Hi Julie (part 2!)
No I got no indication as to the delay. I thought Christine was very off hand (and I was very polite to her) but she made it very clear she wasn't giving any clues as to timescales etc.Last time I saw my doctor a few weeks ago even he tried contacting the hospital to find out where I was on the list and he got nowhere. He even wrote a letter to the consultant and faxed it that day, yet still there's this wall of sound that I can't penetrate.
Tanya...I saw Mr Slater on 30 April and was told a few months so if it is 26 weeks that would make it mid November?
Mandy - I'm curious as to what Velia said - do spill the beans.
I do know that this has really upset me. All day I have been bursting into tears and when I got home from work I sobbed my heart out (and feel wrecked now!). I thought about writing direct to the consultant explaining my concerns. What do others think about that idea?
Thanks for putting up with my moans and just for 'being there'.
Hi Spikeyjaycee (Julie Part 1) have I got this right, you were on the list for ages before you got your first consultation - and then saw Mr Somers for your first consultation on 20 April. (Hope I've read it right). Ok, right, I know that the lists before I got there werent moving well, what you need to ask is why it took so long on the list before you got a date with your consultant then? they don't tend to give an answer - my doctor wrote for me 3 weeks back and there is a 'response' in the typing pool list (!) but I have spoken with my doctors today (the lady that deals) and I've just said bin the thing because the letter won't give us any clues.
Strangely enough, I spoke with Christine today (obviously having a bad day - yet again !!!) I needed to give her a change of contact information and then I asked a question ( having been given a cut off date of January, basically, if they operate in January on me I will be down with hayfever- its tree pollen for me which affects me for months at a time literally half a year) and I've said, what happens if I am ill at the point they call me in ? Christine then said, you might not be ill, to which I retorted, well I have been for the last 10 years, so I can't see how its going to change now, but I asked if that mean I'd be off the list and loose my op all together (grrrr) She said it might happen before then.
As you can very much guess, I'm not holding my breath because otherwise I'm going to turn blue - and I'm not going to hold them to it possibly happening before then - cos it won't.
They are just really bad at keeping to timescales and limits.
I would guess that the delay before your first consultation might have been in getting the funding (?)
In comparison, my funding was approved very very quickly ... Doctor asked me in January if I wanted a bypass (he approached me not me asking him)
he faxed through, we got forms completed them and I got long list of hospitals to choose from - at least its local and easy to get to - no long expensive train journeys to London .... you're in the system at least and the new people aren't getting onto the list they are being turned away or have at least a 2-3 year wait before they see a consultant so I suppose we all need to be happy and feel lucky (not a consolation I know) but we are nearing the start of a new journey : ))
