NHS ignorance
I can't believe the ignorance of some so called NHS professionals.*
Today I had an appointment with the local Psychiatrist, a very experienced guy, Clinical Director of my local trust. So I held out a bit of a hope that he may know his stuff. Oh how wrong I was.
If any of you have read my post here, you will know I have been struggling with the symptoms of what I, my psychologist, my social worker and my friends believe to be Tourette's Syndrome.
Having done a lot of research on the matter, I have had many a light bulb moment while reading about it and for the first time in my life I didn't feel like a fool, I finally felt that I may actually have something real, something with a name, something that explained the way I was.
I was very anxious about today, moments of anxiety kept creeping up on me. I kept internally talking to myself, what was the worst thing that could happen? My psychologist and social worker believe me, they don't think I am making it up so why should he.... Breathe.
When I finally arrived and walked in everything shattered, just as I had suspected. At least I had come prepared for the worst.
I started by telling him how my friends and housemates had first mentioned it and how they had given me the research and findings they had done into it and how I had refused to listen, but then on reading the information it seemed to be like a light bulb moment and everything fitted. I gave him a print out of my post that won post of the week. He skim read it, handed it back to me and just said "Listen to me - you DO NOT have Tourettes, ok, now get this nonsense out of your head" .... I felt kicked down, silenced,... again. I felt angry, frustrated and decided that I would stand my ground. So I asked him how he had come to that instant conclusion? And then came the line I had been waiting for "You don't swear, no where have you told me that you swear or use foul language"..
I replied, "But only 8% of people with Tourettes actually swear" ... I could see he was getting a little agitated at my questioning him, but I had waited 3 months for this appointment I was not going to just sit back and leave feeling cross with myself for not getting everything I needed to across. He replied "Well I am the doctor here, and I have had the training, and as far as I was taught you HAVE to swear to have Tourettes". I told him that simply was not true. After being in the room with him a little longer he went so far as to admit that I clearly had a tic disorder and that he would refer me to a Neurologist.
He asked me where I had got this "silly idea" from, and I told him it was my housemates that had pushed me into seeing someone. He very condescendingly asked my housemates background, and what could they possibly they know? I told him one was a Doctor of chemistry and the other a computer programmer. His reply was "Well, hardly a psychology background then?". I agreed, no, but they were both highly intelligent and they were the ones that lived with me, not him.
He came round a bit toward the end of the appointment, and did admit that he did not know much about Tourette's except what he had learned a long time ago. He also said that maybe the diagnostic criteria had changed and he was not aware of the changes.
I am still simply astounded by his ignorance!
What hope is there in gaining social understanding in society for people with TS if even the professionals don't understand it? I feel very disappointed... but not surprised in the least.
*Not all NHS professionals are ignorant, just today's and I feel very sad about that..
Today I had an appointment with the local Psychiatrist, a very experienced guy, Clinical Director of my local trust. So I held out a bit of a hope that he may know his stuff. Oh how wrong I was.
If any of you have read my post here, you will know I have been struggling with the symptoms of what I, my psychologist, my social worker and my friends believe to be Tourette's Syndrome.
Having done a lot of research on the matter, I have had many a light bulb moment while reading about it and for the first time in my life I didn't feel like a fool, I finally felt that I may actually have something real, something with a name, something that explained the way I was.
I was very anxious about today, moments of anxiety kept creeping up on me. I kept internally talking to myself, what was the worst thing that could happen? My psychologist and social worker believe me, they don't think I am making it up so why should he.... Breathe.
When I finally arrived and walked in everything shattered, just as I had suspected. At least I had come prepared for the worst.
I started by telling him how my friends and housemates had first mentioned it and how they had given me the research and findings they had done into it and how I had refused to listen, but then on reading the information it seemed to be like a light bulb moment and everything fitted. I gave him a print out of my post that won post of the week. He skim read it, handed it back to me and just said "Listen to me - you DO NOT have Tourettes, ok, now get this nonsense out of your head" .... I felt kicked down, silenced,... again. I felt angry, frustrated and decided that I would stand my ground. So I asked him how he had come to that instant conclusion? And then came the line I had been waiting for "You don't swear, no where have you told me that you swear or use foul language"..
I replied, "But only 8% of people with Tourettes actually swear" ... I could see he was getting a little agitated at my questioning him, but I had waited 3 months for this appointment I was not going to just sit back and leave feeling cross with myself for not getting everything I needed to across. He replied "Well I am the doctor here, and I have had the training, and as far as I was taught you HAVE to swear to have Tourettes". I told him that simply was not true. After being in the room with him a little longer he went so far as to admit that I clearly had a tic disorder and that he would refer me to a Neurologist.
He asked me where I had got this "silly idea" from, and I told him it was my housemates that had pushed me into seeing someone. He very condescendingly asked my housemates background, and what could they possibly they know? I told him one was a Doctor of chemistry and the other a computer programmer. His reply was "Well, hardly a psychology background then?". I agreed, no, but they were both highly intelligent and they were the ones that lived with me, not him.
He came round a bit toward the end of the appointment, and did admit that he did not know much about Tourette's except what he had learned a long time ago. He also said that maybe the diagnostic criteria had changed and he was not aware of the changes.
I am still simply astounded by his ignorance!
What hope is there in gaining social understanding in society for people with TS if even the professionals don't understand it? I feel very disappointed... but not surprised in the least.
*Not all NHS professionals are ignorant, just today's and I feel very sad about that..
posted by Badger at 7:08 PM
12 comments
