NHS psychiatrist referral

[Padma]

All right, I take back everything I said about the NHS being slow. I just got my referral date to the local psychiatrist, the appointment is exactly a month after saw the GP about it (that's 10 days from now!). That's pretty quick - and better yet, it'll be just 10 minutes from where I live, by train. This also confirms my feeling that I have a good GP .

The only weird thing is that there will be a trainee psychiatrist sitting in with us - but I'm all for training, so I'll just have to work at not feeling like I'm at a job interview .

[Sarah Louise]

Sounds great.

Its always so much fun having someone sit in and listen to what you hope would be a private meeting.

[Padma]

Well, thinking about it, if the psychiatrist turns out to be some curmudgeonly old git, he'll have to tone it down in front of the young student, so it's kind of a win .

[Bowsey]

Congrats on getting the appointment.
I got referred to my local NHS Community Mental Health Centre back in March, here they had trainees as well.
For me the trainee (SHO) asked all the question and his supervisor sat in with us. As she was assessing him. Although it was a bit weird as he was about twice her age.
It did feel a bit like a job interview, two of them against one of me, but was not too bad.

I'm now just waiting for CHX at the moment. My first appointments in November.

Rach

[Padma]

I'm amused by my initial assumption that the psychiatrist will be a bloke . I'll soon find out, anyway, and if the trainee is the one in the driver's seat, at least they'll be more embarrassed than I am, so that'll make it easier for me! I had a GP back in Cambridge who was absolutely brilliant with his student doctors, and it made me realise it's worth being as friendly and helpful and encouraging as possible, because these people are the future experts, and the more well-treated they are while they're in training, the better it'll be for their patients later on. So I try to give positive feedback, where it's appropriate - I told one guy he had a really good manner, and he got really embarrassed - and my GP, bless him, said to him "There, I hope you let that in, it was a compliment!" .

[pebbles]

yeah that bit isn't slow took me a month too... what they are doing in this is is checking you for other mental illnesses if you have any those need to be treated before GID treatment. It's the referral to the GIC after that which takes months/years

[Padma]

Fingers crossed things are a bit quicker out here in the sticks - I hear good things about The Laurels GIC.

[amybenedict]

Having thought my NHS route was progressing quite nicely, it has all fallen apart a little bit this week... :-/

My GP, who has been very supportive, has been told by her practice managers that since I moved 10 miles down the road (same county, same PCT), I should find a new GP. At the same time (in the same letter in fact) they sent me the report from the 'low priority assessment panel' at the Primary care trust (PCT). This said that I need to be referred to the psych consult in Oxford, even though they have already referred me to the local one, which, as it turns out,  was a total waste of time. So now I need to wait for an appointment for Oxford for them to tell me I'm not insane (which I already know, as the previous NHS Psychiatrist said so, not that their opinion actually counts it would seem...), and for them to then refer me on to Charing Cross, which then has to go back to the 'low priority' panel at the PCT for approval before I can be offered an appointment for CX which has a 10mth waiting list from that point... Not only that, I might be moving house in the next 3 months or so, so might move to a different PCT who may make me start again, in true snakes and ladders stylee...

Fearing that might be the case, I went to see Dr Curtis at Transhealth (private) in London last week, who was very nice, very up front and it was generally a very positive all around experience. I am due to see him again in 3 months whereupon hopefully he will see fit to prescribe hormones. The consultations cost me a bit, but not much in the grand scheme of things, and compared to the emotional and mental cost of having to do the groundhog day NHS thing and probably wait upwards of a year for even a first appointment, I think it is a few hundred quid well spent. At least then I can join the NHS queue ('quick Dr, all ahead at continental drift speed!') safe in the knowledge that at I have got started on hormones before the turn of the next century...

Ho hum.

Amy.x

[Padma]

Oh, that's a crappy deal . I've just had my psych referral this afternoon, and they're referring me to The Laurels (local GIC). But I'm going to do as you've done and carry on seeing Dr Perring in London, who I hope is likely to recommend me for HRT soon (so I can make my own choice about when). Yes, pricey, but an investment in stress-reduction that's priceless.

[Nurse With Wound]

Just out of interest how do you go about getting a psychiatrist referral from the NHS? I have no idea how to go about it. 

[amybenedict]

Go to your GP. Talk to them about your GID. If they are following the NHS treatment pathway (which they should be...), they should refer you to their 'approved' local psychiatrist for assessment. If your GP doesn't ask, you should suggest it. Apparently it is not unusual to have a GP who has no idea about these things.

It's quite simple, although as I found out they can still make a mess of it...  Turns out my PCT has a handy 'cut out and keep' treatment pathway flowchart....

[Jayne]

Just out of interest how do you go about getting a psychiatrist referral from the NHS? I have no idea how to go about it. 

First things first with the NHS, be prepared for alot of waiting, I saw my GP on the 8th of Feb & had my initial psychiatrist assesment within a month, the psychiatrist said he had no hesitation in advising my GP to refer me to London, I patiently waited for a month & heard nothing so I started chasing my GP (politely), after a month I was told that the phsychiatrist would be handling the referal as the GP & psychiatrist couldn't agree on who should send the referral & which department should be responsible for the funding!

I then recieved a letter from the GIC in London on the 20th May saying that they have recieved the referral but must wait for confirmation before they can progress, i've heard nothing from them yet so last friday I chased them up & was told that they allow one month for approval then chase it up if it's not recieved (suprise, suprise it's not been recieved yet) they advised me to call back next friday so it's another week of uncertainty.

All in all i've waited almost 6 months & dont feel any closer to getting this moving along, i'm getting increasingly nervous as when the helpfull woman at GIC was checking my details she put the phone down but not on hold & I heard her say to herself "Oh, Bristol" I don't know if this means Bristol PCT drag their heels on this sort of thing or if they have a history of refusing funding, I didn't have the courage to ask what that overheard comment meant.

I wish you all the best with your GP & PCT

[Naturally Blonde]

Sorry, I'm not a fan of the U.K's NHS GIC system and had some pretty bad experiences with them.