In one GP clinic I see pts who are wealthy & pts who are homeless.
Working in the NHS allows me to manage them in EXACTLY the same way
Same tests, same treatment, same referral. Whatever is right for THEM.
We must never allow that to be taken away!
It’s over.
Any control over Covid we had is over.
Duty doctor today. I’ve lost count of the number of patients I’ve seen with classic Covid symptoms
NOT A SINGLE PERSON has isolated or done a PCR test.
Everyone’s mixing & infecting each other. There is no control. It’s over.
Daily Mail thinks NHS staff shouldn’t be allowed annual leave during the pandemic?!
Well, I’ve just had 2 weeks off
I got to see my kids faces light up at Christmas, bug my sisters & hug my parents
Working for the NHS is our job. Not our moral obligation.
We’re human too!
I’ve been a doctor in the NHS for over 10 years.
I’ve never doubted for a second that if I/ a loved one was sick we’d be taken care of in the best way possible.
But now, for the first time, I don’t see that & it’s terrifying.
Our NHS has collapsed, by political CHOICE.
A SCHOOLCHILD strip-searched by
@metpoliceuk
in her school.
Wrongly accused of carrying cannabis.
Her externial genitalia exposed.
Her sanitary towel removed.
Her Mum was NOT informed
No teacher was present
She now has PTSD.
This is NOT policing.
THIS IS ASSAULT!!
1 GP has 1600 patients (UK)
1 GP has 300 patients (Europe)
As patients YOU deserve better
As GPs WE deserve better
Don’t buy into the GP bashing, this is DELIBERATE by those who want the NHS to fail
Let’s stand together & DEMAND better
The NHS belongs to us, the public!
Junior doctor starting salaries around the world:
Australia: £60,000
Canada: £46,000
USA: £41,900
France: £43,700
UK: £29,384
Now tell me that the UK doesn’t undervalue its doctors?!
My heart broke listening to the 70yr old pensioner on
@LBC
this morning
“I only get £730 pension per month. I’m going to go hungry this winter. I’m scared, I’m really scared” 💔💔💔
Dear
@sajidjavid
My elderly patient couldn’t even afford the bus fare to my surgery, so she walked 25 mins in this freezing weather for her appointment.
…& you want to CHARGE patients £20 for a GP appointment?! Do you all just not give a damn about our country’s poorest?! 🤬
I’m a doctor in the NHS & I’m raising a red flag 🚩
An urgent transfer from GP for an acutely unwell patient - 15 HOUR WAIT for an ambulance!
So we’re having to call a taxi & cross our fingers.
This is the reality of the NHS in the hands of Tories.
We need action NOW!!
Dear
@metpoliceuk
,
Last year you threatened to fine my husband & I when he brought our kids to a field outside my GP surgery to meet me for 10 mins in my lunch break.
Thanks for that.
I hadn’t seen them in 2 days
So why are you turning a blind eye here ⬇️ ?!
DO YOUR JOB
EXCL: Were police aware of the Downing Street Christmas Party?
ITV News understands that an alarm was triggered accidentally that night inside No 10, leading security/police to respond.
So far the Met have declined to investigate.
Remember when they fined a 66yr old man £100 for meeting friends in an allotment to get some respite from his loneliness?!
His statement was a heart wrenching read 💔
They really didn’t give a shit about us did they?! Just partied away, mocking us & taking us all for fools!
I’m an NHS GP & I’m raising a RED FLAG 🚩
My patient had a significant medical emergency at 1am last night & was told a 14 HOUR WAIT for ambulance
His options
- get a taxi himself
- wait 12 hrs to see GP
14 HOURS?! We CAN’T let this go on!
Can someone with power DO SOMETHING!
When I was a GP 10 years ago, these were the wait times for a medical specialty referral:
Urgent: 6 weeks
Routine: 3 months
The wait time now for the SAME specialty is:
Urgent: 18 MONTHS 🚩
Routine: 2 YEARS 🚩
Tory gov - the public deserve an EXPLANATION NOW!
This week, not a SINGLE patient WITH Covid symptoms has worn a mask for their appointment with me.
I know it’s no longer mandatory but it’s not right to expose vulnerable patients in GP waiting rooms & our NHS staff.
PLEASE wear a mask if you have any symptoms of Covid!
