General Chat

I have just found out today from my surgery that the local charity company who have been delivering free of charge, prescriptions to housebound people since lockdown are discontinuing this service end of Sep 22.

So I asked the surgery then what and how do I get my prescriptions in future as I cannot use public transport to go to town and collect from a chemist, I have no family or anybody who could drive several miles to collect for me? I explained I am housebound and the receptionist said,"surely you have some family?". When I replied that I didn't she then said" and you have no neighbours either?" I replied again that one neighbour is disabled and housebound same as me, one works and is never at home and the other works and hardly see them neither do I know them very well."

Her answer was, "well you are the only patient in this practice in this position."

I said, " I cant believe that!"

She suggested I messaged the practice to explain my position. I did say could the surgery not post my prescription, I'm happy to pay but they don't offer this service anymore due to "risks" with prescriptions going missing.

I cannot believe that noone seems to care. Without my meds, I could die or have another stroke and maybe next time not be so lucky!

Anyone else live in a rural or isolated area on their own and have a similar problem? As I just dont know what I can do :-(

Florence in the hebrides

Edit: As sad as it is, I don't have hardly any friends, just 1 in this area who works full time. When you get divorced, it's amazing how your "friends" disappear!

There are national delivery companies who deliver by post www.lloydsdirect.co.uk is one company, but there are others.
It says they deliver to the whole of the UK

Another worry you could do without. Would your surgery send the prescription electronically to a chemist and would they then deliver it for you? That's what happens round here. I am mobile so do collect my meds but otherwise I never see my prescription. It's all dealt with between the doctor and the chemist. Do you by any chance have a branch of Boots or Lloyds in town? They will deliver although I think there is now a charge but the surgery would need to send the script to the chemist.

Good luck sorting it out.

If you really are the only one as they say then can't they send your meds to you in a taxi, and maybe provide more each time to reduce the number of trips?
I'm sure the practice is rich enough to cover one taxi once in a while.
Would there be a hospital volunteer driver near the practice willing to drive them to you?
Excuse my ignorance but what is the policing situation for your area is there any way the local officer could deliver them?

I can’t believe you are the only one in that position. If I remember your taxi fares are huge.

Is there another pharmacy that will deliver.

Some pharmaces are in deep trouble. Round here there are some ( the Welsh sounding one) are in special measures. Ours is hopeless and public transport is not great.

Caroline’s ideas are great - but life is not like that here. Maybe Florence should write to the local medical group.

Is your daughter not able to collect them for you, Florence?

I recommend Lloyds pharmacy

I was how do I get mine when covid struck and I was housebound after the knee surgery

My granddaughter told me about several online pharmacy did them but it depends who your doctors surgery have signed up with

So I signed up and been very satisfied with their service
They email you to say when you are running low and you reorder through them

About a week later your meds are delivered by PO tracking parcel free of delivery

A round trip to town is over 40 miles, no chemists in town deliver outwith the town area. There are no taxi firms outwith the town either.
My daughter has her own meds sent to a town chemist. She then spends several hours on a bus as they only run every 2 hours but she is not always here as spends a week or more elsewhere so im left on my own for a good chunk of the month.

Linda these companies only offer the service to mainland unless you live in a town on a island and even then not sure they would offer as totally reliant on a ferry bringing supplies.

My phone has just rung as I was typing this. It was the charity who said they are rethinking of a way to serve people in my position so has added my name to a list as it would appear i'm not the only one. At present they deliver 3 days a week but they said they are discussing deliveries for 1 day a week but whatever the outcome, they wont leave me stuck.

My faith in human kindness has been restored <3 The lady was so lovely and understanding unlike my GP practice :-P

Feeling rather emotional so off to make a coffee.

Florence in the hebrides

Joan mentioning taxi tokens reminded me that our local authority will give taxi tokens to anyone eligible for a bus pass who can't use public transport. I don't know what the situation is re. bus passes in your area but perhaps it's worth seeing if your local authority can help.

SuffolkVera, I have emailed my local councillor twice about the bus service which is not "disabled" friendly at all as there are 3 steeps steps to climb up and it is a small 22 seater minibus but to date no reply!! These people promise the earth when they canvass and when they get elected do very little grrr.

i dont think for one moment the council here would send a taxi to take me to town, pick up prescription and take me home for free as that would be an 80 mile trip to the taxi driver and the bill to the council would be around£140 during the week or £160 on a Saturday!!

Florence in the hebrides

Florence
Give your docs a ring and ask if they have signed up to any online pharmacy providers

Or Google online pharmacies and check with them to see if any will cover your area

Try them

https://www.lloydsdirect.co.uk/

I tel one of the 3 pharmacies in town, 2 are independent, 1 is boots. They said they only deliver within a 3 mile radius and they do not deal with any online pharmacies who would deliver direct. She said she had never heard of that system being used here.

I looked at lloyds direct and it states you have to have a GP in England to register for the service. Also in Scotland noone pays for prescriptions at all whereas in England unless you are exempt you do.

I guess when you are fit, able to drive etc you never think for one second the day will come when that can all change in a flash. Many people come here in their twilight years to enjoy a quiet retirement without thinking through how they will manage if they are suddenly left on their own or can no longer drive.

Although this can happen to people on the mainland, there are many more facilities to help you then there are in this remote corner of the uk. When I came 30 years ago, my life was very different and could not have forseen all that happened to me since.

I'm sure the local GP surgeries could employ some one 3 days a week just to deliver prescriptions as there is most definitely a need for that particularly as we have a large elderly population here.

I once asked if when the community nurse was coming to check my bloods after my heart surgery, if she could bring my prescription as obviously i couldn't get it myself and was told, no sorry thats not aloud!!! Common sense should have prevailed, but it didn't.

Florence in the hebrides

Glad to hear the charity is having a rethink.

Shirley - if your Lloyds is working well you are lucky. If I am too unwell to drive to the supermarket to get my meds my OH will probably have to go into town by train for me as the bus to the supermarket is not regular enough. It is not worth trying our village pharmacy any more.

Where is your nearest GP Names or is not a dispensing one like ours?

What a difference there is between different areas of the country. :-0

I am able to collect prescriptions from the pharmacy in our nearest town. The doctor prescribes for 2 months at a time for the repeat prescription and if I couldn't collect, they have a free delivery service, which I think is 6 days a week?

I do hope something can be sorted Florence, as I'm sure you are definitely not alone in needing help there.

Hi Florence, I’m lucky that I have a good GP surgery in the village I live in. However the in-house pharmacy is only for those that live a certain distance away - which means those who live within walking distance of the village pharmacy are having to go elsewhere.

Our GP practice, ten miles away in rural Argyll, has an in-house pharmacy.

They don't deliver. However, anyone without helpful neighbours (thankfully impossible in this village) could post on the village Facebook page if a collection was required, and several people would offer.

I very seldom look at Facebook - but it does have its uses occasionally!

It's reassuring to know that the charity have you on their list, Florence.

Lloyds direct don’t deal with any Pharmacy

They order the repeat prescription by internet and then dispense the meds themselves and post out by Royal Mail

Im not sure i understand that Shirley. When I ring surgery for a repeat prescription, they take the order over the phone. That request is then passed to a GP to sign off before the dispensary make up the meds for collection.

lloyds would have to have some kind of connection to my surgery(which they dont). It does say online you need a GP reg in England. And who would pay for that service to send packages of meds all this way?

That could never work here as would be delivered by plane and the risk of them going missing en route as many things here dont arrive. It wouldnt be a reliable service especially in the winter with bad weather.

Florence in the hebrides

Florence you need a drone delivery