Medical help - NHS woes

[Maxf]

This isn't a thread because I have a fork in my eye and can't work out if to see a doctor or post on PH, but a genuine request for some advice/help.

My Father in law is mid 70s and until this year was a fairly spritely chap. Over the past year his back has deteriorated (due to rugby in his youth posssibly) to the stage now where apparently he does not have discs in his lower back, and the vertibre are rubbing bone-on-bone. This is causing him a huge amount of pain, and he take morphine daily (since March).

Yesterday he was hastly admitted to hospital after becoming confused and unable to support himself. The hospital sent him home yesterday evening saying there was nothing wrong, and it was down to the pain in his back. I'm not sure I believe this as I hadnt seen him act like this before - regardless of the levels of pain. But I'm no doctor so am taking it at face value.

Anyway, his back needs sorting out. The doctor yesterday said it was unacceptable that he had been waiting a year to get sorted, with no end in sight. However, we don't seem to be able to get the NHS to jump into action.

Since March he has managed to see the consultant twice and have an injection in his back, which didn't help. The consultant is now unavailable to see him until February. There is no future course of action planned, no op booked in - just see the consultant, get no further forward, wait 6 months and repeat.

Now... Is there really only 1 consultant who can see him and should someone really be subject to such pain for so long? I know things don't happen overnight in the NHS and we had been plodding on, mildly dissapointed in 'the system', until the Doc yesterday pointed out that we were being messed around.

How do you spur these things on? We have spoken to the consultants secretary many times, but this hasnt helped. Should we write to the NHS trust, change Drs, change consultants? Anything else we can do?

Is morphine safe to be on for approaching a year?

Any tips/hints? Should we be selling the family silver to try and self finance (sadly not really an option)?

[HUW JONES]

Quick reply (sorry busy!).Hopefully they are sure the diagnosis of degenerative spinal disease is secure.There are myriad causes of spinal pain and confusion in the elderly..infection,mets,hypercalcaemia etc.Morphine usually scares patients but it is "safe"...doubt would suddenly cause confusion unless dose altered,concommitant illness etc.Are other painkillers verboten for him? NSAID's etc?.Has he seen the pain clinic?Your GP is correct re delays and the Trust need a KUTA probably.Try speaking to Consultant's secretary.If no joy suggest try "Patient Services" ie complaints dept.

[Simpo Two]

If the NHS quote an X-month waiting list then that's that, I fear. There's a fast track scheme for cancer but not backache. Painkillers are not going to repair the back problem, merely mask it (or not).

You could get an idea of the cost of going privately by booking an appointment with a consultant at your nearest private hospital (maybe £100 fee) - at a guess they should be able to see you in a week or two. At least then you'd be able to judge another way forward.

Edited by Simpo Two on Tuesday 16th December 13:57

[twistedsanity]

Im 40 and had back probs for 20 years, i have degeneration and disc bulges in 5 places and suffer from chronic pain, i have seen pain clinics and various ortho specialists, there is no surgical solution to the problem as there is so much damage spread over a large area, spinal epidurals only work in about 50% of cases, all they can offer me is stronger opiates, which at 40 years old isnt the path i want to take, how well regulated is the morphine? With opiates its easy to "forget" when you took the last dose and take more without realising it, which is a sign of confusion in itself, i have researched various op's for the last five years and they are all with there own problems, i know people who have had 30k plus operations privatly and are still no better, in my well researched but completely unqualified opinion at 70 years of age i would concentrate on getting the morph dosage correct and be as comfortable as possible, hope you get it sorted for the best

[dreamer75]

I am only 33 and also have badly degenerated and bulging discs, and my dad also had a bad back - it was a while ago but I am sure he had a disc removed and two vertebrae fused together - is this something that might help (or is it even done still?) I might be remembering that wrong though.

If you can afford it perhaps you could book private appointments - depending on the consultant it will probably be 40/50 quid up to 100 quid for an appt?

Not sure where you are but I can recommend the consultant I see. If you're interested drop me a PM, he works from Windsor/Woking/Bracknell.