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Medication reviews question

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This thread is now closed. Please contact Anna DUK, Ieva DUK or everydayupsanddowns if you would like it re-opened.
mikeydt1

mikeydt1

Well-Known Member
Relationship to Diabetes
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anyone know what the heck is going on with all these medication reviews kicking off. from been a good practice having a medication review perhaps once or twice a year it seems that when i speak to a doctor instead of the dealing with the issue you are telephoning about they are going hell bent looking at ways to stop medications and then this leaves little time to deal with the medical issue.

some of my medications can't just be stopped suddenly but the doctors are ignoring this which in turn is causing problems.

it got so crazy that they were moaning about one of my inhalers now when you have asthma this is just a total joke. another one got stopped and i didn't even get a phone call or message no nothing and then i had a right job getting it back on my repeats. the medication should of at least of been tapered but nope nothing. thankfully i got it back on repeats

is there a system set up so if they are seen to be heavy handed with reviews a complaint can be made?

i am to say getting very cheesed off with what is going on. i swear to god the next doctor who does this to me is going to get a few words said to them.

whats their motto? first do no harm, yeah
 
Can you find out who the practice manager is and write to them? I tried to order insulin for my daughter recently, I now order repeat prescriptions online. My practice is usually pretty good and doesn’t argue about what we need, but there was a note next to the insulin saying we couldn’t have any more without a review. There is a way you can message them online for non urgent things such as doctors notes and advice, so I used that and asked what exactly is there to review, type 1 diabetes doesn’t get better, my daughter will die without insulin, please reinstate it immediately. Then just in case there was any confusion I explained that we use a pump which is why we mostly use vials not penfills, but please leave the penfills on the prescription also as we have to have a few of those as emergency backup in case the pump fails. Hey presto within 24 hours they were back on there again!
 
Sally71 said:
Can you find out who the practice manager is and write to them? I tried to order insulin for my daughter recently, I now order repeat prescriptions online. My practice is usually pretty good and doesn’t argue about what we need, but there was a note next to the insulin saying we couldn’t have any more without a review. There is a way you can message them online for non urgent things such as doctors notes and advice, so I used that and asked what exactly is there to review, type 1 diabetes doesn’t get better, my daughter will die without insulin, please reinstate it immediately. Then just in case there was any confusion I explained that we use a pump which is why we mostly use vials not penfills, but please leave the penfills on the prescription also as we have to have a few of those as emergency backup in case the pump fails. Hey presto within 24 hours they were back on there again!
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Sorry for your dilemma it must be very worrying.
For years I have had reviews every so often for repeat medication. This is partly to make sure you are still in need of the medication and check up your medication dosage is relevant...make sure no changes are needed.
I use online services for repeat prescriptions and get them delivered via Echo services.
But this does not help you.
I would definitley phone or write to the surgery to make sure your medication is noted and requested...they have to respond. It may be changes to the surgery's data bases which only you can reinstate with their say so. Good luck.
 
I've been ordering by repeat for over a year.
I had a note that mine would stop without a review. I had a phone review, we agreed a date after my vaccine for more bloods, they restarted with no issue. Had the blood test, then another review, no problems.
The doctor has a duty of care, with no one going in, they need to organise reviews to ensure medications are still suitable.
 
Also back in the old days repeat prescriptions were given out sometimes when a person was deceased or not in need of the meds any more. This was at great cost to the National Health service and they put a stop to it by asking for yearly reviews. My review was due 6 months ago and the doctor informed me and I did not want to visit the surgery so I explained and left it till i had my jabs. Cant understand why they stopped your daughters meds so suddenly.
 
the registrars now put a stop to on to stop anyone else using the deceased persons details from been used within the NHS or they should do. i lost my partner NotPink and that is how i know.

for obvious reasons can't go in to details how it works
 
At the moment, it seems to be a bit of sport at my surgery. My records show I have had 5 reviews in the last year.

Bearing in mind the only medication I take is defined by my Endo, I can't see what they get out of it, aside from a financial bounty once in a while.

My next Endo appointment is in a couple of weeks, so it seems likely I'll have another review shortly thereafter.
 
Hi. I am on the PPG (Patient Participation Group) for our local surgery and can confirm that the Practice Manager is the person to speak to. You can also contact your surgery PPG group and let them know of your issues. The PPG details should be on the surgery website and/or the surgery noticeboard. The surgery must not change your medication without discussion or at the minimum letting you know. I would say to anyone make sure you are signed-up to the surgery online system at the level that allows you to order prescriptions and see test results. That way you can see what is listed on your prescription and spot any changes. Yes, you must make sure you have your meds review at the agreed date.
 
I don’t think I have had a review but then I was never given my blood results you would ring up for blood results and the receptionist would tell you they were ok but no numbers but as for medicine review there was no conversation how you where getting on with them
 
To be clear, although my has had 5 "reviews" in the last 12 months, nothing has changed, except for a dosage tweak at the instruction of the Endo.

