Nhs
NHS wheechair service sucks
26/January/2010 04:08 PM Filed in: Health
Archived from October 2006
Here we go again... this saga started on 10th October.
Mission - to obtain a new pressure cushion for my wheelchair. 16x 16 and 3 inches deep called a Trans Flow 600 or equivalent.
Can not find one on the internet to buy privately - they are over £100. I would buy one myself but can't be sure it is the right kind and the most suitable type.
Previously: HERTFORDSHIRE 1) Told OT from social services 2) Showed her the type and gave size 3) She agreed one of the same would do the job and within a few days got the cushion for me.
Compare this to KENT!
I asked my OT (you may remember him from the door saga).
1) He give me local number of NHS wheelchair service.
2) I try them and they only answer phones before midday... I try several times and over the next weeks eventually got through a few days ago.
3) They said that my GP has to fill in a form to send to them with details about my impairment, wheelchair etc (not that they know this).
4) Phone GP - on holiday so I wait to hear from them.
5) District nurse calls I explain the story so far - they tell me to call my OT.... (I think we have been here before). She offer to phone him for me.
Today
6) District nurse calls again - she has called the NHS wheelchair service who need some details.
7) I phone the wheelchair service back up again. They can not give a cushion until they have records from the place who gave me my NHS chair. They need to know model and size of seat....
I explain this was some 15 years ago in Wales - they can not give a cushion without paper work saying the model and the dimensions.
I tell them the model and size of seat.
They want the paper work from previous NHS Trust.
NHS consults with senior manager.
They now want to know where my last cushion came from - that was HERTS - oh.
8) They phone up Herts and they have not heard of me...
It turns out they didn't know I have been married and were asking under the wrong name.
NHS tell me they may have to call my chair an NHS chair in the absence of any paperwork.
I don't care what they call it. I just want a [bleeeep] cushion. I tell them this politely.
9) District Nurse calls - she has to complete the referral form to the NHS clinic (remember this from step 3?)
Nurse does not know size of wheelchair or anything about me - I tell her on the phone. She is very nice and is trying to help. NHS staff sound patronising and un helpful.
10) She writes it on the form and sends it to the NHS staff who I have already told this to several times today.
Now I wait to hear from the NHS Wheelchair people again.....
In the meantime I get a numb bum, frustrated and sore... gee thanks NHS - great service.
Part 2 14 April 2007
Since last September you will remember I was trying to get s plain old cushion to save my numb bum.
I eventually got to test out a load down at the wheelchair clinic and they said they would order one. Because it is contoured it won't fit in my wheelchair without a new backrest - also on order I thought.
About a month ago I wrote to ask where my cushion was as it had been about 3 months since it was on order... they were just about to come and see me (yeahh right). Anyway, by the off chance I was at home and they said they would come up with it.
Whoopeeee I thought.... alas my heart sank when they came in with a new electric wheelchair. - So, they buy a new electric wheelchair at goodness knows what cost compared to trying something with my existing wheelchair (i.e. a new back rest and cushion). The logic was that my wheelchair was old and I needed a new one anyway - yet I had told them I was in the process of doing up a private chair I had bought! Besides this the wheelchair had no head rest, was too high for my PA to lift me up and down from, would not fit under the desk and other places I work from - and so the list goes on! It was the most unsuitable set up for someone with MD and I wouldn't have been able to get in my car to go to work!
Yet - why is it I felt bad about sending it away and suggesting they went to try and find a backrest... because disabled people fight tooth and nail to get an electric wheelchair for years. The system is CRAP.
I even offered to buy the cushion privately - but that was frowned upon because I was officially their responsibility for health, safety and posture (as they kept pointing out) as long as I sat in an NHS chair . What about me - don't I know my body and lifestyle better than anyone - and can't I be my own responsibility?
So it is now April - month 8 of having a numb bum.... Hubby is fast working on my new chair because as soon as that is ready I can 'go private' and they will just hand over the cushion for free!
Here we go again... this saga started on 10th October.
Mission - to obtain a new pressure cushion for my wheelchair. 16x 16 and 3 inches deep called a Trans Flow 600 or equivalent.
