GP practice refusal to give repeat

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Ayesha said:
I was told by my GP that i should only test my BG only twice a day when my diabetic consultant at a clinic said i should do it more often or when i feel necessary so sometimes when i have ran out of test strip in the past iv been too shy to request more...
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Yeah I was told 3 times a day (when adjusting doses), and that I could have days when I didn't test at all! I was shy at first about asking for strips too, but I've grown a thick skin. I'm not going to accept random medics and nurses, that don't have diabetes, telling me not to prick my finger so much! I drive, I'm responsible for children at work, I have overnight hypos...there are lots of reasons - more than 6 - for pricking throughout 24h.
 
Northerner said:
That's a ridiculous excuse for restricting strips, I would complain. Practically all test strips cost the NHS around £15 for 50, although some CCGs may have done deals with specific meter companies and imposed a particular meter on all patients.

Given that 4 strips is an absolute minimum when injecting on MDI, what does he expect you to do when hypo/driving/ill/hyper etc. etc.? Stupid penny-pinching and misguided. He could probably save more money for the NHS by learning a bit more about diabetes and offering better treatment and education to his patients 🙄
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Thanks for your reaction Northie. He is prepared to give me test strips for a different meter ( I didn't even consider it) because they are cheaper than the mobile. Anyway I have just had instructions from consultant to test more often as I have appointment for pump assessment. I had a CGM for a week and it showed I was having unknown hypos during night. So I will be sending in requests for strips more often and be ready when I get a phone call from surgery.
 
I'm feeling exceedingly spiteful towards your GP and I truly hope the hospital ask you if you'd like the Roche Accu-Chek Insight pump, with the matching meter/remote control, because then you will HAVE to have expensive strips - and of course test an awful lot more than 4 times a day !!!!
 
Hey trophyWench I do drive… and to bloden thanks for that I may need to become more stern with my GP and push my case in getting more strips and putting it on repeat
 
I think I'm fortunate; I had a clinic appointment yesterday, and on seeing that my recent control has been patchy (I suspect the steroid/antibiotic cream that's being used on my leg sores), he switched my insulin from Insulatard to Novomix 30, gave me a new NovoPen 4 (which I'm keeping as a spare for now), and told me to increase my testing to 3 or 4 times a day.
 
Ayesha said:
Hey trophyWench I do drive… and to bloden thanks for that I may need to become more stern with my GP and push my case in getting more strips and putting it on repeat
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I found early on that you need to put your foot down and if your arguments make sense then they will usually comply. When my surgery tried to change my repeat from 300 to 100 strips I wrote the following to the practice manager:

I have Type 1 diabetes and test on average 6-8 times per day. I need to test for a variety of reasons, but have a valid reason for every test, using the information in order to stay safe and maintain good blood glucose control. This is reflected in the fact that I have maintained an excellent HbA1c since diagnosis five years ago. I need to test before administering insulin doses, for cases of suspected hypoglycaemia or hyperglycaemia, and to monitor the effects of changes to my diet on my levels. I am also a runner and need to test before and sometimes during exercising to ensure my levels are within safe limits. I also need to test more frequently during periods of illness, or when my insulin requirements are changing due to a number of factors thus making insulin dose calculation less reliable. Furthermore, it is a requirement of the DVLA that I test before driving, and during long journeys in order to avoid hypoglycaemia.

Restricting me to 100 strips per repeat will entail putting in a new request every 12-14 days instead of the current 6-8 weeks. All other items on my repeat provide for 6-8 weeks supplies. It is illogical and inefficient therefore to place this restriction on my supply of test strips since it entails not only inconvenience and wasted time on my part, but also extra work both for the surgery and pharmacy, and therefore extra cost to all parties. I feel that this is an unnecessary and inappropriate use of NHS funds.
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My repeat was immediately restored 🙂
 
I like it, Northener! :D

It's really frustrating, Ayesha. We have to be really assertive! I don't think our doctors realise how tiring that can be. Don't worry tho - you'll get used to it, and even laugh about it eventually.😛
 
trophywench said:
I'm feeling exceedingly spiteful towards your GP and I truly hope the hospital ask you if you'd like the Roche Accu-Chek Insight pump, with the matching meter/remote control, because then you will HAVE to have expensive strips - and of course test an awful lot more than 4 times a day !!!!
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I have read about the insight and it sounds nice. I don't know which pumps my area favours but after reading a lot of the pumping pages here I am hopeful that I get something. I used to think it would be too complicated but it sounds like it's worth it cos you all seem to love your pumps.

After we had finally agreed I could have 4 strips a day the GP actually said 'don't broadcast it' !!

I like your letter Northerner.
 
cookiemonster said:
Does anyone else have very rude GP practice?
Paul
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No, but they are/can be ever so stupid
And to think that they are closed every Thursday pm for "staff training"
last week logged onto their site to reorder needles
noticed the insulin pens were `not renewable until review by nurse/gp`
so via the comments box asked them to get the review sorted asap as I didn`t want any delays when we decide to go away for a week or two between now and the middle of next month (got to see the toenail nurse this coming Thursday for a review of big toe nail removal progress, trip depends on her view, just to be on the safe side.....already booked the site at Buxton :D )

Wife returns from shopping yesterday...."got your pens and needles from the chemist" :confused:

"I only ordered needles, oh well stick them in the fridge with the other 2 boxes
 
What annoys me about these reviews as well is that our GP's surgeries claim that they are so busy. So a medication review is done with a nurse who knows as much about Diabetes as my dog does. If you need to change anything on your repeat you get the standard answer "Oh you will need to see a GP for any changes required". So you have to go the surgery again for basically another review to get the changes done. So WHY do they double the work and make you see someone who is only able to read out your meds off the screen for you to say yes I have that etc...? If GP's were running a business it would have gone bust years ago !!!. But THEY KNOW BEST.
 
Sylkwood said:
What annoys me about these reviews as well is that our GP's surgeries claim that they are so busy. So a medication review is done with a nurse who knows as much about Diabetes as my dog does. If you need to change anything on your repeat you get the standard answer "Oh you will need to see a GP for any changes required". So you have to go the surgery again for basically another review to get the changes done. So WHY do they double the work and make you see someone who is only able to read out your meds off the screen for you to say yes I have that etc...? If GP's were running a business it would have gone bust years ago !!!. But THEY KNOW BEST.
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My nurse is excellent.
If a doctor's appointment is needed, they queue jump and I get in well before I would otherwise.
Perfect triage.
 
tejbat6 said:
No, but they are/can be ever so stupid
And to think that they are closed every Thursday pm for "staff training"
last week logged onto their site to reorder needles
noticed the insulin pens were `not renewable until review by nurse/gp`
so via the comments box asked them to get the review sorted asap as I didn`t want any delays when we decide to go away for a week or two between now and the middle of next month (got to see the toenail nurse this coming Thursday for a review of big toe nail removal progress, trip depends on her view, just to be on the safe side.....already booked the site at Buxton :D )

Wife returns from shopping yesterday...."got your pens and needles from the chemist" :confused:

"I only ordered needles, oh well stick them in the fridge with the other 2 boxes
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If you had reusable pens, the cartridges take up much less space in the fridge.
Plus they are far more robust than the single use pens and better for the environment.
 
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