Why flu to GP?

In my family the DH and the DD are doctor botherers and my DS and I keep away as much as we can so the poor overloaded GPs can deal with the really sick folk.

The DS has a doctor friend who tells him if any symptoms are serious and they never have been. The last time he saw a GP was over a decade ago. I have to go every six months to get my HRT prescription and they won't give you that without a blood pressure test and some reassurance that you are fitter than Superwoman.

The DD and DH have more medicines, pills and potions than Boots and at every cough think they are dying.

Some folks need proof in the form of a doctors note as their employers don't believe they are ill

Presumably we've all had colds including bad colds so we ought to know what to expect of colds. It's when you get symptoms on top of 'normal' cold symptoms and they don't go away after a few days or they get worse that you need to see a doc. Not beyond the wit of most people, I'd have thought.

roysmokie, having a shortness of breath episode that frightened you qualifies as needing a doctor. I think you were and are 'qualified' to work that out and go to your GP to get checked over.
Is your name a clue at all? That you are or were a smoker? COPD is common among smokers. Forgive me if I have assumed too much.

I agree with roysmokie. Patients should not be expected to diagnose themselves. The 111 service has a diagnostic algorithm which is good, and which the receptionist is properly trained to administer.

You can bet that people who can pay for the best private care get a Dr home visit for a 'feverish chill' or whatever.

I got the aussie flu in the second week of December and there was no way I could get to the surgery. My GP told me to stay in bed with plenty to drink and to keep in touch. My Christmas and New Year were wiped out as this virus is a really nasty one, it got into my joints, muscles everywhere and I'm still very weak going into week five. My hands were too swollen to use phone and I now have to ban anyone with cold/cough symptoms as my immune system will not cope well if I get an infection in my chest. GP is keeping in touch by phone. Still on bed rest and lots to drink. I think GPs are doing home visits if symptoms deteriorate, they want to keep ppl out of hospital as much as possible. I certainly am more comfortable at home with none of the stresses of getting laundry done (my clothing, bedding changed often as get drenched with perspiration) BTW every patient at our surgery has a telephone consult by a GP before a physical appointment is made. They would be screening out any obviously very ill with flu.

Keep away from the docs - it is the germiest place in town!

But I do wonder how working - folk are to get their sick notes - over the phone maybe?

I have been told that a chest infection could be very serious for OH so we are being very careful what we do - he does not go out at all, but I am studiously avoiding anyone with a cough when I am out.

I'm not suggesting that patients should diagnose themselves, only that they will usually recognise when their symptoms are getting worse or different. Maybe I'm expecting too much body awareness but I'm surprised if I am.

Oh Readymeals, I totally agree with ‘draining’ if you are ‘chesty’ or have a mucous type cough. My lovely Pa suffered from Bronchial Asthma for many years when he was alive. He spent some time in Benenden Hospital and was taught the ‘draining’ technique, which he did religiously every day. I have a lovely mental picture of him laying front down, over the edge of the mattress, book on the floor, and he stayed there for 30 mins each day, with Mum thumping his back periodically! I’m sure that this contributed to his long(er) life.

There are vulnerable groups such as my husband who if gets flu causes infection to the heart and he has to be hospitalised. So his flu symptoms can be life threatening to him.

I have had a horrible virus and really felt unwell as asthmatic but just stayed in bed so I would not infect others in house, slept sitting propped up with pillows, took hot lem/blackcurrant sips, monitored temperature twice each day, had plenty of fluids including iced water, sucked Strepsils, ate a little ice cream to try to numb my sore throat, took cough medicine and after about 6 days felt a little better so went down and rested on sofa. No point going to Dr with a virus as there is nothing they can give you that you can't get from chemist yourself. Now finally well again.

I do think Dr's should charge if people make appointments and then do not turn up or cancel the appointment. In my small GP surgery they count the number of missed appointments every month and put the number on a chalk board. I have seen it at 235. I think these people should pay £20 for wasting Dr time especially when it is often hard to get an appointment.

I do wonder what time and resources are really wasted when a patient doesn’t turn up - ime gps are usually running late so a missed appointment gives them chance to catch up by seeing the next patient sooner or doing some admin catch up whilst waiting such as signing prescriptions, letters etc. I suppose the real losers are the patients who could have had those missed appointments. I’m not saying it’s ok not to turn up btw

newnanny they do that at my surgery too and at the hospital noticeboards have posters showing the average cost of missed appointments. I think it was £140, but I could be wrong.

