Questions on GOSH

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Permalink Reply by Beverley on February 7, 2012 at 13:38

Feel so sorry for you Verity.

We haven't had follow-up treatment from GOSH but I can tell you that it's £260 to see Dr Shah. He would send a letter to your hospital explaining his views but whether they'd follow up on it, I don't know. You can also get referred to GOSH on the NHS which might be an option. Longer wait obviously and you might not get to see Dr Shah but you would get the help you need from someone I'm sure.

Hopefully someone else will know more about it.

x

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Permalink Reply by Verity on February 7, 2012 at 15:22

A few options then. My partner says let's go to gosh. I will go to the doctors ASAP and ask for a NHS referral or ask how long the list Is then weigh up our options then. Thank you Bev x

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Permalink Reply by amanda on February 7, 2012 at 14:29

 

 Verity another option is for you to have a private appointment with Dr Shah all you have to do is ask your GP for a referral letter to Dr Shah, phone his secreatry and arrange a private appointment, you could probably se him as soon as next week and if you are happy with the consultation then you could ask the GP to transfer care to Dr Shah (Im assuming Dr Shah works for the NHS as well). As patients we have choices now about which dr's, which hospitals we wish to attend. I'm new to this site and know nothing about Dr Shah YET. But we may need him/her in the future.

Transfering care to London may be impossible because I do not know where you live in the country but even a one off consultation has to be worth it if you are so desperate. Another option sounds crazy but some Consultants wil do Skype consultations (privately) once they have seen you. Just trying to help!

 

Where do I find more about Dr Shah ? anybody. My grandson has just had his second dose of omeperazole he is not screaming like he has been for the past few days but he is very restless/agitated and finding it difficult to sleep. I know we have to wait a while tosee if the omeperazole helps but it would be useful to learn more about Dr Shah.  Thanks Amanda 

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Permalink Reply by Verity on February 7, 2012 at 15:20

That sounds like a good idea, thanks Amanda. I am only an hour and a half away from gosh so would be possible to do that. How ever I don't feel my sons gp understand why I am concerned so may have to battle for a referral still. 

If you type into google: dr shah gosh. It will come up with info about his qualifications and medical interests. I really hope the omeprazole kicks on for your little grandson soon, it worked wonders for my son Finley. Does unfortunately take quite a while to work.

Thanks again

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Permalink Reply by amanda on February 7, 2012 at 18:36

 

 Thanks for advice - Verity it is with great sadness that I tell you one of the GP's at my daughters surgery actually laughed at my daughter stating ' babies do cry you know & they don't grow up overnight' It has felt like such a battle getting some professionals to take us seriously, when it is so obvious to us how poorly Noah is!!!!

We won't give up however hard it gets!!!

 

You are entitled to a second opinion your GP may not like it or agree with you but you are entitld to it so don't take no for an answer. Good luck Amanda.

 

What is a while Verity? just a guide please. Day two today of omeperazole.

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Permalink Reply by Sarah on February 7, 2012 at 19:10

Dr Shah is wonderful but currently climbing kilamajaro so any appointments would be a few weeks away privately! All the GOSH gastros are great though and they work as a team. Dr lindley is another highly recommended gastro.
NHS referrals are tertiary so needs to be done by a paediatrician. They don't accept GP referrals. Also worth noting that they have a 'catchment area' so only accept NHS referrals from certain areas unless a particularly severe case (otherwise their clinics would be incredibly busy and wait times would be very long). I believe NHS first appointments are within 18 weeks - privately you usually only have to wait a week. Also useful to know that you can't be an NHS patient and also see the same doctor privately. That might be a factor in the decision-making process for you...

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Permalink Reply by Verity on February 7, 2012 at 19:53

Thank you for sharing your knowledge Sarah! So it seems like the best idea is to pay and go for a consultation with him privately. Is it a case of ringing up GOSH and saying who we would like to see and booking an appointment like that.

V x

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Permalink Reply by Sarah on February 7, 2012 at 20:12

Hi Verity,

You need to ring the private secretary of the consultant you wish to see. To find the private secretaries nums, look up the International Patient Centre.

I think private appointments work best - certainly in the first instance.  Paediatric gastro-enterology is such a specialist field that there are only 70 or so practising in England and they all know each other so can work together well.

Our own NHS gastro has worked personally with Shah at GOSH in the past, so is really happy to work with him on my daughter's case and to follow his treatment suggestions. We have been offered an NHS referral to him, but we declined as we are happy with our more local consultant, mainly because she is so supportive and we can see her more regularly than appointments would be at GOSH. She actually likes Shah's input because he is more confident at prescribing medications she doesn't commonly use - she freely admits that my daughter is currently her most allergic patient (although of course, as far as gastro conditions go allergy is relatively minor - it's rarely lifethreatening and there's generally no surgical intervention required)  so she therefore rarely works with the medications or the doses that Shah prescribes for her and likes the confidence that his input provides. 

Going private to Shah works for us (we have Bupa) because when we are having a tough patch we can go straight away - but we can see our NHS gastro every 2-3 months and if procedures are required they can be done more locally IYSWIM.

But our solution may not work for everyone.

PS... your GP can refer you privately... it is only NHS referrals that require the paediatrician's input

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Permalink Reply by Verity on February 7, 2012 at 21:37

He sounds like the man to see. We have the doctors in the morning so will see what they say. Finley isn't even currently under a paed, will that make a difference to seeing dr shah? Have been let down by the NHS so just want him seen ASAP but someone worth while seeing! Thank you for your reply X

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Permalink Reply by Sarah on February 7, 2012 at 21:42

No, that won't make a difference at all to Dr Shah, Verity :-)
Might be worth asking for an NHS referral to a gastro as well though?!

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Permalink Reply by Sarah on February 7, 2012 at 21:44

By that I mean that it never hurts to have both!

Permalink Reply by Verity on February 7, 2012 at 19:52

It's such a shame that medical professionals are so uncaring. That's awful that your daughter was laughed at. I was told my son is simply unlucky that he has reacted to 22 foods and is now tolerating only 9! I think it is easy for people who aren't dealing with the situation to not care. They aren't the ones dealing with a screaming baby, the sleep deprivation and the heartache of seeing your baby or a baby you love in pain. I think it took 4-5 weeks for it to work in Finley, but I believe it varies. Finley was 6 months old when he finally got prescribed it and he has food allergies and intolerances going on too. 

 

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