It’s been one of *those* days and it’s all been because of various medical people (not WLS-related) and I’m completely fed up. Hospital and meds delivery people not talking to one another so no idea if I will receive my delivery in time for my next jab this coming Monday. I mean, it’s only for my Rheumatoid Arthritis so not important, obviously. Then there’s the absolute joy of dealing with my doctors surgery when chasing up a prescription for pain relief that was requested last week. Rang my pharmacy - no prescription received. Rang Drs - oh, it was refused because you need to have yet another meds review (already having one on 27th for unrelated meds) No pain meds and no one thought to contact me to tell me (the wonder of doing everything online) Staff at surgery doesn’t think that the reviewing clinician can fit a 3rd med in to the upcoming review, so yet another review booked for Saturday. This will mean I’m without pain meds for a week by the time it gets put through and delivered ?

I am just so ??? I know we all make mistakes but today has just been a Micky-take from start to finish. I’ve put a complaint in with the Drs for the lack of communication and care, hospital already miffed with the meds delivery company so I’ve left that in their hands to deal with.

The only thing going through my head now is what if the surgery is as crap when it comes to issuing meds post Bariatric surgery?? I’ve no confidence in them dealing with requests in a timely manner generally so I’m dreading how much they screw up when I have to go to them for all the Bariatric stuff.

Sorry, I just needed to get it off my chest. Hubby is dealing with some work issues at the moment that’s stressing him out so I don’t want to add to that right now.

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How frustrating. No winder you’re upset. Unfortunately this is becoming all too common - poor service & follow ups by doctors & their staff. Add in the difficulties actually being able to source meds - it can be a nightmare.

Have you tried asking for E scripts that are sent to your phone? Then you show the text to your pharmacist or ask your doctors to email the scripts to you. At least that way you know you have them.

Can any of your meds be doubled dispensed? That is you get can 2 months supply dispensed instead of just enough for one month each time. I do this so I’m not always going into my pharmacy & I always have a new box/bottle of meds ready to go in case there is some delay or feck up by the doctors.

Though my back up supply for my HRT patch this time. An extra month has not been enough. My pharmacist told me today mid August for delivery. It was supposed to be in stock in May, then June, now … Had to see my doctor for an alternative med but I’ll need another script for that as she only gave me a two month supply.

2 hours ago, Arabesque said:

How frustrating. No winder you’re upset. Unfortunately this is becoming all too common - poor service & follow ups by doctors & their staff. Add in the difficulties actually being able to source meds - it can be a nightmare.

Have you tried asking for E scripts that are sent to your phone? Then you show the text to your pharmacist or ask your doctors to email the scripts to you. At least that way you know you have them.

Can any of your meds be doubled dispensed? That is you get can 2 months supply dispensed instead of just enough for one month each time. I do this so I’m not always going into my pharmacy & I always have a new box/bottle of meds ready to go in case there is some delay or feck up by the doctors.

Though my back up supply for my HRT patch this time. An extra month has not been enough. My pharmacist told me today mid August for delivery. It was supposed to be in stock in May, then June, now … Had to see my doctor for an alternative med but I’ll need another script for that as she only gave me a two month supply.

Re hospital meds - apparently a change in brand name caused the whole system to grind to a halt for my delivery. How ridiculous in this day and age?? These meds can only be delivered via whichever service the hospital uses due to the nature of them (injections) so it’s not as though I can have a say in that. It just means a lot of chasing when it goes wrong.

The rules around the NHS dispensing meds in the UK changed some time ago for some reason. I think it was to stop stockpiling and for patients to only request meds they will use instead of just getting them automatically and then wasting then potentially ? It doesn’t seem to matter what repeat medication I request, the pharmacist at the Drs makes the decision when he authorises the script. For example, a couple of weeks ago I requested 2 months of Ibuprofen 400mg as it was difficult to source to buy over the counter - I got 2 weeks. My HRT gel I get 3 bottles at a time (1 bottle a month) but the tablets I get are only issued as 2 monthly scripts so they never marry up. It’s just so annoying when you need to order repeat prescriptions!

Sorry, I know I’m whinging but it’s things like this that drives me insane ?

11 hours ago, MrsFitz said:

The only thing going through my head now is what if the surgery is as crap when it comes to issuing meds post Bariatric surgery?? I’ve no confidence in them dealing with requests in a timely manner generally so I’m dreading how much they screw up when I have to go to them for all the Bariatric stuff.

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I have to admit, I have had the same kind of experience with my GP! They've messed up my meds a few times, ones that I NEED post-surgery, and they have just been awful with communication. I completely understand your frustration and anxieties around this.

With that being said, with a loud mouth (I have my dad to thank for that), and a lot of persistence, I have been able to resolve things ? I also got my bariatric team involved, and they were able to issue letters to my GP to get things moving along, so always speak to your team if you are worried. It will all work out ❤️

5 minutes ago, Bypass2Freedom said:

I have to admit, I have had the same kind of experience with my GP! They've messed up my meds a few times, ones that I NEED post-surgery, and they have just been awful with communication. I completely understand your frustration and anxieties around this.

With that being said, with a loud mouth (I have my dad to thank for that), and a lot of persistence, I have been able to resolve things ? I also got my bariatric team involved, and they were able to issue letters to my GP to get things moving along, so always speak to your team if you are worried. It will all work out ❤️

Thank you for the reassurance and encouragement! I suppose it’s good that these things are happening now so that I can raise these concerns with the Bariatric team when the time comes. Hopefully my complaint will be addressed and I will be able to discuss my concerns with the surgery without losing my rag (hair-trigger at times - thanks menopause!)

