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Post by givingitsomethought on Sept 11, 2020 10:33:32 GMT
Been waiting for a physio appointment to come through for a hands-on session after having a telephone consultation on the 1st. Noticed a missed call from the physios (three days ago) and phoned through to find out when it is to be seen in person. Appointment made for two weeks time, asked where it was to be, got told, it's a phone appointment for a questionnaire as I'm classed as vulnerable and it would be followed by another phone appointment in a month to see if things have changed with another questionnaire. FFS. After 20 minutes of going around in illogical circles as my health will not change ever, I got that the bottom line was that they wouldn't see me for treatment due to me saying what I was on the last phone questionnaire that I was shielding (didn't even know I'd done one ) so I wanted to complain. The receptionist then spoke to line manager and said I could do another questionnaire now so I did and stated on it I was not vulnerable, clearly telling lies. Immediately got told that I met their criteria for being seen and was given a face to face appointment. Just wondering how many others are being screwed over by the new system and accepting it. That is worrying, partly because of the way you can change it around without anyone checking anything and partly because they can't surely just be expecting not to treat the very people who will be suffering the most after months of no treatment? Everything seems to be a case of having to shout loudly, it's so exhausting. My son and I both get hands on treatment from an osteopath and an acupuncturist. They've put lots of measures in place including temperature checks at the door, PPE, the rooms are stripped to the bare essentials and they've changed appointment times so that people aren't coming and going at the same time with 15 minute gaps between each to leave the front and back doors open to let the air circulate while they disinfect everything. They are asking people to sign a thing to confirm they understand they can't guarantee safety even though they're doing everything possible which I think is fair enough. Surely it should be your choice whether or not you think the risk of the virus is worse than the problems caused by not getting your treatment?
I do agree with Cris that the phone/internet triaging thing is much better (or at least it has been for us). So much quicker and easier to get things done and I know a friend of mine recently had her son's regular consultation done online and it took twenty minutes instead of two hours to get there and park, however long to wait to be seen, then the appointment and then two hours home again. Must be easier for the doctors as well, I'd have thought, if they can crack through a dozen non essentials without waiting for people to wander in and out?
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Post by fenrisulfr on Sept 11, 2020 10:38:19 GMT
Problem is NT that my GP won't see me to examine me and I'm certain that physio is not the answer for a knackered disc / trapped nerves. I've basically been fobbed off to see a physio for a problem that's been getting worse for over 6mths and it's taken until now to get action. To see my GP is like a lottery win as they're all hiding and now have intermediaries who'll phone you back and bat you off. I'm not the first to find this locally. Why is he refusing to see you? Really you need to see ortho and get scans xrays to see whats going wrong,but thats probably unlikely in the present situation. The surgery locked it's self down and is just starting to open with restrictions. I did query why I couldn't see a GP as I had thoughts of scans as the problem is not from any recent injury but was told that the physios would organise xrays, treatment etc which is shite as the physios they've put me to see are a private company and not NHS.
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Post by NomadCris on Sept 11, 2020 10:43:39 GMT
Why is he refusing to see you? Really you need to see ortho and get scans xrays to see whats going wrong,but thats probably unlikely in the present situation. The surgery locked it's self down and is just starting to open with restrictions. I did query why I couldn't see a GP as I had thoughts of scans as the problem is not from any recent injury but was told that the physios would organise xrays, treatment etc which is shite as the physios they've put me to see are a private company and not NHS. But they might be providing contracted out services for the nhs so might be worth going to see them and see if theyll refer you for a scan. You may get further forward than waiting for your GP surgery to begin working normally.
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Post by fenrisulfr on Sept 11, 2020 10:59:19 GMT
I've used the company twice before after being referred by the surgery but have never had Xrays sorted by them. On previous occasions, I was seen examined by my GP, sent to the hospital for Xrays then sent to physio, usually NHS. The private lot use Poles, Romanians and other non-UK folk but I can't fault them. I can see them checking me then sending me back to the GP.
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Post by NomadCris on Sept 11, 2020 11:10:14 GMT
My surgery is doing telephone consultations. Theyve even asked me why ive not been in for my free bowel cancer screening which i didnt know about or medication review im due which i didnt know about.They were going to do my HGV medical in June but that was cancelled by DVLA and so i dont need to do that till next year now. The surgery seems oretty good compared to the last one i was with who were officious evasive and couldnt even get an routine appointment without 6wks notice.
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Post by bigbear67 on Sept 11, 2020 11:25:24 GMT
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Post by NomadCris on Sept 11, 2020 12:09:49 GMT
The obvious unanswered question is if cases are racing upward but mortality rate is barely in double figures why are they government in apparent panic mode and willing to drop regulatory checks to rush in a vaccine of any sort licensed or unlicensed when for weeks at the beginning of the outbreak they chose to ignore it and do nothing and then to let the virus take its course before finally starting to react to the spread.
And cynically the obvious answer now is theyre cynically exploiting the circumstances to their own benefit.
In a scared population who will fall for anything they think might protect them,governments will get away with a lot of things that arent really to the benefit of the general population.
More concerning when theyre actually tabling questions to the public like whether theyll accept enforced curfews on movements. Local lockdowns and limits on gatherings over 6 are ways of preventing infection spread,theyre also convenient ways of limiting resistance and protests.
Slippery slope and we should be careful about what we are hoodwinked into accepting.
Effectively we are not being told anything useful about Covid,we're just been spoonfed government diarrhoea and waffle on a daily basis.