I’ve seen 32 patients today
Almost 1/3 had Covid symptoms
Only 1 had done a PCR test
Covid isn’t over.
Rates are sky high & hospital admissions are increasing at an alarming rate.
Pretending it doesn’t exist is not working.
WHERE IS THE GOV PUBLIC HEALTH MESSAGING?!
Dear Patients,
We are being blindfolded & led into a two tier health care system by our government
Those who can afford to will pay to see a doctor
Those who can’t will be managed by Physician Associates with a 2yr course (NOT doctors)
I’m an NHS GP & I’m raising a 🚩🚩🚩
My patient’s depression has taken a huge turn after being stable for years
Why?
Because the last 6 months he couldn’t afford £9.35/m for his medication
He even apologised for not “adhering to medical advice”?!💔
What is the government doing to our society?! ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!
I’m a doctor who’s worked throughout the pandemic & seen the devastating effects of Covid
The evidence is clear that vaccines protect against severe disease.
I have a right to express concern about anti-vax views.
To refer me to the GMC for this is nothing short of bullying!
My Mum messaged me really stressed because someone at her work came in KNOWINGLY with Covid
She assumed it was against the rules & was completely flabbergasted when I told her it’s not anymore
Mum: “so people are just allowed to put everyone at risk like they don’t matter?!”
My friend’s 86 yr old Mum fell in the bath:
- open leg fracture
- head injury
- waited > 8 HOURS from an ambo, naked & bleeding
Then a 12 hour wait in A&E & told there’s NO hosp bed
How has the government destroyed the best healthcare system in the world & turned it to this?!
In the last 24 hours:
🚨 Cornwall NHS declares critical incident
🚨 Plymouth's Derriford Hospital declares critical incident
🚨 University hospitals Morecambe Bay declares critical incident
Yet, NO junior doctors striking!
Maybe they weren’t to blame after all?!
Appalled at Rishi Sunak’s proposal to charge patients £10 for missed appointments
That’s their solution for tackling NHS backlog?
Punishing patients & not addressing WHY they can’t make an appt? Not to mention the damage to dr/pt relationship
As a GP I do NOT support this!
Is it just me or has anyone else noticed a significant difference in supermarket fruit & veg recently?
Going off a lot quicker, tasteless….just seems a lot less fresh & poorer quality than before.
Dear Tory government,
Congratulations! You’ve achieved breaking the NHS by stealth
The 2 tier healthcare system is here in England
If you’re rich, you’ll pay to see a doctor & get what you need. If you’re poor…good luck
Thanks for selling us out
Hatefully yours,
An NHS GP
SALARY FACTS: MPs vs junior Doctors
2008:
MPs – £61,820
1st year doctors – £28,274
2016:
MPs – £74,962
1st year doctors – **£32,398
2023:
MPs – £86,584
1st year doctors – **£32,398
And the government have the AUDACITY to call junior doctors greedy?!
As GPs we can request:
Bloods
X-rays
CT scans
Throat cultures
Urine samples
Stools tests
Wound swabs
Check for HIV, Hepatitis, glandular fever, RSV, norovirus, almost every kind of infection..
What can’t we request?
A PCR TEST FOR COVID
“PAs can see the simple patients”
Some ‘simple’ patients I’ve seen as a GP
• Runny nose in baby ➡️ sepsis
• Back pain ➡️ myeloma
• Dizziness ➡️ stroke
• Sore throat ➡️ quinsy
• Wart ➡️ skin cancer
• “feeling off” ➡️ heart attack
Simple is a RETROSPECTIVE diagnosis
GP surgery I’m working at today opens phone lines at 8:00
By 08:07 ALL available GP appointments for the day were gone
Everything urgent until 18:30 will then go to ONE oncall doctor. There’s no cap, no limit.
Someone tell me how this is sustainable?!
Love how NHS chiefs sit on their high horse & instruct all hospitals to take "immediate steps" so that no ambulance waits longer than 30mins
One word…HOW?!
WHERE we do they expect us to magic up staff/space from?!
And they call this leadership?! 🤬
The GP who diagnosed my Dad’s cancer saved his life. Without a doubt
My Dad had NONE of the “classic” symptoms of his cancer
The diagnosis was simply down to the training & experience of this GP
GPs CANNOT be replaced by cheaper alternatives
We lose them at our peril 🚩
MPs will give themselves ANOTHER PAY RISE by 5.5% in April!