Completely off topic, but can anyone help me understand what these terms mean: Micky-take and whinging. I'm following the thread, and I wish I could offer some support or advice, but I live in the US and I honestly don't know much about the NHS or the med delivery system. But I saw these 2 terms mentioned and I don't know what they mean.

35 minutes ago, SleeveToBypass2023 said:

Completely off topic, but can anyone help me understand what these terms mean: Micky-take and whinging. I'm following the thread, and I wish I could offer some support or advice, but I live in the US and I honestly don't know much about the NHS or the med delivery system. But I saw these 2 terms mentioned and I don't know what they mean.

Micky-take: to tease/make fun of. Like someone just taking the piss out of you or laughing at you at your expense etc.

Whinging: complaining

Us Brits have weird sayings sometimes ?

1 hour ago, SleeveToBypass2023 said:

Completely off topic, but can anyone help me understand what these terms mean: Micky-take and whinging. I'm following the thread, and I wish I could offer some support or advice, but I live in the US and I honestly don't know much about the NHS or the med delivery system. But I saw these 2 terms mentioned and I don't know what they mean.

Sorry, I was trying not to swear! Micky-take - taking the piss but not in a good way and whinging is just complaining generally, not specifically at a person or organisation. A bit like little kids do when they’re tired and bad-tempered. As for not understanding the NHS or the UK med delivery system - it’s OK because I don’t understand it half the time either!

1 hour ago, Bypass2Freedom said:

Micky-take: to tease/make fun of. Like someone just taking the piss out of you or laughing at you at your expense etc.

Whinging: complaining

Us Brits have weird sayings sometimes ?

Nicely explained! And yes, we do have some very weird sayings, especially if they are local sayings and things ?

Thank you so much!!! I didn't know how to ask without possibly sounding offensive, and I was just genuinely curious lol Thank you for explaining

I’m Australian so our English heritage meant I understood them perfectly. We use whinging a lot but take the Mickey not as often. ??

That’s damn ridiculous @MrsFitz. All of it: the inconsistent dispensing & contradictory stockpiling justifying for it, the system they use not coping with a brand name change, poor delivery of vital medications, etc. You have every right to complain about the situation.

Hopefully they can sort it out quickly & you’ll have your meds soon.

PS - Reminds me of when I had my gall removed & my medication (new boxes bought from home), which were locked away, were not returned to me when I was discharged. They organised a service to deliver them to me but of course they never arrived. The service claimed they tried but I wasn’t home. I didn’t leave my house for two weeks. Asked for them to be taken to my surgeon’s rooms at the hospital so I could collect them at my follow up appointment. Of course they didn’t. I had to walk what felt like 20 miles up & down floors, building to building, wing to wing to get to the ward I’d been in & then they couldn’t find them at first. There was about $150 worth of meds so I was not letting it go. Oh & then I had to walk back to get to my car to leave. And I was made to feel like I was inconveniencing them.

@SleeveToBypass2023 Please, always ask if I there’s something I have put that you don’t understand. I will never take offence. I like being on a forum that has users from different countries as it’s a shared learning experience ?

@Arabesque Lots of shared heritage to go at! Our system is ridiculous isn’t it? I’m glad it’s not just me! As for your meds not being returned - it’s just such poor service. As if you would be happy writing off $150 because of they couldn’t be bothered delivering your meds?? And it is exactly as you said - YOU are made to feel like you’re inconveniencing THEM, even though it’s their screw up that’s caused this in the first place ? Like our expectations are unreasonable! Mentioning having your gall bladder out has reminded me that I need to tell the nurses etc that I’m allergic to the sticky stuff that they use on their dressings - I had a bad reaction when I had mine out, I had red plaster marks all over my stomach where my skin had reacted so I need the hypoallergenic stuff instead. Must make a note!

Reading this about the meds makes me scared for anyone needing specialty meds out there. I have MS and I take Tecfidera (specialty med that CANNOT under ANY circumstances have even a single missed dose), Baclofen (best muscle relaxer for people with MS for our spasms), and Gabapentin (for MS, it's used to control the "MS hug" feeling we get when we have upper body pressure, it takes care of the sharp tingles from nerve ending misfires, and Jacksonian seizures specific to MS sufferers). If we were to miss doses of ANY of these, we would be in a WORLD of trouble. I'm sad for you all, and anyone else, that has any meds that you really need that you have a hard time getting because of their system

19 hours ago, SleeveToBypass2023 said:

Reading this about the meds makes me scared for anyone needing specialty meds out there. I have MS and I take Tecfidera (specialty med that CANNOT under ANY circumstances have even a single missed dose), Baclofen (best muscle relaxer for people with MS for our spasms), and Gabapentin (for MS, it's used to control the "MS hug" feeling we get when we have upper body pressure, it takes care of the sharp tingles from nerve ending misfires, and Jacksonian seizures specific to MS sufferers). If we were to miss doses of ANY of these, we would be in a WORLD of trouble. I'm sad for you all, and anyone else, that has any meds that you really need that you have a hard time getting because of their system

Hubby takes similar meds to you @SleeveToBypass2023 - Gabapentin, Baclofen plus others such as Morphine due to nerve damage in his lower back, and the pain and spasms he has as a result. He also has issues getting his meds but thankfully they get resolved after chasing so it’s not too much of a negative impact. Still ridiculous of course that this has to be done ?