Can not find one on the internet to buy privately - they are over £100. I would buy one myself but can't be sure it is the right kind and the most suitable type.
Previously: HERTFORDSHIRE 1) Told OT from social services 2) Showed her the type and gave size 3) She agreed one of the same would do the job and within a few days got the cushion for me.
Compare this to KENT!
I asked my OT (you may remember him from the door saga).
1) He give me local number of NHS wheelchair service.
2) I try them and they only answer phones before midday... I try several times and over the next weeks eventually got through a few days ago.
3) They said that my GP has to fill in a form to send to them with details about my impairment, wheelchair etc (not that they know this).
4) Phone GP - on holiday so I wait to hear from them.
5) District nurse calls I explain the story so far - they tell me to call my OT.... (I think we have been here before). She offer to phone him for me.
Today
6) District nurse calls again - she has called the NHS wheelchair service who need some details.
7) I phone the wheelchair service back up again. They can not give a cushion until they have records from the place who gave me my NHS chair. They need to know model and size of seat....
I explain this was some 15 years ago in Wales - they can not give a cushion without paper work saying the model and the dimensions.
I tell them the model and size of seat.
They want the paper work from previous NHS Trust.
NHS consults with senior manager.
They now want to know where my last cushion came from - that was HERTS - oh.
8) They phone up Herts and they have not heard of me...
It turns out they didn't know I have been married and were asking under the wrong name.
NHS tell me they may have to call my chair an NHS chair in the absence of any paperwork.
I don't care what they call it. I just want a [bleeeep] cushion. I tell them this politely.
9) District Nurse calls - she has to complete the referral form to the NHS clinic (remember this from step 3?)
Nurse does not know size of wheelchair or anything about me - I tell her on the phone. She is very nice and is trying to help. NHS staff sound patronising and un helpful.
10) She writes it on the form and sends it to the NHS staff who I have already told this to several times today.
Now I wait to hear from the NHS Wheelchair people again.....
In the meantime I get a numb bum, frustrated and sore... gee thanks NHS - great service.
Part 2 14 April 2007
Since last September you will remember I was trying to get s plain old cushion to save my numb bum.
I eventually got to test out a load down at the wheelchair clinic and they said they would order one. Because it is contoured it won't fit in my wheelchair without a new backrest - also on order I thought.
About a month ago I wrote to ask where my cushion was as it had been about 3 months since it was on order... they were just about to come and see me (yeahh right). Anyway, by the off chance I was at home and they said they would come up with it.
Whoopeeee I thought.... alas my heart sank when they came in with a new electric wheelchair. - So, they buy a new electric wheelchair at goodness knows what cost compared to trying something with my existing wheelchair (i.e. a new back rest and cushion). The logic was that my wheelchair was old and I needed a new one anyway - yet I had told them I was in the process of doing up a private chair I had bought! Besides this the wheelchair had no head rest, was too high for my PA to lift me up and down from, would not fit under the desk and other places I work from - and so the list goes on! It was the most unsuitable set up for someone with MD and I wouldn't have been able to get in my car to go to work!
Yet - why is it I felt bad about sending it away and suggesting they went to try and find a backrest... because disabled people fight tooth and nail to get an electric wheelchair for years. The system is CRAP.
I even offered to buy the cushion privately - but that was frowned upon because I was officially their responsibility for health, safety and posture (as they kept pointing out) as long as I sat in an NHS chair . What about me - don't I know my body and lifestyle better than anyone - and can't I be my own responsibility?
So it is now April - month 8 of having a numb bum.... Hubby is fast working on my new chair because as soon as that is ready I can 'go private' and they will just hand over the cushion for free!
Some archived blogs
26/January/2010 02:24 PM Filed in: Health
Today I am moving some blog posts from a past blog,
over onto IforI. Starting with this one from the
Archives:
January 2006: Maidstone Hospital - no access
Today I received a phone call saying they wanted me to go for a Barium swallow on Thursday. Despite having changed my name twice at the clinics they still had me under my maiden name which confused the issue. I then said a 'by the way, I'm a wheelchair user', to which they replied 'ah, that could be a problem.' Does anyone actually read medical notes - its pretty obvious! Apparently the room where they are doing them is not accessible due to moving around of departments or something. The lady was very polite and said she would find out what they could do....
