In a message dated 10/04/98 07:37:51 GMT, John Perkins writes:
<< Hi,
Can you ask your brother what his terms of NHS service are, ie what hours
per he is obliged to be available for his patients? >>
John, we're in the wrong job! :-(
He doesn't have to be available for a specific number of hours. He simply has
to provide 24hour emergency cover for his patients. And he doesn't have to
respond to emergencies that quickly either. E.g. if a patient with acute
dental pain called at one in the morning, a "reasonable" response might be to
make an urgent appt. for the patient at the surgery later that morning.
<<I always tell my pts to phone their dentist immediately and ask for a same
day appt ->>
Round our way it seems that patients who do this are told that there are no
appts. left and bounce back to us. Is it any wonder that they come knocking on
our door first? :-((
<<thing is many pts don't actually know what to do! ie that they
can use their dentist for dental problems>>
in my experience they don't realise their dentist can prescribe antibiotics
and analgesics. It really p*ss*s me off when patients are told by their
dentist to get a script for antibiotics from their doctor to control the
facial swelling from an abscess before the dentist will see them.
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr.
Often patients seek emergency treatment from their dentist after they have not
been for several years. They don't realise that they are not entitled to it
because they haven't kept up their registration; they must do this every
fifteen months I think, so these patients come to us or A/E. IMHO the dental
profession has only paid lip service to the concept of OOH treatment of
patients. Until they sort themselves out, the medical profession will continue
to act as unpaid dentists.
Bruv. and I have a heated debate about this every so often.
All the best
Jeremy Sager
GP
Leeds
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