A little bit furious at the moment - HAD A REPLY TO EMAIL

[slimmerkay]

The straw fell today that broke the camel's back. I have emailed Mr Ammori's secretary and have copied the email here as I think it explains everything without me having to re-type it all.

Suffice to say I am not very happy. I wasn't going to complain but sometimes I just get sick on being walked on.

Dear Louisa

I refer to my emails of 4th November and 16th November 2010 regarding the invoice sent to me for the B12 injection given at the six week post op check. I have received no further word from you regarding this since your email of 4th November stating you would investigate it further. I have today received a reminder for the invoice to be paid.

I have telephoned the accounts department and am awaiting a call back. I am not very pleased about having to do this.

I will add that through a support group I have discovered that two other private patients of Mr Ammori's also attended clinic that day, also had the B12 injection and neither have been charged for it.

Also, one other point I wish to make is that I am not very happy with the aftercare provided by The Spire. Again, through the support group, I have discovered that patients who were bypassed in October (my operation was 11th September) and who were funded by the NHS have had their 6 week post-op check, were seen that day by Jennie the Dietician, and Kath, the Bariatric Nurse. Yet myself and another private patient have been told we wont see Jennie because she is fully booked up for months but we can email her and our first appointment with Kath is not until February 2011. I find these inconsistences unacceptable.

Karen ******

 

[Fashionably Late]

I would be very upset as well. I hope they can fix this for you very soon.

 

[cherry]

i think this gets to the point very quickly, i think its terrible you even need to do this x

 

[dottychic]

I agree with Kelly, its a disgrace that you have to complain....it doesnt seem like you get what you pay for so I would complain too XX

 

[Linski]

You go girl, just not good enough is it? I think the letter is to the point and should urge them into replying. Too be honest threy jsut shouldn't put you in a situation where yo have to get to this stage,

Linski xxx

 

[ditzeeblonde]

Very well said Karen... bet it feels like they've taken yr money now you have to just get on with it!! Such a shame that everyone is not treated equally... I hope you get a response to yr email. x

 

[BlueDiamond]

I would be very very very cheesed off as ur a private patient and they are Nhs , also you had ur procedure before them so by rights you should be seen before them coz A) you paid privately and they didnt and B) You had yours done before them......Kick some a** girly xx Well done for fighting for ur rights xx

 

[joylouise]

I am also a bit pee'd off, i have the same issues, I have left several messages for the dietician to ring me back and nothing.

Ive also been told that Mr A wont be seeing me on my appointment in December as he 'has other commitments!' So im driving 2.5 hours and putting my kids in day care and taking time off work to see the dietician that cant be ar**d to ring me?

 

[dottychic]

Its not good enough in my opinion. You should all email them and tell them how different they act before you hand the money over..........Its hardly good for attracting new patients is it! X

 

[Bev]

The original selling packages sound very attractive... the reality seems something else... xxx

 

[biggy123]

I really agree with what you are saying here Karen because apart from the B12 injection, my 6 week appointment was a waste of a day.

The staff are all very nice at the Spire but the appointments system is a mess. I waited well over an hour and a half to see Mr Ammori and then had 15 minutes to get my train or I'd miss the last connection home.

I found that a lot of the things I mentioned about vitamins, medication etc. were met with blank looks.
To be completely honest i've learned more about the bypass on this forum and the internet than from the hospital.

I think that better phone follow ups would greatly improve the situation - I don't know about you but I've only had one call since my op.

We could have had that 2 minute consultation with Mr Ammori and the dietician over the phone and the B12 could be prescribed and given by our local practice nurse.

I questioned how important the next appointment was (end of feb) and was told that it was a vital appointment and that I really should attend, but the thought of spending all day travelling for a 2 minute appointment is making me think twice.

Please keep us updated on your situation.

 

[slimmerkay]

I didn't even get the promised phone call from the dietician - have only ever had emails. And at the post op not one person asked to see my wounds or even asked how they had been!

I don't think because I was a private patient I should get any better treatment. But I do expect THE SAME treatment as ANY patient, private or NHS.

 

[slimmerkay]

Just checked email and I had a reply from Louisa:

Dear Karen

I apologise for this. I did look into this and spoke with Kath Rothwell. She told me that this was an error and she would sort this out. But the invoice has now been removed from the sytem.

As for the other problems you are having. This is something I will have to forward on to the hospital to deal with. I make arrangements for Mr Ammori's appointments but Kath's secretary arranges the appointments for Kath and Jennie. I can only apologise for on their behalf but I will pass this email on to them so they can look in to it.

Kind regards

Louisa

So once again, it is staff at the Spire that have messed things up and caused the delays.

 

[dottychic]

Well, just wait and see if anything happens now......they should get back to you without you having to do anything else! XX

 

[Bev]

Hoping this will move the situation forward and it's clear you have to follow things up yourself to be sure you are not forgotten... it's a shambles xxx

 

[phatmomma]

I would be very very very cheesed off as ur a private patient and they are Nhs , also you had ur procedure before them so by rights you should be seen before them coz A) you paid privately and they didnt and B) You had yours done before them......Kick some a** girly xx Well done for fighting for ur rights xx

Sorry to be pedantic but i take umbrage at the first sentence here. Why should a private patient take precedence over a nhs patient? I can't see a reason why and frankly Julie am surprised you have said this...

But i do agree with the fact that Karen had her surgery before them and therefore should have her first pre op check up before them. Just shows you admin is crap no matter which hospital you are at.....

 

[Rebirth]

Hope you get an answer soon Karen. My appointment was with Mr Li and Jennie, however, I was seen by Kath as Mr Li was unable to attend the clinic. I agree that we should all be treated the same whether private or NHS. Sorry my post has upset you and others so much.

love

Rebirthxx

 

[slimmerkay]

Oh Rebirth NO it hasn't upset me at all. I've had a beef about the care provided by the Spire from the day of my op hun.

I didn't see anyone after my op for 6 hours. I was alone in my room - could have had a blood clot and who would have known? Also they sent me home without things I needed and never return a call the first time - I always had to call them again.

No this really was just the last straw - please don't think it was your post.

 

[BlueDiamond]

Sorry to be pedantic but i take umbrage at the first sentence here. Why should a private patient take precedence over a nhs patient? I can't see a reason why and frankly Julie am surprised you have said this...

But i do agree with the fact that Karen had her surgery before them and therefore should have her first pre op check up before them. Just shows you admin is crap no matter which hospital you are at.....

That came out the wrong way , I didnt mean that a Private Patient should take precedent over a Nhs patient (soz it come out that way, I can see why it did reading it back now:sigh: ) I was merely trying to understand in Slimmers anguish of paying all that money out and being left on the sideline - Sorry if it caused offence , It wasnt my intention Julie

 

[joylouise]

Ive not had a call from the dietician either, ive rung several times and left messages and nothing. Im not having a good time of it at the min, struggling eating much at all and being sick every day. Ive said thid in my messages.

Karen were you given 2 seperate bills, one for the op and the other for the hospital/aftercare bit? I was and if this carries on like it is i will be seriously thinking about asking for some of it back as the aftercare ive paid for doesnt exist!