… yet they “can’t afford” to pay junior doctors more than £15/hr
Do these people feel no shame whatsoever?! 🤬
GP consult:
Me: “I’ll prescribe you this medication & your symptoms should significantly improve”
Patient: “Is it okay if I collect them in 2 weeks when I get paid? Last month my heating bill had gone up.”
HOW has this become the norm in this country??! 😞💔
“We’re creating PAs to support NOT replace GPs” IS A COMPLETE LIE!
The practice I locum in have now replaced me with a PA 😞
I’ve been a GP for 10 years & can’t get work?!
My GP colleagues CANNOT GET work!
We ARE being replaced, by significantly less qualified people?!
Dear
@BorisJohnson
,
Whilst you were partying, my grandma died of Covid. Scared & alone
Whilst you were partying, we attended her funeral on Zoom, grieving alone
Whilst you were partying, we were suffering
Tomorrow you will lie.
You will show no remorse.
We see who you are.
As an NHS doctor I am 100% supporting the
#NursesStrike
tomorrow
How dare the government vilify them for asking for FAIR PAY?!
I’m livid. Our nursing colleagues are some of the most hardworking & compassionate people I have come across
They deserve so much better!
FUMING that the former health minister had the GALL to say:
“Junior doctors should feel valued by the smiles on the faces of those people that they're able to help & not by looking at their pay packet”?!
I vote we pay our government with “smiles” & see how valued they feel!
When you finish a long day in GP &
go to your in-laws to pick up the kids…
& see a plate of home-made food waiting for you at the table, your mum-in-law choosing to cook all your fave dishes
Whilst your dad-in-law entertains the kids with his “village stories” so you can…
In my 8 years as a GP, I’ve never seen so many patients accessing private health care as right now
They have no choice
They can’t wait > 1 yr for surgery/hosp clinic. They can’t keep living with such suffering for so long
The NHS cuts are causing untold harm!
My sister is a pharmacist working in a GP surgery & was asked to sit in with different HCPs
She sat in with a PA
Almost every patient referred to the PA as “doctor” & she didn’t correct them once!
I’ve told her to feed this back to the surgery ASAP
PAs must NEVER deceive…
To the man who just hurled racist abuse at me in the car WITH MY KIDS PRESENT!!
Thanks v much. That’s the first glimpse of hatred they’ve ever seen & that I now need to educate them about.
I won’t forgive you for that 🤬🤬🤬
During the pandemic in 2020 I saw a little baby in severe respiratory distress
We’d stabilised her & organised an urgent transfer
Today her Mum came in & gave me this flower. Her child, now 3, picked it for me as a thank you for saving her life
I’ve never been more touched 😭
Oh my god
Spoke to someone (not a patient) who got a flight back home from a European country last week KNOWINGLY with Covid?!!
Just because he didn’t wanted to isolate abroad.
So now EVERY SINGLE person on that flight has been exposed & at risk?!
🤬
Covid cases up ONE MILLION A WEEK (of those we know about!)
And the government are going to END free lateral flow testing for the public next week?!
Is this a joke?! 🤬
How dare they?! 🤬
Teachers have been working THROUGHOUT the pandemic.
They have put themselves at risk looking after children of key workers in person WHILST continuing virtual teaching for all others.
Teachers - we value & appreciate you & you have our support
🙏
Last 4 days in Tory NHS:
🚨 Elderly man dies from heart attack as NO ambulance for him - Staffordshire
🚨 60 patients waiting for a SINGLE A&E bed - Cambridge
🚨39yr old lady dies UNNOTICED in A&E waiting room - Nottingham
🚨21 HOUR Wait to see a Dr in A&E - Lewisham
🚩🚩🚩
The med student with me in A&E tonight gave me the BEST answer about how he’s choosing his specialty…
“I’m just going by who seems happiest. If you’re always angry then I don’t want that job. I’ve never seen an unhappy anaesthetist, so maybe I’ll do that!” 😂👏
Full heaving waiting room in Urgent Care
People are coughing & spluttering over each other. The elderly, the babies, the healthy & the not so healthy…
Not ONE person is wearing a mask
Seriously after these 3 years have we learnt nothing?!
“Just a GP”
In med school - “half of you will end up being just a GP”
In training - “why just be a GP? what a waste! You could go far!”
