NHS Direct

Has anyone ever found NHS Direct useful?
My elderly neighbour has phoned them three times in the past six months with minor problems and on each occaision all they ended up saying was 'go see your doctor'.
We are told to use them to take the strain off our doctors, yet they seem incapable or unwilling to make a diagnosis. I know it's hard to make a diagnosis over the phone, but they don't even take an educated guess!
My neighbour got more help from her local chemist than NHS Direct.
I just wondered what the point of NHS Direct was?

mick

I found them useful and kind when my eldest son was 2 years old and we thought he may have eaten some laurel berries. Obviously they are on the phone and can only help to a certain extent but they told us what to look out for and what to do if he showed certain signs. Saved us charging down to A&E and taking up valuable resources and time.

I have called them numerous times since I have been ill with Crohn's and all they say is go to hospital. In fact once they even called an ambulance and we really didn't want them to.

I have found the out-of-hours doctors far more helpful and we can pop up the road to see them any time of the day and night and have done so.

One thing to add, after being told there was a long queue one night while I phoned for her, I went to their website and saw that you could email them and ask for help, which i did for her. We got a reply THREE days later! and it said that they could not comment on an undiagnosed problem LOL

Hi Mick, I tend to agree with you re: NHS Direct. They claim to be trained 'nurses' who take the calls, but I think they have a standard set of questions which they read from whatever the problem - it might vary with the age of the caller, but that's about it. Like most members of the National Health Service, including the so-called 'experts', they're useless for anyone suffering from Health Anxiety as they either tend to over-react and put ideas into your head that you hadn't thought of or dismiss you out of hand. Obviously if there's a serious problem and you can't get to your local hospital they're always there, but as far as I'm concerned for HA sufferers they're as bad as 'Googling' for symptoms. Glad they were able to advise you regarding your son Sam. Children 'eating' things they shouldn't must be a common problem!

Personally, for two months when my health anxiety was at its worst, NHS direct did more for me than my doctor.... they have helped put my mind at rest about everything from allergic food reactions, panic attacks, smear test concerns, eye issues, mouth problems, intimate issues down below, blood tests, iron deficiency and bereavement advice. They are trained nurses yes, but are not ALLOWED to make a diagnoses as they can not see you down a phone line. They are there to give advice. They prioritise their calls well. Some times with minor concerns I have waited up to five hours, but on most occasions I have been put through to a nurse immediately, even when calling at around 3am. On occasions they have even put me through to my local 24 hour on call doctor from my local surgery.... and at all times, they have reassured me they are there to listen even if its regarding a health anxiety issue. Persoanlly, if I have complaints for anyone, it would be GP's in general, for their consistency in treating the symptoms and not the cause in favour of getting you out of their surgery faster. At the end of the day.... its easier to give drugs than to spend time with a patient. NHS provide an admirable service. The reason they initially go through set questions is to rule out a panic situation like anaphylaxis or potential stroke victims etc that need immediate hospital treatment. After those set questions, you can ask anything you like.

i have never had a problem with them but dont phone them that often only when i had toothache.

i know my dad did when he was pooing black stools and they told him to get straight to a doctor they where good that way.

i would say unless its a emergancy go and c ur doctor.

I feel a mix of emotions about NHS direct to be honest.

I had asthma problems and wasn't breathing very good and the nurse on the other end sent two paramedics out straight away and to be honest it was the paramedic guys that I found awful and intimidating.

Because my blood pressure etc was normal and the basically told me I was over reacting.

:weep:

On other occasions I have went and they have went through all the sets of questions and the questions they ask panic me more incase they think it might be something worse and then when they tell me to go to hospital I take a nervous breakdown THEN only to be told it is something minor and feel ike I'm waisting their time.

It's a mixed bag.

Here,I used to go to a clinic that was open til about 9pm but they closed it down and opened the out of hours in the A&E in thehospital but it doesn't feel the same. The clinic usually were very friendly.

I asked hem a few questions and thought hmm the way they just described labyrinthitis sounded like they were reading off the nhs direct website what i was currently on. In fact it was exactly the same almost as if they were reading off the website itself??? hmmm

I've had 1 good experiecne with them. I went through a really rought time for about a week with constant panic and anxiety attacks, i could barely eat or drink.
My boyfriend rang them and even though i didnt want to i had to speak to them. The lady was so nice though and helped me though my panic attack. She really wanted to call an amblance because i couldn't breathe because of the panic but my boyfriend had to talk her out of it.
She said i might be dehydrated and to drink lots of water as i'donly been drinking orange juice, well i did and i felt much better within an hour andmanaged to eat most of my supper for the first time in days.

Now if i have any worries i just call the doctors and ask for someone to ring me back so i don't have to go there since i'm really agoraphobic.. I find it much better because they actually know what they are talking about and its easier to reassure me, so i would recomend doing that :-)