ads36 Posted April 9 Share Posted April 9 i have asthma, i've on the same low dose of cheap meds for decades now, it's fine. But every 6 months my prescriptions are frozen, and only made available again after i've had a 'review'. so i've got to phone up for a review - which takes 45 mins to get through. then i wait, for my prescriptions to unfreeze, which doesn't happen, so i have to phone up again to remind them, another 45mins. then i can request the medication, except they forget to send it to the pharmacy. so another 45mins on the phone to remind them to send the order to the pharmacy. anyone keeping count? ... 135mins on the phone to order a couple of inhalers. every 6 months. (i did try and order a few more, to stock up, but they didn't like that - froze my prescription, and made me come in for another review) so the next time you're waiting on the phone, remember that they're forcing people to phone up. - they clearly want a long phone queue. maybe in the hope it'll put people off - reducing overall demand. i dare say this probably works... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spilldig Posted April 10 Share Posted April 10 23 hours ago, ads36 said: i have asthma, i've on the same low dose of cheap meds for decades now, it's fine. But every 6 months my prescriptions are frozen, and only made available again after i've had a 'review'. so i've got to phone up for a review - which takes 45 mins to get through. then i wait, for my prescriptions to unfreeze, which doesn't happen, so i have to phone up again to remind them, another 45mins. then i can request the medication, except they forget to send it to the pharmacy. so another 45mins on the phone to remind them to send the order to the pharmacy. anyone keeping count? ... 135mins on the phone to order a couple of inhalers. every 6 months. (i did try and order a few more, to stock up, but they didn't like that - froze my prescription, and made me come in for another review) so the next time you're waiting on the phone, remember that they're forcing people to phone up. - they clearly want a long phone queue. maybe in the hope it'll put people off - reducing overall demand. i dare say this probably works... I think you are right, also the phone number our GP has is a chargeable number and the NHS is supposed to be "Free at the point of use". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peak4 Posted April 10 Share Posted April 10 2 hours ago, spilldig said: I think you are right, also the phone number our GP has is a chargeable number and the NHS is supposed to be "Free at the point of use". When you say "chargeable" do you mean premium rate, or just a number not included in your own call plan? As far as I know premium rate numbers have been banned for some time. 0800 ( & 8080??) numbers are free of course from a landline (and a mobile??), and geographic landline numbers are often included in mobile & fixed line phone contracts. I think 0300 numbers are free from a landline, but not always from a mobile; do check up on that as I might be behind the times. 0844, and 0845, I think are local call rate, but may or may not be included in a contract's minutes; again check your own contract(s). 0870, and 0871, I think are versions of a premium rate number. It's going to get even more confusing when we lose copper landlines, and everyone has to use broadband/IP phone numbers. SayNoTo0870 is worth exploring for alternative numbers https://www.saynoto0870.com/search.php Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThePilot Posted April 10 Share Posted April 10 (edited) I sympathise with all that have problems but I rarely encounter the same. I can usually get an appointment on the same day by telephone, or can get a less urgent appointment within 10 days (sometimes less) via their online booking service. Fair to say that I am not requesting a specific doctor, just any available. Edited April 10 by ThePilot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spilldig Posted April 11 Share Posted April 11 19 hours ago, peak4 said: When you say "chargeable" do you mean premium rate, or just a number not included in your own call plan? As far as I know premium rate numbers have been banned for some time. 0800 ( & 8080??) numbers are free of course from a landline (and a mobile??), and geographic landline numbers are often included in mobile & fixed line phone contracts. I think 0300 numbers are free from a landline, but not always from a mobile; do check up on that as I might be behind the times. 0844, and 0845, I think are local call rate, but may or may not be included in a contract's minutes; again check your own contract(s). 0870, and 0871, I think are versions of a premium rate number. It's going to get even more confusing when we lose copper landlines, and everyone has to use broadband/IP phone numbers. SayNoTo0870 is worth exploring for alternative numbers https://www.saynoto0870.com/search.php To us it gets charged at the local call rate but I always go to the surgery in person to book an appointment because the phone usually either times out or all appointments are gone by the time they answer but if it's not 0800 then it's not "free at the point of use". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dawn Melling Posted April 14 Share Posted April 14 I received an e mail from my surgery asking what my blood pressure reading is. I thought it was their job to tell me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peak4 Posted April 14 Share Posted April 14 14 minutes ago, Dawn Melling said: I received an e mail from my surgery asking what my blood pressure reading is. I thought it was their job to tell me! Here you go; may or may not be of assistance. Find a pharmacy that offers free blood pressure checks NHS Use this service to find a pharmacy that offers free blood pressure checks. You can get your blood pressure checked at a pharmacy without seeing a GP. Who can get a free blood pressure check You can get a free blood pressure check if you: are aged 40 or over live in England You cannot get a free blood pressure check if you: already have high blood pressure have had your blood pressure checked by a healthcare professional in the past 6 months Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_DADDY Posted April 14 Share Posted April 14 20 minutes ago, Dawn Melling said: I received an e mail from my surgery asking what my blood pressure reading is. I thought it was their job to tell me! I got one of those but by text not email. I rang the surgery to see if it was legit and it was so I asked the receptionist if she'd like a stool sample too which to my surprise she said "Yes please" so I took a dump in a Chinese takeaway container from the night before and left it on her desk. I got the results back, turns out my dna says I'm 30% cat, 50 % German Shepherd and only 20% human. I'm not sure how to feel about this 😕 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hackey lad Posted April 14 Share Posted April 14 45 minutes ago, The_DADDY said: I got one of those but by text not email. I rang the surgery to see if it was legit and it was so I asked the receptionist if she'd like a stool sample too which to my surprise she said "Yes please" so I took a dump in a Chinese takeaway container from the night before and left it on her desk. I got the results back, turns out my dna says I'm 30% cat, 50 % German Shepherd and only 20% human. I'm not sure how to feel about this 😕 Classy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_DADDY Posted April 14 Share Posted April 14 6 minutes ago, hackey lad said: Classy. Woof, Woof, Meeeeeeeow, purr, purr, purr. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now