Thankfully, I only take 2 medications (for my thyroid). One is cheap as chips (paid for out of the GP's kitty), and the other eye wateringly expensive (paid for by the hospital), so not much for me to keep an eye on. My GP issues my repeat prescriptions for the inexpensive element and I have a hospital prescription, dispensed 6 monthly, by the hospital for the other.
 
The point of the medication review is to make sure that if you are taking multiple meds for different things that none of them are likely to interact with others. It is very easy when things are added that any contraindications with the other meds may be missed as often the GP may not have had the time or opportunity to look at the whole meds history at the time of prescribing something for a new condition. Sometimes people discontinue taking something with out telling the GP but that can sometimes then make another med unnecessary. It also gives people the opportunity to report any issues with the meds they are taking and there may be a better alternative now available.
The pharmacist should also pick up any combinations of meds that should be avoided or indeed would be expected to be taken in combination with others.
There are many people who are not confident about the meds they should be taking and when they should take them so a review would be valuable for them.
 
andbreath 2 medications and 5 reviews seems excessive that would spin my head then again my practice is beginning to spin mine.

i still swear that the next doctor i speak to is going to get a peace of my mind to lay off trying to review and deal with the problem i am telephoning up for.
 
mikeydt1 said:
andbreath 2 medications and 5 reviews seems excessive that would spin my head then again my practice is beginning to spin mine.

i still swear that the next doctor i speak to is going to get a peace of my mind to lay off trying to review and deal with the problem i am telephoning up for.
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To be honest, @mikeydt1 , my take on it is they are very over-stretched at the moment, and hardly have time to breathe, never mind carry out things like meds reviews, in isolation, so they're multi-tasking. Any time anything changes, or indeed, when they're signing off a repeat, the flick through and do a "review", then it's less to do come audit time.

At first I thought it was pretty outrageous, but my latter take on it makes more sense. (It may not be what's going on, but as long as they don't meddle with things, I'm unfussed.)
 
Personally, I prefer my surgery's input.
I have full online access to the full details of my records.
Checking over the last 12 months,

I had my full diabetic review last year.
Full blood tests, reviewed by my own doctor.
In house diabetic review with the nursing staff.
Retinal eye scan.
Flu vaccine
Medication review with my doctor by telephone. As part of this, further blood tests requested by my clinic, deferred at my request until I had had my Covid-19 vaccine.
Had Covid-19 vaccine.
Full blood tests.
Telephone review with doctor. Cholesterol creeping the wrong way, lack of exercise and too many fatty foods in lockdown!
Booked another blood test 6 weeks later (pending) to check on diet changes I have made. (porridge instead of fried breakfasts, and generally lower calorie, even lower fat diet, no alcohol)
The blood test will be reviewed after.

Generally, my take is I'd rather be fussed over, than left, I like to see what my body is doing, so I'm more than happy at this level.
 
travellor said:
Personally, I prefer my surgery's input.
I have full online access to the full details of my records.
Checking over the last 12 months,

I had my full diabetic review last year.
Full blood tests, reviewed by my own doctor.
In house diabetic review with the nursing staff.
Retinal eye scan.
Flu vaccine
Medication review with my doctor by telephone. As part of this, further blood tests requested by my clinic, deferred at my request until I had had my Covid-19 vaccine.
Had Covid-19 vaccine.
Full blood tests.
Telephone review with doctor. Cholesterol creeping the wrong way, lack of exercise and too many fatty foods in lockdown!
Booked another blood test 6 weeks later (pending) to check on diet changes I have made. (porridge instead of fried breakfasts, and generally lower calorie, even lower fat diet, no alcohol)
The blood test will be reviewed after.

Generally, my take is I'd rather be fussed over, than left, I like to see what my body is doing, so I'm more than happy at this level.
Click to expand...
I don't think this thread is about how much attention we have had from our GP of late, but I could be wrong.
 
AndBreathe said:
I don't think this thread is about how much attention we have had from our GP of late, but I could be wrong.
Click to expand...
It seems you are indeed.
You seemed to jump in at post#9.
Then seemed to repeat yourself again in post#13 for some reason as well?
But as you say, not every post should be about us?
 
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Possibly the others issues we are seeing now is the lack of interaction of face to face contact, it is certainly more difficult to assess a patient by phone, many surgeries have different doctors, who can prescribe an individual course of treatments, sometimes it makes sense to assess a patient, and to assess the entire course of treatments prescribed, and also to consider now covid 19 and covid 19 vaccines are thrown into the mix.
I'm sure in previous years, many reviews would have been done together, it just seems more as we're not being shuffled around while we're there, possibly spreading covid, instead it's direct contact with each party by a separate phone call or visit.
It's not all bad to occasionally re-assess purely on a treatment point of view, some drugs also have long term accumulative side effects. New treatments, combined treatments may have been developed in recent years, and surgeries are obligated to carry our assessments.
 
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