Blessed with Drs here in US

I hope it continues for you.

​Its really helpful...to our success....

It must be catching lol! My husband had an appointment with a consultant cardiologist at Glenfield Hospital last week.

He was seen five minutes earlier than his appointment time. The consultant himself called us in (big change there from when I worked in a hospital, they'd never move from their desks). He introduced himself, shook hands with us both and asked if we wanted tea or coffee! Never had that before.

He was polite, clear and concise and we could actually understand him. 

He asked my husband if he understood why he had been referred there and not our huge local hospital. He went through what he was having done and if we both knew why. The success rate, and if we fully understood the risks and gave us all the pros and cons and his own thoughts regarding the procedure.

We expected him to be put on a long waiting list, but forgot that hospitals now have to operate within 16/18 weeks, otherwise they get a huge fine. The waiting time starts from the initial referral date and not from the first appointment. So he should have had it done by middle of April and back on the golf course early May

He was very thorough with the consent form, pointed out the risks he'd written on the form. He then arranged personally for a pre-op assessment there and then to save us from another hours journey each way. My husband was asked if he had any questions, or queries and he then asked me if I had any worries. The only question I had was he himself doing the procedure. One of my sons who's a doctor said he was excellent and was highly recommended for this procedure. So an excellent consultation, which ended with him and my OH having a five minute chat about golf.

​Ive started a new discussion about my appointment today called [u]MIRACLES DO HAPPEN[/u] 

To say I was gobsmacked  is an understatement. I went about a damaged shoulder and ten minutes later came out with a prescription for naltrexone.

Luckily for me I saw a young newly qualified GP as my normal one was on holiday for 3 months!!

But, I am assuming your husbands visit wasn't due to substance abuse? 

So are you saying Drs...in the UK just generally don't have good bedside for anything and not just substance abuse?  That's very  horrible...

​I did read that you got your prescribition while your Dr. was absent...hahahaha..good for you!

hahaha no not substance abuse. 17 years ago when he was only 40, hubby had a pericardectomy (removal of the protective sac lining around the heart).

Been fine since last year, when a pre-op assessment for removal of his gallbladder detected an irregular heart beat, atrium flutter.

He had cardioversion (stop your heart then shock it back to hopefully to sinus rhythm. This worked for a few months, but then became irregular again. Next procedure is cardiac ablation, which involves putting a thin wire with an electrode on the end up through the groin and into the heart and shock the heart itself back into normal rhythm. Our local hospital don't do this, so he was referred to a specialist cardiac consultant.

Regarding consultants and senior registrars in the uk, many patients hold them in awe and certainly many of the older dr's are very clinical and you don't question them. At one time what they said went. This is what I am going to do and that's that. They would explain in non medical terms, so the majority of patients would just sign the consent form. However things have moved forward and they involve the patient and their wife/husband/partner much more and are much more informal. You still get a few who think they are God and have a dreadful bedside manner.

We have a lot of foreign dr's where English is not their first language, and sometimes it's hard (from my experience anyway) to understand what they're saying. Hope that makes sense.

​But, alcohol JUST amplified the anxiety and panic attacks...I had to come to terms with that.  

​your right that everyone deserves to be treated well...its just not how it is...and from what I read...the UK is really bad at being understanding.

Going to alcohol Advisery service for some hypnotherapy tomorrow. And they are still doing acupuncture so going to book that too. You should try it RHGB !!!!

Dont think RHGB likes needles!

I didn't realise you could have hypnotherapy at any alcohol treatment centres. Have you had it before? Will you let me know how it went. I thought you could only get it if you went privately.

Next thing, she notices, is there's claret all over my arm and the floor, and she goes 'oh you're bleeding'. No sh*t sherlock, perhaps if you'd spoken to me instead of your mate, I could have told you the reason for the blood test. Like, I'm having a minor op (local anasthetic) and I've warned the doctor, I bleed (more than other people) because of my liver condition, so the bloods are for coagulation tests and platelet count.

I wish hospital staff would concentrate on what they are doing, it makes me nervous when they only give it half their attention.

about 50 people in the waiting room, 10 cubicles, of which 8 aren't in use due to staff shortages. Then one of the two taking bloods, disappears for ten minutes and comes back with two Starbucks drinks. Jeremy Kyle blearing out, and the old fogies moaning about the guests!