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Care Opinion

Grateful to the Udston care team after delay from GP

Posted By Daughter/carer

"Grateful to the Udston care team after delay from GP"

About: Coathill Hospital / Old Age Psychiatry General practices in Lanarkshire

(as a relative),

As a family, we recognised clearly the early stages of possible Dementia/Altzheimers in our Dad, more forgetful, mood changes etc. basically he ticked nearly all the boxes. Sadly, despite several visits to the GP it took a period of years for our voices to be heard and for our Dad to be referred to psychiatry team. By this time Dad had no short term memory at all and needed prompting and help with every aspect of his daily life. 

The psychiatry team and Altzheimers care team in Lanarkshire Udston hospital have been outstanding. Our Dad is now on medication that  aims to slow down the progression of Altzheimers, we have already noted that our Dad appears more stable and no rapid deteriorations. (Sadly during the period we were fighting for our voices to be heard, we saw fast and rapid deterioration of our father).

We are forever grateful to the Udston care team, especially the nurse and healthcare workers who gave us support, information and put us in touch with agencies to support our Dad and our family to make the most of the time we have with Dad. 

Our hearts are broken, our trust in our GP practice has gone. If only they had listened sooner we could have had our Dad on this medication sooner and had the support, resources we needed to support Dad as a family, instead it was a fight and struggle, no family should ever have to go through, not when there are so many services accessible after diagnosis, which we are now in touch with. The drug slows down deterioration but can’t improve his condition. If only he had been given it when we saw the early stages of the altzheimers. 

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Responses

Response from Jennifer Montgomery, Improvement Coordinator, Quality Directorate, NHS Lanarkshire 6 months ago
Jennifer Montgomery
Improvement Coordinator, Quality Directorate,
NHS Lanarkshire

Operational Lead for Care Opinion in NHS Lanarkshire

Submitted on 11/10/2023 at 00:46
Published on Care Opinion at 00:46

picture of Jennifer Montgomery

Dear Daughter/carer,

Thank you for sharing your story on Care Opinion.

I am so sorry to hear about the experience you have had seeking help from your GP for your Dad. It must have been such a worrying time for you all as a family. I am pleased to hear that the team at Udston have been helpful and supportive for you all, and that since they took over treatment your Dad hasn't had any rapid deteriorations. I would be delighted to feedback your kind words to the team and I am sure it will give them all a real boost.

GP’s are independent contractors and are responsible for investigating and responding to any concerns a person may have about the service; they are not registered to respond directly to feedback through Care Opinion. Can I please invite you to contact the Practice Manager if you would like a direct response about the service or you can also contact Primary Care Patient Affairs, I have included their contact details.

PatientAffairs.Primarycare@lanarkshire.scot.nhs.uk Tel no. 01698 752800 Option 2

I hope your Dad continues to make progress with the new medication.

Kind Regards,

Jenni

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Update posted by Daughter/carer (a relative)

Thank you so much for your response, we would be delighted for the good feedback to be shared with the staff at Udston Hospital. They do valuable work in a caring, compassionate and relatable way.

I think I will take up your offer of feeding back to the practice manager, in the hope that this prevents other families experiencing what we have. Thanks for the information too.

Have a good day and keep up the good work.

Response from Tracy Coyle, General Manager, Mental Health, Learning Disabilities and Addictions, North Lanarkshire Health & Social Care 6 months ago
Tracy Coyle
General Manager, Mental Health, Learning Disabilities and Addictions,
North Lanarkshire Health & Social Care

Submitted on 13/10/2023 at 08:44
Published on Care Opinion at 09:19

picture of Tracy Coyle

Dear Daughter/Carer,

Thank you for your kind words and thoughtful comments for our staff working in Udston and across our Dementia services. It is always heartwarming for our staff to hear that their compassion and input has made a difference at such an emotional time for you, your Dad and your family.

Tracy

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Response from Trudi Marshall, North Lanarkshire Health & Social Care Partnership 6 months ago
Trudi Marshall
North Lanarkshire Health & Social Care Partnership

Submitted on 13/10/2023 at 09:34
Published on Care Opinion at 09:34

picture of Trudi Marshall

Dear Daughter/ Carer

I am sorry that you have had such a difficult time initially accessing services for your Dad and would encourage you to talk this through with the practice manager as I am sure they would welcome the feedback on your experience.

It is fantastic to hear that the Udston team helped to support you in such a compassionate and caring manner and that your Dad is now more stable. I have been in touch with the Service Manager to pass on your feedback as I know that this will mean a lot to the team.

I hope that you and your family continue to get the support needed.

Thanks you again for taking the time to share your experience with us.

Trudi

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