I know the NHS did some research into missed appointments and the most effective text messages. Trials were run using different text messages and the most effective message was the one that mentioned the cost of missing the appointment.

But where does the £140 figure come from? I’m not arguing it doesn’t matter but I think figures should be reliable. Let’s suppose I didn’t go to my GP appointment today. That slot could have gone to someone else who has now had to wait longer. No money was actually ‘lost’ to the surgery, there was no extra cost to the surgery. The surgery doesn’t put on extra surgeries to catch up and pay doctors more so to do. The real cost of a missed appointment is to patients who have to wait longer for an appointment.

In my GPs surgery last week, there were 35 missed appointments in three days. I went to pick up a prescription, the waiting area was standing room only, coughing, sneezing, definitely a no go zone.

Not beyond the wit of most people, I'd have thought

Makes you wonder doesn’t it Baggs ?

Maryliza that’s not how things are costed. That missed appointment couldn’t go to someone else because it’s a no show. How could that be filled? So that GP time was wasted..

I understand your point that if surgery is running late then that slack can be taken up. But GPS work through until all patients with appointments are seen. Yes, that slot could have gone to someone else in the first place.

I think ‘no shows’ should be charged too.

The point I am trying to make is that there is not an actual financial cost to the surgery. The cost is to a patient of waiting longer for an appointment. I don’t think the GPs time is wasted - they always have something to do and may as a result get home a bit earlier. I know the appointment couldn’t go to some one else at the time - it could have gone to someone else if the no show hadn’t booked it. If an appointment ‘costs’ £140 and there are 10 missed appointments, the surgery do not lose £1400 in actual cash. That’s different from a dentist who is only paid if you turn up

I turned up early for an NHS dental appointment recently. I was seen early and out the door before my appointment time (which was great because I then didn't have to wait an hour for the bus home). I don't know if this was because there were no booked appointments just before mine or if someone had not turned up. I'm not sure that matters. What matters is that the dentist just dealt with whoever was there.

Why can't GPs do this when there's a no-show? Why can't they just treat a 'broken' appointments list like a drop in list? Just turning up and being seen in turn of arrival used to be common practice. Is it not possible to combine an appointments list with a "see whoever's next in the queue" list when there's a gap? Genuine questions.

I suppose it wouldn't work if people don't arrive for their appointment until the last minute. I'm an early arriver because I hate being late for anything.

But the dentist I had before at this same practice (now retired) did the same thing. Once the receptionist rang me to ask if I could come early because someone had cancelled. It would mean the dentist could go home early if I could. Naturally I tried to oblige.

In an age of easy communications, it does seem particularly rude of people not to call and say they won't be at their appointment.

If you don't want to mix with the nasty bugs in waiting room you could sit in the car and ask receptionist to txt you when your turn comes.

I'm an early arriver for everything too Baggs and at our surgery often go in (and out again) before my appointment time. It has happened at the dentist too. I was born two weeks early and my Mum said that was why I was always early for everything thereafter!

I don't believe any GP would sit twiddling their thumbs to cover the ten-minute slot of a no-show patient so I agree maryeliza that the cost quoted of missing appointments seems fallacious. It is a valid point that those who have been unable to get an appointment have been affected by the no-shows though.

I think that when figures are quoted for the ‘cost’ of a missed appointment, the calculation is done on the basis of the cost to the NHS of providing that service.
So if a practice receives say £1million of funding which is spent on the GPs’ salaries, and the GPs at the practice provide 100,000 appointments a year, the argument would be that each appointment costs the NHS £100.
Of course it is a lot more complicated than that because there are other income streams such as payments for different clinics, meeting targets etc, GPs do lots of other work besides seeing patients, and other staff besides GPs are providing services.
So I don’t think you can really put a financial cost on a missed appointment.

Interestingly research has shown that all those notices in waiting rooms about the number of missed appointments are counterproductive, because the subliminal message is that because 350 other people have missed their appointments that week, it’s ok for you to miss yours too.
Obviously that doesn’t apply to Gransnet members who wouldn’t dream of missing an appointment

Whoops! My maths is out. In the above calculation the GPs would only have to provide 10,000 appointments for the cost to be £100