Moved to GP Inactive list without notice

splashthecash

Thankfully, haven't been sick or needed a doctor for a number of years, but called up our family doctor practice (wife\kids go there too) this afternoon to schedule an appointment for myself and they said because I haven't been in to see them in a few years they moved me to the "inactive" list and as such, I am not eligible to be seen by any of their doctors and they are not taking on any more active clients at this time?!

Has anyone ever heard of this before? Whatever happened to having a family doctor for life?

I wasn't notified of this by the way - not calls\emails to inform of this approach.

beachhead

Avn't heard of this before but I don't doubt that the practice will continue to claim off the HSE for you.

Your GP probably doesn't know that you have been put on an "inactive" list.Can you get past the over zealous reception staff to speak to him or her directly?

Jim_Hodge

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119700452#Comment_119700452

You make a huge unsubstantiated assumption there. The OP may not be a medical card holder and, if he is, the practice most likely isn't claiming for him if he's now inactive.

But I would suggest calling in an making a case based in the rest of the family being patients and his having been a patient in the past.

OP, how many years is it since you used that practice?

beachhead

My reference re the HSE has nothing at all to do with medical cards.Every GP gets a subsidy for each patient on their lists.Regardless of "inactive" or not.Death would be an exception,if notified.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119700491#Comment_119700491

splashthecash

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119700491#Comment_119700491

No, I have never been a medical card holder.

Called them back up again with a number of questions - "should I not have been informed that I was been moved to an inactive state?", "how often should a person be attending the practice so as not to be removed as inactive", "can you check that my wife and kids are not close to a point of being made inactive"

Long story short, they are going to escalate it and try get me back on seeing as my family are in there too.

Wasn't there for maybe 4\5 years

beachhead

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119700529#Comment_119700529

Reception staff are in total control of admin since covid took hold.Keep at them and you should get off the "inactive" list.

Vorsprung

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119700504#Comment_119700504

GPs get a subsidy for medical card patients only though, is that what you mean?

mrcheez

Bizarre.. I go to my GP perhaps once every 6-7 years and never had an issue

Maybe it's a Covid thing... to prioritise new patients

Mrs OBumble

I'd raise it as sex-discrimination issue: healthy men simply don't need to attend GPs regularly, whereas most women do need to.

Miaireland

Been happening in the Practices in my town for years. Way before COVID. You are not notified as they claim that they are unsure of whether the details they hold for you are still correct so can not risk breeching GDPR.

L1011

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119700504#Comment_119700504

No, they don't. Where on earth did you get that idea from?

GPs seem to be turning in to a bureaucratic nightmare.

My GP, who I was very happy with, retired just before COVID and I was bouncing around using walk in practices and so on to get a blood pressure prescription repeated. I signed up with a very ‘modern’ clinic and it’s been really unpleasant.

They’re very very money oriented - everything is another fee.

I’ve interacted with 4 GPs (same practice) about minor issues relating to the repeating the prescription, one of which was a really useless phone consultation.

They’ve also managed to misinterpret my blood count and completely panic me about cholesterol. It was normal and I had a mildly high triglyceride level, probably because I hadn’t fasted quite early enough.

They sent me a text about “abnormal results” and didn’t follow up on that for several days and in was thinking I had cancer or something. Totally freaked me out. I rang and the receptionist wouldn’t explain the text and I had to wait for about 5 days for a follow up phone call!! (Which I was charged in advance for.)

Then during the call I got a vague mention of cholesterol and lipids, without any advice, so I cut all meat and dairy, basically went mostly vegan, with just some oily fish to try and get it down. When I got the actual data from the lab both types of cholesterol were low / normal. So I was going on a weird diet for no reason.

Anyway, I need a new GP and nobody seems to be taking on private patients.

Mrs OBumble

Ask them if they have a waiting list you could join.