still waiting & getting nowhere

[chillijava]

hi all
hope you are all well, or as well as can be expected, just thought i would update you all as to my continuing saga!
at the moment i am not a happy bunny, i have now contacted dr greenslades sercretary 6 times since having my nerve block 3 weeks ago to find out what happens next and to be quite honest i am appalled that she has not contacted me back once, not even to say they are still looking at my case.
i am having my treatment privately, and whilst i am not bragging about being able to do this, i do expect not to be kept waiting as this is what i am paying for. i do understand that doctor g is a very busy man, but surely a quick email is not a lot to ask just to let me know i have not been forgotten.
i have had private treatment for other medical problems and never had this problem before, everything is done really quickly. i am paying a lot of money per month for this privilage and i really struggle to pay it most months but think its important to keep it up.
so all of you who wish you could afford private medical care, i wouldnt worry about it as you seem to be getting the treatment as quickly as myself.
please dont think i am a snobb, i am not, just wanted to vent as its soooooooooooo frustrating

andrea

[Geraldine]

I too have experienced problems trying to make appointments to see Dr Greenslade as a private patient. His secretary Catherine, who I have always found to be very helpful once I have managed to contact her, explained that 1. She is not really a secretary but his practice nurse who also does all Dr G's secretarial work and 2. she waits until she knows when Dr G is holding his private clinics before getting back to people. She also told me that he is often away from Bristol attending and giving lectures all over the world - so not an easy man to see!! They seem to work in a very different way to other private consultants but Catherine told me that by combining her two roles it keeps Dr G's consultation costs as low as possible.
I am hoping to contact her this week as I need to see Dr G to review my progress and medication. I didn't know he could be contacted by email - have only ever tried to phone and often left numerous messages!!
Hope this post helps to answer some of your concerns and you have a reply soon.

Julia

[chillijava]

i do agree i have always found her very helpful and nice when you can get hold of her, it is a really haphazard way of conducting a service though and i have also been told that dr greenslade is away a lot which is ok for him but not great for his patients, as most of us here are in constant pain we really do not need to be kept waiting for treatment.
i dont like keep trying to get in touch with her as it makes me feel awkward and as though i am pestering her, but what else can you do.
let me know if you want her email address and i will post it for you

andrea

[molly]

Hi Andrea,

My daughter who is a private patient has had huge problems with this person, which is a shame as Dr G is so approachable and kind.

I have been a private patient in the past and have never had problems like this.

You are not alone in experiencing this problem.


Regards Molly

[chillijava]

hi molly
thanks for that, i think i am just going to keep trying to get in touch, after all i am paying for it!
i will just have to get over the thought that i am pestering them and keep focused at progressing forward


andrea

[calluna]

I don't have anything to add here really as I am an NHS patient - but just a thought - normally Dr G sends a letter to the GP who then follows up any medication changes etc, have you checked with your GP that he/she isn't expecting you to come in for a review?

Mind you these days it is nearly as difficult to see the GP as it is to see Dr G....

[chillijava]

hi calluna

just rung the gp and he doesnt know anymore than i do. the last time dr g's secretary emailed me was 2 weeks ago and she said that dr g would read my pain chart and then contact me to discuss what the next step would be, being as i think its going to be surgery, i just want to get on with it.
i will keep trying and if it it bugs them so what, just worried though that i may be put at the bottom of the pile if i complain too much



andrea

[calluna]

Oh well at least that's been ruled out. Sorry it didn't lead anywhere.

Are you sure it is straight to surgery? I thought that nerve blocks were usually done in a course of two or three?

I do hope that you get a constructive response soon from the secretary. I don't know if it is any help but one thing I do know is that Tuesday is Dr G's Frenchay surgery day, and Weds he is at the Pain Clinic at Frenchay.

[chillijava]

i thought that i might have to have another nerve block, but dr g really seemed to be leaning toward surgery as when i had my nerve block he said that this had to be done first as this was the final hurdle before surgery and then proceeded to tell me that mr wong or mr dixon could do the decompression surgery, but i already knew that mr dixon could do it as when i last saw him i told him that dr g had said i could have a neuro device to alter the pain sensation but that he thought the next step was a nerve block, and mr dixon said that i could try the nerve block it wouldnt do any harm but he could do surgery, at no time has anyone mentioned having more than one block, so i am really confused as to what is happening and right now i am having another flare!

[helenlegs 11]

He needs cloning!
That's the trouble there are so few clinicians who have taken an interest in PN/PNE it's not like we can 'take our business' elsewhere easily.
Not that I would want to however.
Hope you do get some response soon Andrea. I know it did take a few months for him to respond to a letter from my GP, re my referral, but that again was NHS. He apologised for the delay, putting it down to pressures of work. I'm sure you will hear back soon.
Just read your last post. . . . . I would go on what Dr Greenslade has told you, with one block, until you hear differently from him. Although some clinicians do use 3, It has more to do with your own history and the clinicians involved.
Take care,
Helen