Member of public - “are you a real dr or just a GP?”
It’s demoralising that our role is so poorly understood
Yes I am a GP NOT “just a GP”
I hate this country.
Today in Urgent Care:
Me: “Sorry you’ve had to wait so long”
Patient: “Not at all. To be honest it was so nice just to feel warmth again”
💔💔
If we’re honest, we don’t have an NHS anymore. Not a functioning one.
As an NHS doctor of almost 14 years I’ve never seen it in this state
Taxis replacing ambulances, patients using private care out of desperation, NHS staff leaving in droves
Really feels like now it’s over.
I am by no means a royalist but I have the utmost respect for the Queen who’s dedicated her whole life to serving the nation.
Seeing her in this moment will stay with me forever. This moment of heartbreaking leadership.
Respect 🙏
A friend of mine just paid for a private hospital clinic appt - she couldn’t stand her symptoms any longer
Something that she thought she would never do in her lifetime.
She said:
“This is the start isn’t it? ‘Ordinary’ people like me using their savings for healthcare”
Right I’m calling it
Nothing winds me up more than when a patient casually talks/texts/plays on their phone during a consultation
It’s just plain rude & disrespectful of my time as their doctor
Oh. Dear. God!!
Kids must’ve heard me chatting to my husband yesterday about my stethoscope being broken….
so they decided to exchange it with their Peppa Pig one??!! 😱
I have a full list of 36 F2F patients today! This will be interesting 😬
The government want to spend £12 MILLION on a commemorative book about the Queen for primary school children?!
That could pay for:
5,217,391 free school meals for hungry children!
WHERE IS THE COMMON SENSE?!
I’m an NHS GP & I’m raising a 🚩
There’s a significant GP crisis in England
GPs are unemployed & can’t find work
Many having to leave their families to find work anywhere in the country
Ironically, there’s also a “GP shortage” in the NHS with patients struggling to get an…
Exclusive: GPs are driving across England, staying in hotels overnight and driving up to four hours on a daily basis to get locum work amid a shortage of shifts available.
Feeling really proud of my little one today
A child told him he “MUST be made of poo because his skin is brown”:
My kid: Well the choc biscuit you’re eating right now is brown - do you think you’re eating poo?!
Other kid: (no response)
My kid: Exactly
Other kid just walked away
Today in GP had a tiny baby in a life threatening state
Given an ETA of 2.5 HOURS for an ambo
By CHANCE there was one local that got diverted to us w/in 10 mins
Without a doubt that urgent transfer saved the baby’s life
We should NOT be dependent on luck in these situations!
Yes I’m a doctor & I work part-time
I love what I do & I care about my patients…but this is my job. Not my “calling”.
I have responsibilities & a life outside of work too.
If I choose to work part-time, it is no-one else’s business & I do NOT need to justify it.
Therese Coffey demanding all pts MUST be seen within 2 weeks is such a childish response to the GP crisis!
The ENTIRE POINT is there aren’t enough GPs to meet demand
HOW can she not understand that basic fact?! Seriously it’s the sort of response I’d expect from my 5 yr old!
This is one of the most disturbing photos I’ve seen.
Our Home Secretary standing outside the detention centres in Rwanda where they’re shipping of people coming to the UK for help
What makes it so disturbing - the look of UTTER GLEE on her face?!! This is not normal!!!
Can’t get through on the phones?
It’s b/c we’re short of 8000 GPs
All appts gone within an hr?
It’s b/c we’re short of 8000 GPs
Can’t get a F2F appt?
It’s b/c we’re short of 8000 GPs
Patients are suffering b/c we’re short of 8000 GPs
Let’s hold the GOVERNMENT to account!
We think we can’t lose the NHS because it’s always been a part of our lives.
It’s unimaginable
But it’s happening, right now
I’ve worked in countries with no nationalised health service & seen how truly shattering that can be
The NHS BELONGS TO US & we have to fight for it!
A “cold” doesn’t leave people with life changing symptoms months after infection
A “cold” doesn’t throw off blood clots & cause significant organ damage
A “cold” doesn’t send pregnant women to ICU risking their life & the life of their unborn baby
COVID IS NOT A COLD!
To those threatening to refer me to my employer for speaking out about PAs
I’ve done it for you.
The response:
GP lead: We’re concerned too. We’ve now decided not to hire PAs for our pts
Breast cancer lead: Thank you for making a stand! How can I get involved & help?