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Post by VanWoman84 on Sept 11, 2020 15:12:48 GMT
Ew. Just ew.
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Post by itinerantchild on Sept 11, 2020 15:14:57 GMT
What she said :-o
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Post by givingitsomethought on Sept 13, 2020 13:23:20 GMT
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Post by NomadCris on Sept 13, 2020 14:17:52 GMT
A possible answer for earlier high death rates compared to now is that it took out the highly vulnerable people already weak from other illnesses through winter, there was no protective measures,no masks,social distancing,hand washing,isolation of vulnerable etc and no one knew who had it,how widespread it was amongst the population or how it spread.
Case numbers are going up now probably because of the relaxation of distancing and the large numbers of younger people mixing at events and returning to education.
Difficult to quantify but we do need to keep measures in context and not overeact or be panicked into accepting draconian measures or untested unsafe vaccines.
Its not rise of case numbers that matter,its how serious theyre affected that matters- whether they require hospitalisation or ICU or its causing high death rates.
So far despite increases we're not seeing hospitalised cases rise substantially or death rates over double figures.
The country cant stay locked down forever and people need to work to live normal lives.
Testing hasnt proved anything useful here because its shambolic and pouring billions into testing is just a total waste of money.
Theres evidence people can get the infection again so what does testing prove if theyre negative one week and positive after a test?
The government would be better trying to get things running again as cautiously as possible and pouring money into preparatory measures in the nhs to cope with any possible rise in seriously affected cases and also to enable it deal with the backlog in patients who have had treatment for other illnesses cancelled because of covid.
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Post by bernie on Sept 14, 2020 10:39:25 GMT
They have also learned a lot about treatments, mostly by trial and error, but small successes add up. Having less patients to deal with itself raises the survival chances for any individual patient which is why they need to keep the number of cases down.
The present method of testing is too labour intensive and prone to logistical bottle necks in supply. It can't just be ramped up indefinitely because the problems increase exponentially the more tests you try and do.
The only test that will ultimately work is an indicative test
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Post by givingitsomethought on Sept 14, 2020 12:25:07 GMT
They have also learned a lot about treatments, mostly by trial and error, but small successes add up. Having less patients to deal with itself raises the survival chances for any individual patient which is why they need to keep the number of cases down. The present method of testing is too labour intensive and prone to logistical bottle necks in supply. It can't just be ramped up indefinitely because the problems increase exponentially the more tests you try and do. The only test that will ultimately work is an indicative test I did read that they've got better with treatments now and have got systems in place, I just feel sorry for all the poor buggers that slogged through it already having to do it again if that's the way it goes now. The fatality numbers still seem low though so maybe it won't be as fatal for as many as it was before. Still awful for those that get it but it would be good if it doesn't get as bad as that again. We're quite happy to carry on doing as much as possible from home and not going too far afield. I'm much less stressed than I used to be and my anxiety's nowhere near as difficult to deal with so I think staying in is good for me. What's an indicative test, Bernie, to see how likely you are to catch it or how likely you are to be severely affected by it?
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Post by bernie on Sept 14, 2020 14:31:36 GMT
They have also learned a lot about treatments, mostly by trial and error, but small successes add up. Having less patients to deal with itself raises the survival chances for any individual patient which is why they need to keep the number of cases down. The present method of testing is too labour intensive and prone to logistical bottle necks in supply. It can't just be ramped up indefinitely because the problems increase exponentially the more tests you try and do. The only test that will ultimately work is an indicative test I did read that they've got better with treatments now and have got systems in place, I just feel sorry for all the poor buggers that slogged through it already having to do it again if that's the way it goes now. The fatality numbers still seem low though so maybe it won't be as fatal for as many as it was before. Still awful for those that get it but it would be good if it doesn't get as bad as that again. We're quite happy to carry on doing as much as possible from home and not going too far afield. I'm much less stressed than I used to be and my anxiety's nowhere near as difficult to deal with so I think staying in is good for me. What's an indicative test, Bernie, to see how likely you are to catch it or how likely you are to be severely affected by it? There is always a risk of reinfection with any virus, immunity is not a perfect thing because viruses mutate all the time. But you are much less likely to be badly affected the second time around - hopefully. An indicative test is one that gives you its result as part of the test. Like litmus paper, the often quoted example being an over the counter pregnancy test. That way they don't have to get bagged up, labelled sent off to a lab etc etc. Then only the positive tests need to get a more formal lab test if its felt necessary One of the problems with track and trace is that people don't necessarily tell the truth for reasons of their own
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Post by cricket on Sept 21, 2020 21:03:00 GMT
Question time on tv yesterday evening was interesting.It pointed out that the elderly have not generally stopped shielding since March,people are becoming a bit more aware of how to stay safe and youngsters who are mixing more are less likely to suffer and die from it.There is acknowledgement that the viral load on a person has a marked effect on the bodies response,in that a lesser hit means a more effective immune response.Up in North Wales cases are rising fast again,but no deaths recently.Youngsters are still gadding about together,pubs still full.The winter soar predicted is probably related to the cold and damp circumstances which Covid survives best in and the prevalence of coughs and colds providing extra spreading ability in coughs and sneezes.There are many outbreaks in the UK at present and localised lockdowns.What will happen now to businesses I wonder with the government reluctant to pay more furlough.The whole mess is beyond belief.If this had been tackled thoroughly in the beginning things would not be so dire now.Never mind.So long as all the holiday makers thronging here had a good time a few weeks ago.
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