SNAFU

[mandragora]

Thursday I had to go to the local hospital for tests. On the plus side as a result I discovered, after almost two decades of living in the area, where the local hospital actually is. It was rather comforting to discover that should I ever require it (hopefully not) there's an A&E about 5 minutes drive away from where I live. Er, that's 5 minutes not in the rush hour, as even with all sirens blazing it's still going to take the ambulance a while to get round the North Circ when it's nose to tail full of commuters.

The tests in the morning involved the extraction of blood for various tests. My GP told me to fast from 9.00pm the night before, which I duly did. I checked out the hospital's website that night and learned all sorts of fascinating facts about the various department's performance targets for the coming year. Alas, any information about where I actually needed to go for the performance of the tests and what the procedure was was sadly lacking.

I duly arrived the Thursday morning and attempted to find a place in the carpark. I figured when I saw the amount of cars that were double-parked that I would have no joy in finding a space. I was right. In the end I drove all the way round the back of the entire hospital site and parked on a bit of wasteground. On the plus side I avoided having to pay the parking fees.

Went to reception and read the sign telling me that I needed to take a number for the blood test. Which I duly did. I looked at the number. 66. Unlucky for some. Looked at the number that was currently being seen. 25. Hmmm.

One hour thirty minutes later I finally reached the head of the queue.

"Oh," says the woman who was preparing the needle, "but you're having the glucose test as well as the others, aren't you? You didn't need to wait you know, as you're fasting. You could've come straight to the head of the queue."

Now they tell me.

"So," she continues brightly as she continues to prep the needle, "you've not eaten anything since last night or drunk anything but water?"

Me, with that sinking feeling: "Er, no. I mean I had a glass of diet lemonade this morning. My GP didn't say anything about only drinking water..."

"Ah, sorry," she says. "Can you come back tomorrow?"

The answer was no, as I was in court Friday morning. The upshot is I have to go back on Monday for the blood tests, having gone back again on Thursday afternoon for the other tests. But, why, oh why, didn't my GP tell me not to drink anything but water and why, oh why, wasn't there a sign at the hospital reception by the place where you take the queue ticket for the blood tests telling you that you don't need to wait if you're fasting? And why is the hospital website so crap?

Bureaucracy...

Comments

[derryderrydown.livejournal.com]

You're meant to fast before a glucose test?

Why didn't my doctor tell me this?

Okay, looks like I've got another bloodtest coming up.

[mandragora1.livejournal.com]

You're meant to fast before a glucose test?

That was the clear implication, yes. But I'm being tested for pretty much everything but pregnancy and malaria, so it *might* be one of the others. However, I'm sure the woman specifically mentioned the glucose test.

So, um, yes. Looks like you might need another test.

[killabeez.livejournal.com]

Aaaaaa! This kind of crap? Makes me insane. I try not to hate doctors, I really do. I know it's not their fault they become totally oblivious to this stuff. But. Aaaaaa!

{{{{{}}}}} I hope you are calmer and more grown-up about these things than I would be. Lord knows it's not worth getting upset about. but, *sympathy!*

[mandragora1.livejournal.com]

Hey, thanks for the sympathy. I tried not to let it get to me too much, but I was annoyed because I'd been hanging round at the hospital rather than doing work that I could be paid for.

I managed not to become apoplectic with rage but do wish that they'd just think a bit more about what's needed. I know that there's a tendency in every profession to think that because you know something everyone does (God knows, there is in the legal profession) but a moment's thought about the practicalities could have saved me a lot of hassle.

[seiyaharris.livejournal.com]

Exactly the same thing happened to me when I had to have a diabetes test. There I was, patiently sitting in the waiting room reading '1984', for over an hour, and when I get into the nurse's room, she tells me that I could've been seen straight away because I was fasting. I said I'd told the receptionist I was in for a diabetes test, and she just said 'oh well, receptionists, they don't know anything'.

Oy.

[mandragora1.livejournal.com]

That is so bloody typical. Why not give the receptionists basic information about whether a patient will be seen immediately, so that they at least know *something*!?