👏👏👏
UK to date:
Covid CASES: 2,840,000
Covid DEATHS: 77,346
Covid VACCINES: 1,300,000
Vaccine related DEATHS: 0
Getting a vaccine is a PRIVILEGE
Please take yours when you’re offered one!
The patient I saw today is homeless
I used to see him regularly a few years ago. He’s always had the same job, same house. But the cost of living crisis has overpowered him.
He’s lost home & security. He’s in his late 60s & living on the street.
This country is the pits 😞
Patient’s lateral flow test is positive for Covid.
Sensibly calls in to say he can’t go to work. Their response?
“Stay off work if you want to take the ‘moral high ground’, but you won’t be paid.”
People are being admonished for trying to do the right thing?!
It’s 4AM
Our shift ended & Urgent care was meant to close 4 HOURS ago
But myself, 2 nurses & security guard are still here - so far waiting > 7 hours for a category 2 ambulance for our pt
We’re exhausted, hungry & dreading doing this all over again tomorrow
NHS is broken 😞
Just finishing an A&E shift from hell
Yesterday had an oncall GP shift from hell
Everyone is working beyond their max. It’s not physically possible to work quicker.
But it’s not enough.
The NHS isn’t at RISK of collapse.
From where I’m standing, we’re already there
Enough is enough.
Today one of our reception team was subjected to angry abuse by a patient who genuinely believed this completely false headline & called us all ‘baby killers’.
When, yes when not if, someone gets hurt, it will be on your head
@DailyMailUK
.
😞
FINALLY!!
The GP practice I locum in has brought back mask mandates for all staff and patients. And so far, not a single complaint!
Such a relief to feel more protected 🙏
My littlest is poorly with a stomach bug & keeps saying “I feel sad”😢
The elder one just cuddled him on his lap & said “remember the Mr Men books all have happy endings? You’re just Mr Ill in the middle of the book & I promise you’ll be happy again in a few more pages!”
😭❤️
If a few years ago I saw a massive queue of ambulances outside A&E, I would’ve assumed there had been a one-off critical disaster.
Now, it’s the norm to see this before almost every shift.
This is not & should never be normal!!
@MichaelMackley
It is vital to teach how the same disease can look different on light and dark skin tones. It is stark how varied it can be.
If this is not incorporated into training it could lead to diagnostic delay and ultimately poorer outcomes for those with darker skin.
@BrwnSkinMatters
This is madness!
How am I meant to look after my Covid patients if I can’t test them?!
Many patients can’t afford to buy Covid tests now
If you want us to ‘live with this virus’ then allow us to care for our patients with it. How can we do that if we can’t even diagnose them?!
Starting my A&E shift & seeing exhausted patients that have been waiting for inpatient ward beds for hours already.
I know when I finish my shift, they’ll still be waiting.
There are simply no beds.
We CANNOT accept this as the new normal.
Anyone else flinch every time Boris Johnson says “I’m doing everything I can to support the NHS”?!
You’re doing nothing & you know it.
Every patient who’s had their surgery delayed, clinic appt cancelled, waited hours for an ambulance….
is because YOU failed the NHS.
The NHS is on its knees NOW
The NHS is failing (being failed) NOW
We’re not at RISK of collapse, we’re there NOW
Pts are:
Struggling to get a GP appt
Waiting 12 hours in A&E
Getting a taxi in replace of an ambulance
This IS what NHS collapse looks like
We need action NOW
@keithgrimes
Fully understand that & I would have happily let him have my leg space if he had been polite about it. He just had such an awful attitude & claimed my space as if he was simply entitled to it.
Had a 4th Year Medical student with me today
He was fantastic- exactly at the level I’d expect for his stage
But in no way capable of running a clinic independently…he’d be aghast even at the suggestion!
The fact we have PAs with HALF his training running clinics in the NHS…
My Dad drove OVER AN HOUR just to deliver 2 boxes of mangoes to me?!
All because my kid had said “Nana, I loved the mangoes at your house!” on the phone last night
♥️🥺
Kids are seriously the best!
Doing my F2F list in GP & a little boy just walked in with his hands cupped…
Initially I thought 🕷 😬
But…he had trapped a bit of sunshine in his hands because I probably won’t have seen the sun today, so he brought me some!
😭🥺❤️