hazel
new member
Hi again, Jo, and other interested parties.
My sister has now explained everything to Mum and she agrees to asking for a second opinion.
Now it looks as though we have another problem..
The hospitals you mentioned in the North and North East are all difficult for travelling and Mum would have nowhere to stay with any of them, so I've contacted my knee surgeon in Chertsey, where at least Mum would have somewhere to stay.
The wait for an NHS appointment would be 6 to 7 weeks from receipt of the referral from the GP, BUT.. then the consultant would need an MRI scan and Mum would have to travel back 5 to 6 weeks later for that. After that she'd need to reschedule another appointment with the surgeon and then - if surgery is recommended, she'd have to go on the waiting list and then go back again for an operation. This will mean travelling back and forth at least 4 times and we're probably looking at at least 6 months for all of this.
None of the doctors at Furness General offered Mum an MRI scan. They made the decision to refuse surgery on the basis of X-rays alone.
Jo, Do you know of any way Mum could get the MRI scan done at Furness General or somewhere local to her, so she would only need 2 journeys in the future? Can the GP say she needs an MRI scan?
I have thought about seeing if we could pay for a private consultation, but we can't afford to pay for a private MRI scan, so there is no point in doing anything privately. Also Mum would still need to have the initial NHS appointment, so a private appointment would be of no use.
Should we be making complaints about Mum's treatment history? It's the whole 15 years of getting fobbed off with 2nd best treatments that is so upsetting. Can we get anything moving by complaining?... or do you think this would just make things worse? In general, I know that we have a brilliant, although somewhat overburdened, National Health Service so it just doesn't seem right to complain.
Thanks again for your time and attention.
Hazel, Kay (Sister) and Beryl (Mum)
My sister has now explained everything to Mum and she agrees to asking for a second opinion.
Now it looks as though we have another problem..
The hospitals you mentioned in the North and North East are all difficult for travelling and Mum would have nowhere to stay with any of them, so I've contacted my knee surgeon in Chertsey, where at least Mum would have somewhere to stay.
The wait for an NHS appointment would be 6 to 7 weeks from receipt of the referral from the GP, BUT.. then the consultant would need an MRI scan and Mum would have to travel back 5 to 6 weeks later for that. After that she'd need to reschedule another appointment with the surgeon and then - if surgery is recommended, she'd have to go on the waiting list and then go back again for an operation. This will mean travelling back and forth at least 4 times and we're probably looking at at least 6 months for all of this.
None of the doctors at Furness General offered Mum an MRI scan. They made the decision to refuse surgery on the basis of X-rays alone.
Jo, Do you know of any way Mum could get the MRI scan done at Furness General or somewhere local to her, so she would only need 2 journeys in the future? Can the GP say she needs an MRI scan?
I have thought about seeing if we could pay for a private consultation, but we can't afford to pay for a private MRI scan, so there is no point in doing anything privately. Also Mum would still need to have the initial NHS appointment, so a private appointment would be of no use.
Should we be making complaints about Mum's treatment history? It's the whole 15 years of getting fobbed off with 2nd best treatments that is so upsetting. Can we get anything moving by complaining?... or do you think this would just make things worse? In general, I know that we have a brilliant, although somewhat overburdened, National Health Service so it just doesn't seem right to complain.
Thanks again for your time and attention.
Hazel, Kay (Sister) and Beryl (Mum)