Because it would make too much sense, that's why.

[raincitygirl.livejournal.com]

Uh, because they're all morons?

[mandragora1.livejournal.com]

It is tempting to think that they are. Sigh.

Ah yes, the NHS

[starfirenz.livejournal.com]

You know, growing up as I did in New Zealand, where the health system was all but privatised during the period I was growing up, I went right through school and Uni believing passionately that free healthcare and education was the right of every tax-paying citizen.

That was till I spent the last 5 years in London, getting to experience what a totally 'free' healthcare system is like (and they only charge me a flat 10% of my annual income for this free service too...) I know I have one of the sadder stories, but it took me no less than *18 months* to find a doctor's surgery within 3 miles of my house (the NHS guideline), that didn't already have a completely full patient register. Yes, the NHS could indeed force a surgery to take me for 3 months, after which I'd have to start looking again - but this is not how I want to experience a doctor-patient relationship.

So, yeah, now I'm back home, I have to pay around $50 for a GP consultation. But when I think about it, I only have a couple of those a year. And I usually get to see my doctor the day I ring to make the appointment. And that's a hell of a lot better than the three thousand odd pounds I was paying per year for having to wait three or four weeks for an appointment once I *finally* found a GP willing to take me on...

Gods bless the NHS... as long as they keep it as far away from me as possible, I'm happy...

Re: Ah yes, the NHS

[mandragora1.livejournal.com]

Sorry to read about your problems finding a GP. I gather that it's a particulr problem in London, although not in the country as a whole.

My GP is excellent appointmentwise, in that I normally get an appointment by the next day at the latest. But I am lucky in that respect.

The NHS does have its undeniable problems, but I have heard too many horror stories about people having to mortgage their house to pay for treatment, or still be paying off medical bills over 20 years later, to say that it's not a good idea in general. I mean, GP's bills of $50 NZ twice a year is affordable for some (but not for all, especially if you have several children who are likely to need to see a GP more than twice a year) but what happens if you need hospital treatment? Who pays then?

I'm thinking of a American friend who had medical bills that came to $750,000 (yes, she was very seriously ill). Luckily she had health insurance through work but if she hadn't she'd either be dead now or so deply in debt that she'd never be free of it. I'd rather pay 10% of my income because chances are I'll need hospitalisation at some point in my life (although as I'm self-employed I actually pay only £2 per week - bargain!). Actually, I've been hospitalised three times so far, by having 3 accidents. Only one happened in Britain, though, I was in the US and France for the other two and, of course, had travel insurance which paid for the cost of treatment.

But, having seen how much those bills were I'm glad that if they had happened in the UK the NHS would have picked up the tab.

[beyondallreason.livejournal.com]

erm diet lemonade shouldn't have thrown it out - there is no calories and that is what they need...

They do prefer only water, but ... I could understand diet coke or something with caffine in it as that would throw out the test, but something as vanilla as lemonade?

Okay - logic escapes me....

Happy multiple needle pokes for Monday

[mandragora1.livejournal.com]

erm diet lemonade shouldn't have thrown it out - there is no calories and that is what they need...

*sobs wildly*. Now she tells me! *bg*

Actually, this is in keeping with the whole scenario, tell me I can't have the test when in fact I could.

Sigh.

And, thanks for the happy needle pokes. Luckily needles don't squick me but I just hope they can find a vein okay as the nurse had trouble last time.

[smaragdgrun.livejournal.com]

This was hilarious! Of course, not if you were seeing it on the inside... but thanks for sharing, and hope the testing all works out okay!

[mandragora1.livejournal.com]

This was hilarious!

*g* We live to please. Glad I could make someone happy with my Tale of Woe. I won't get the results of the tests for a while, but at least I actually managed to have the blood extracted on Monday - this time I marched straight to the head of the queue, and they saw me immediately. I've got a lovely bruise where the nurse stuck the needle in... 4 times. Lucky I'm not squeamish about needles, huh.

And. Love the icon. Jeanie. Mmmm.