Hospital transport

[cptdodger]

I wonder would there be much interest in starting a charity with this type of transport at its core. I reckon funding could be come by if there was will of people to come forward to run it and provide oversight. I would definately help out where I could in any way needed.

Other than advanced first aid, medical qualifications wouldn't be an issue as the hospitals have deemed these patients fit for discharge and to travel.

Bill Fernie, have you any thoughts on this or would be interested in helping with a scoping meeting? You massive experience and links to CHAT would be hugely beneficial in such an initial exercise.

I agree with you here, something needs to be put into place for this type of situation. Unfortunately I can't drive so I wouldn't be much help.

While I admire everything CHAT is trying to achieve, I think it's a lost cause purely because (and I honestly thought this was public knowledge at the time) when Dr Shallcross left Caithness General, I ended up being transferred to Raigmore to see Consultants there. I actually spoke to whoever was running Caithness General at the time to ask when they were replacing Dr Shallcross, they said they were advertising for Consultants. This has to be going back to 2012 if not earlier. I then spoke to my Consultant at Raigmore who told me everything was being centralised to Raigmore, so they would not be providing Consultants at CGH. I thought it was just Gastroenterology, seemingly not.

They have known for years this was going to happen. So now, what we should be concentrating on is, resolving the issues like getting left high and dry in Inverness/Glasgow or Aberdeen, with no way apart from public transport to get home.

How many people is there, like Westward have had to cancel getting their treatment because of this issue ? It needs to be looked into.

[DMFB]

I gave up driving south a few years ago due to my age and i no longer feel fit enough for the journey. My wife has many appointments in Raigmore due to complex health needs. I accept we cannot have every need catered for here by some specialist staff but it would be good to have better patient transport services.

[Shaggy]

Just have to be careful with the cancelling of appointments. I had to cancel one which was for 9:30am in Invergordon of all places and gave them plenty of notice when i cancelled citing that i wasn't fit to travel that far on public transport and couldn't drive there. When i asked to make a new appointment, it was thrown back at me that i had cancelled a previous one and would have to go through my doctor again to be referred, thus starting all over again and another 13 month wait

[Westward]

Just have to be careful with the cancelling of appointments. I had to cancel one which was for 9:30am in Invergordon of all places and gave them plenty of notice when i cancelled citing that i wasn't fit to travel that far on public transport and couldn't drive there. When i asked to make a new appointment, it was thrown back at me that i had cancelled a previous one and would have to go through my doctor again to be referred, thus starting all over again and another 13 month wait

In many ways I can see the hospital's point in putting people back to the start of their lists, for folks who repeatedly cancel, however, that does not tackle the problem of no transport.. tackle that problem and there should be no real reason for so many cancellations.
I have foregone that particular treatment, rather than travel alone on public transport to areas I know so little of,
therefore, the next time I take ill (which I doubtless will) either they take me as an emergency or I suffer in silence as a matter of course,

[cptdodger]

I was the same, I had an appointment to go to Dingwall for a bone scan, I lived in Castletown at the time. I could not get there for the appointment time, I spoke to them explained where I lived and also that I had to use public transport. They said they would reschedule, which they did, for exactly the same time, twice.

They sent an impressive letter to my GP telling them I had ignored the appointments, and would have to be referred again. That letter did not take into account I was on the phone to them getting passed from pillar to post for a couple of hours for each appointment letter I received. I just gave up after that.