A later phone call that day.....
Now they had booked for me to have it in an accessible room..... I then enquired 'how do you plan on doing this'.... she said 'eh... why' to which I reminded her that I could not sit unaided out of my wheelchair (although she said they had a hoist to get me out of my chair) and also could not hold a cup to drink the barium 'meal' for scan of how I swallow! She said that could be a problem and would have to consult with someone higher up as to what to do and so as to not waste my time or theirs coming in until they had worked something out.
So there you go. It's easy for these medical types to say ' do a scan' but they never put any thought into the needs of patients with impairments.... 0/10 my friends.
Part two... January 26th, 8 weeks from seeing my GP.
So my appointment came through giving no indication of access so I had to phone them to check.
It took two laps of the car park to find parking and then an icy walk into the main building... brrrrrr.
FROM A to B
Anyway I walked from shall we say part 'A' of the building all the way to part 'B' at the opposite end of the hospital.
FROM B to A
On arrive at radiology in part 'B' I was told 'sorry' you need to go to CT as they are doing them up there today'...... so off I went with my PA. There were no signs and asking local wards where this quite critical part of the hospital imaging department is - they hadn't a clue.
Eventually I worked out is was in the cancer unit - back up at part 'A'. So off we went.....
On arrival at reception I was told 'sorry, yours is being done at radiology'.... grrr......
FROM A to B
Back we plodded along miles of corridors to the opposite end of the hospital again.... 2 miles later....
Eventually I had to transfer (for transfer read ' be dragged/slided') to three different places because of different height beds / tables etc.
Eventually I made it and got the thing done - with no great conclusion as to why or what to do about my problem... Still at least it wasn't anything cancerous or that would have topped the day of nicely!
FROM B to A
All that remained was to trek back to 'part A' to get in the car.... now where was CT again?
January 2006: Maidstone Hospital - no access
Today I received a phone call saying they wanted me to go for a Barium swallow on Thursday. Despite having changed my name twice at the clinics they still had me under my maiden name which confused the issue. I then said a 'by the way, I'm a wheelchair user', to which they replied 'ah, that could be a problem.' Does anyone actually read medical notes - its pretty obvious! Apparently the room where they are doing them is not accessible due to moving around of departments or something. The lady was very polite and said she would find out what they could do....
A later phone call that day.....
Now they had booked for me to have it in an accessible room..... I then enquired 'how do you plan on doing this'.... she said 'eh... why' to which I reminded her that I could not sit unaided out of my wheelchair (although she said they had a hoist to get me out of my chair) and also could not hold a cup to drink the barium 'meal' for scan of how I swallow! She said that could be a problem and would have to consult with someone higher up as to what to do and so as to not waste my time or theirs coming in until they had worked something out.
So there you go. It's easy for these medical types to say ' do a scan' but they never put any thought into the needs of patients with impairments.... 0/10 my friends.
Part two... January 26th, 8 weeks from seeing my GP.
So my appointment came through giving no indication of access so I had to phone them to check.
It took two laps of the car park to find parking and then an icy walk into the main building... brrrrrr.
FROM A to B
Anyway I walked from shall we say part 'A' of the building all the way to part 'B' at the opposite end of the hospital.
FROM B to A
On arrive at radiology in part 'B' I was told 'sorry' you need to go to CT as they are doing them up there today'...... so off I went with my PA. There were no signs and asking local wards where this quite critical part of the hospital imaging department is - they hadn't a clue.
Eventually I worked out is was in the cancer unit - back up at part 'A'. So off we went.....
On arrival at reception I was told 'sorry, yours is being done at radiology'.... grrr......
FROM A to B
Back we plodded along miles of corridors to the opposite end of the hospital again.... 2 miles later....
Eventually I had to transfer (for transfer read ' be dragged/slided') to three different places because of different height beds / tables etc.
Eventually I made it and got the thing done - with no great conclusion as to why or what to do about my problem... Still at least it wasn't anything cancerous or that would have topped the day of nicely!
FROM B to A
All that remained was to trek back to 'part A' to get in the car.... now where was CT again?
