How long after gallstone diagnosis did people get surgery?

This is the NHS!

Unless it's an emergency then you need to go on a waiting list. We're in the UK so our treatment is free. If I had private medical cover then sure it could be organised within a couple of weeks

what is NHS?

National Health Service. That's who all our healthcare is through

Is it impossible to get emergency gall bladder surgery for next day?

Hi Leonard,

It's getting really bad over here. Hardly anyone has private medical insurance here, because, until recently (last twenty years or so), we simply didn't need to. It's gradually got worse. At my age, 67, the cost would be prohibitive to start paying into a scheme. Those who can afford to, go private for maybe one surgery, as they're so desperate. The rest of us queue. I considered going private for my surgery, as I was so ill, then I got an NHS cancellation. I ended up having two major surgeries, as I had a cancer diagnosis, so can't even guess at how much that would have cost as a private patient without insurance.

You can't even get to see your doctor (General Practitioner) same day. I was refused an appointment three times when I was having attacks. I had to queue up at an Urgent Care Centre, where people are coming in for routine appointments, often for all sorts of minor ailments and wait until there was a gap for the doctor to see me. It's like a third world country over here.

You wait up to three weeks for an routine appointment, then the doctor (GP) refers you to a hospital. Then you have tests before you get a diagnosis. Could take weeks for this as there are also waiting lists for scans. Current wait is 18 weeks plus for surgery unless you're admitted as an emergency. To even be allocated a bed, you've got to be seriously ill. Most cholecystectomies are done laparoscopically as day patients.

I was admitted as a emergency due to severe jaundice a week after diagnosis of gallstones and told I'd have surgery with the week, but there was a sudden increase in demand for beds, so I was discharged. Had surgery four months later, during which time I rapidly deteriorated.

Trouble is we all depend on the NHS, which used to be wonderful. I have a daughter who is a nurse, my son in law is a consultant and I used to work in the NHS before I retired. I believe it is basically a good system. I was born two years after it was introduced, so I've always been reliant on it. It's not totally free either, as everyone pays a percentage of their salary to the government. I don't know what has happened. All I do know is, when you need it most it lets you down.

Having said that, most of the doctors and nurses who work in the NHS are fantastic. Some have had no pay rises for seven years now. Consequently the NHS has become badly understaffed as well as underfunded. Don't know what the answer is.

Sorry about the rant!

Sounds very similar to our system in Australia, however I don't think ours is quite as bad. I can usually still get an app with my gp same day but not all our gps are free it's up to them so lots charge a fee of $70 per visit and you can then claim back $37 from Medicare.

Our waiting lists depend on the area you live and the urgency. We get triaged into categories. Cat 1 should be seen within 30 days. Cat 2 is within 90 days and it goes up to Cat 5 where you'd wait years. And not all areas stick to this either. I have been waiting 2 years as a cat 2 to see an ENT as they are only at one hospital for half a city. Our emergency wait times are bad too depending where you go you'll wait 4 hours to be seen as a Cat 3 which is defined as potentially life threatening 😑

I guess though no ones health care system seems to work perfectly. Like you most people don't have private insurance as it's not really worth it cause there's all these gap payments if you need surgery anyway.

I appreciate your rant, it tells me alot.  By the way, I am unclear as to which country you are in.  Also, my cholecystectomy was done laparoscopically as a day patient.  I have private insurance through the job as a teacher that I used to have.  Also, I  am 69 years old and have Medicare from the State Social Security Department in California.

wow..... I am from the Uk we emigrated too Australia 8 yrs ago and thats gone down hill I always got saw by Drs the same day in the UK ebfore we left.

I get seen by a bulk billed or private dr the same day here, expeically for emergency and I get my scans pretty quickly too as they have scan places all around which bulk bill for most scans.

I have found the system OK here in Australia, I got my ENT through private and then was put straight into the hopsital systm as he did both publically and was operated on within 12 weeks and most of that was delayed due to scans.

It depends if its urgent or not. Sadly gallbladders are not urgent here, so my wait will have been 9 mths from referal to surgery. I got seen by gastro though within 10 days and cameras the next day as they placed me as a cat 1, sadly surgery was a cat 3 due to the DR not putting all my symptoms and then when I saw the surgeon he said cat 2 for surgery as 1 was for urgent right now only. So I get done within 90 days.

My son had his tonsils done recently and he was a cat 3, he had his op around 8 mths from referal, so not too bad but was bumped to private as the local private has to take so many public patient,s so he was lucky

My friend has private, lots do over here, it seems pretty common although we never did and I wish I had, her son got refered last week, saw specalist tuesday and having operation today with no additional costs!

National Health Service

England, U.K. Though I think Scotland and Wales have slightly different rules under the NHS.

I have to say, children have a much better deal under the NHS in England than adults. That's as it should be.

Thats good too hear My friends son got seen so quick as she has private and made me very jealous I hadnt took it out and cannot afford it

I'm lucky that I can always get a same day GP appointment. Think the GP situation in England is a lot worse than Scotland just now!

Private doesn't necessarily mean better. Yes the facilities probably are better- you get your own bathroom and tv, but it's the same surgeons who perform the ops. I had hysterectomy on NHS a couple of weeks after my sister in law had same in private hospital. Yet I was up and walking upright a lot quicker.

Our waiting lists also depend on where you live and how urgent they think it is. Unfortunately I don't think it matters much where you live in England, they are all long. London is especially bad. I live near Leicester.

I think I was considered quite urgent as I'd been admitted with bad jaundice and they'd planned to do my surgery that week, however, due to a sudden demand for beds, I was sent home. As far as they were concerned, they had stabilised me so I could wait and I ended up waiting another four months before I got a cancellation with a different surgeon.

I think the system where you'd have to pay for a first visit could cut down on time-wasters, leaving appointments free for those that need it, but the whole ethos was that treatment would be free. My grandmother told me before the NHS people would put off going to the doctors because they didn't have the money to pay. Sometimes they left it too long. We don't want to go back there.

They seem too say differently here, I have several friends who have private and they reckon the drs are top of their field and they would never go public, they pick their Dr, so I have no idea how it works here.

You can chose your surgeon and the hospital, even a private one, when the GP refers you in England. This is still done under NHS. I was not referred by my GP but by an Urgent Care Centre so I wasn't given this option. As things turned out, I was better treated in NHS because I had a cancer diagnosis. Don't know how much it would have cost to go private for both surgeries.

I used to work in the NHS and know most surgeons and many medics do both NHS and private work. This was an arrangement made in 1947 to get doctors to sign up for the NHS. All consultant surgeons have plenty experience as they've come up through the ranks and performed countless surgeries. Even in private hospitals they are assisted by juniors or how would the juniors learn? Don't think any surgeon would risk his reputation by not supervising juniors.

The only benefits going private I can see are you get your own loo and tv and sometimes certain treatments may be available that aren't on NHS system such as some work done by plastic and maxillofacial surgeons.