

I'm going to lie down now!!

valmarg

[NOG]

In the Victorian times they would pull the teath out of the poor and use them to replace rotten teeth of the rich...or use Waterloo teeth. Therse were dentures made out of the teath of the dead of the Waterloo battle.(The Bones of the Men and Horses were sent to Yorkshire and ground down to make bone meal).

If you need a new set Valmag I will go into Croydon on Sunday Morning and pick some up from the Saturday night fighting. The streets are littered with them

[wiccanlou]

My old dr's surgery was a bit hit and miss, the lead doctor was hopeless with women and how to deal with them but brilliant with men. The deputy was great with the women and crap with the men. I had to ring up at least two weeks in advance for an appointment and forget emergency ones as they were like rocking horse dung. my new one though is very good. I spent years being ill almost every month with cough colds viruses and chest infections turns ou I had an underactive thyroid and now that has all stopped. can't complain now.

[kernowyon]

If you need a new set Valmag I will go into Croydon on Sunday Morning and pick some up from the Saturday night fighting. The streets are littered with them

LOL, never been out in croydon, wonder why i thought sutton was bad