Woman shares experience of using GP in Bury

do it now. Thanks so much for your time. Can you tell me a little bit about your experiences of using GP services recently? Yeah, so I've probably had to use them quite a lot recently. So I'm under Tower Family Health Care, which has three surgeries in the berry area

Um, and we have the Totten to practise, but I've I've loved for years to because it's a I don't know if it still is, but it was a training surgery. So, um, sometimes we have a student coming in and watching. I've seen every doctor that's there, and every doctor has got a really good bedside manner

I've never, ever felt rushed. And obviously, I've got young Children. So I've gone in with the home

Is it OK all the time? They've always been fantastic. Um, since they've gone online with the online booking and asked my GP, I've actually, it's It's it's been all right. I've seen a lot of complaining on Facebook that people haven't been able to get appointments, and my my observation has been is you need to be on first thing in the morning to get your appointment

Now I've If I've remembered early enough. I've never had an issue. And I've, you know, maybe I've not been an urgent They've not had to get in touch with me urgently, but they've always come back to say with how I've wanted to, like a phone call

I got diagnosed. Um, I went, I went to the doctors. Oh, no

I rang the doctors cos it was during covid to say that I was having really heavy periods, and within a week, or within a couple of weeks, I got sent for a scan and they were like, That's fine. So? So I didn't hear there was no follow up. And I think that's something that isn't happening at the moment is there's no follow ups

And that might just be, I suppose, indicative of the time. They can't then follow up with people. It's down for you to chase them

So I left. I left, um, it for another six months, and then I really wasn't feeling very well. And I rang them to say I was losing my hair and they asked how my periods were, and I said, very heavy

So I went in, then straight away they got me in for blood tests. I got my results, and then I It was a telephone consultation. Um, I had to go on Iron Tablet straight away, and then they had to look at ways to stop my heavy periods That was causing my iron issues

Um, and there there was something wrong with my thyroid. So I was then pretty much left, um, again, just to take the iron tablets. There was no kind of follow up

And I think when you're giving people medications that it's not, you know, this will clear itself up in a bit. There needs to be a little bit more, even if it's just a follow up phone call. In my experience

So then after, however many more, then I then I did. I had the coil fitted that was all again, all organised appointments. Absolutely fine

All the staff were fantastic. Reception is fantastic. They even gave me some advice about what was the best thing to do before I went for that

Um, we're very much like, if any issues you come back. That was all fine. Um, but then it was like, Right, Well, what's I'm still not feeling great, so I chased up again and went for blood tests

And because I'd said they'd said something was wrong with my thyroid originally. And then when I went in for the blood test, I ha I just happened to check. You are testing for my thyroid as well

And they weren't. She goes, No, we're just testing your iron count. I said, Well, no, I want to test my thyroid as well

Lo and behold, my results for that came that I was I have got a thyroid issue and I needed to go on thyroxine so that will. It will happen then. So literally they gave me a prescription for Thyroxine, and it was to go and pick it up

But then it was Well, well, what do Every month, I just have to keep going and get Thyrox in now. But my issue was Could this have been the cause of my other issues? And do I have to be on this for life? Like which I then got in touch with them again and again. It was remembering to get on there first thing in the morning to get the appointment and finally got the appointment, and they tried to chat me, and it was really and I was like, Where can I go and read it more cos there's a wealth of information and the news on what what I need to find

And it was like go to the NHS website Bar Bar. And I said, But that's really general, that's not my specific case and that I was as far as it got with it, Really? So with regards to getting appointments, though, um, I find with the ash GP I go on, and as long as you're on before 20 past eight in the morning, you can get it's not shut. I find it unbelievable how early they stop taking requests and in the fact that I mean, I don't know what what request to getting in

Caroline, do you know what I mean? But you, if you're not on first thing in the morning, then there's nothing for that date. Now. If I was in emergency, what would you do then? Because the thing is, they've shut up

That was the walk in that was in the Barry Town Centre. So and there is And and I, I suppose, is that are you supposed to go to the NHS 111 number and just get general triage advice from that. I don't know

I've not had an emergency enough to call that up, but I've for mine. It is. It's the only thing of if you do want something

And for me, I suppose once I've got the kids to school and then I'm getting to work for me to remember at eight o'clock to go on the phone and do it, it's just it's just a priority, isn't it? It's just just a good school. But they've always come back to me how I wanted it. And you know, when they say that, Do you mean that they offer you a choice? Whether you want a face to face, whether you want a phone call, whether or an email or a phone call or an email or yeah, there's That's one of the options on the phone and they say, When do you want us to contact by? And I always put whenever it's not

I'm not, you know, or you can say urgent Um and it's a little conversations like I can imagine. Phone consultations are quicker for people, however, like for me to have this prognosis that I've got now, like it when cos after a few months taking Thyroxine and I said, Well, I went to the chemist and I said, Am I just supposed to keep taking this? And she couldn't believe that I hadn't had the consultation rather than just giving me medication. And I think that is a problem with dots the minute and it's happened to my uncle as well

He's not under bury, though, but he was suffering with chest pains. They prescribed him an angina tablet without even seeing him. So it's like for me, I don't like taking this tablet

I don't want to take it. I want to understand what's the cause before we give drugs out? What's the cause? I think they're all very quick to just do this. Just take this with stuff at the moment

Have you noticed a change, then? Do you think you were better able to have those conversations when appointments were face to face? Or do you think that's just on? Yeah, maybe. I think they were. I think you do

You lose a lot like and then it's It's over the phone. You lose this. You lose reading the body language

Like for me. There were underlying conditions when I had those heavy periods. It wasn't just heavy periods, it was my energy levels

It was my hair a lot. But none of that got addressed. It was Oh, you've got heavy period to go for a scan

Then Now I left that then for another six months, my iron count to get to three. Well, had I been seen and and had a they might have said, Well, is there anything else? Do you know what I mean? But obviously, that's, you know, I'm not criticising them so much. Obviously, we had to change and covid was going on

But you know how ill I got could have been avoided had I been seen for maybe a face to face consultation then. But then again, that's my fault. And, you know, I take some I should have kept moaning, like I just I just thought it was a moment or two

I didn't think anything of it. So but yeah. Oh, thank you

Is there anything else that you've kind of thought about or that you just want to mention about your GP experience? Um, no, I As I say, I've got no complaints. I've I've You know, I do. I I know when it how it stops so early in the morning

Like I don't know what the quotas are. Do you know? Know what? And I think people are so quick to complain that they can't get appointments. But then how many patients and how many inquiries are they getting? Do you know what I mean? And I I suppose, look at it from a consumer point of view and a con like a customer service point of view is, you know, tell them that, and then people might be a little bit more understanding

And if you have got an urgent need, it, you know, I remember going into the appointments and they tell you how many people miss their appointments. Well, surely that's been impacted for all this because you can't miss your appointment. You know, it's it is

It's it's or or is it so it's It's I suppose this is going to be really fruitful to see what information and feedback you do get to make improvements to it. At least they're looking at it. Do you know what I mean? But yeah, no, that's that's That's me

Really. Thank you very much.