"Ongoing Urology Complaint"

Having undergone major spinal surgery in last year , I developed a complication which meant I was not able to void my bladder naturally and as a consequence was referred to Urology to been seen as an urgent request.

It was at this stage that my issue would start. As my spinal surgery had taken place in the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (Southern General) in Glasgow, I was offered a Urology appointment in Glasgow again even though I stay within NHS Lanarkshire.

I was offered a date with a Urologist at the New Victoria Hospital. Upon attending this appointment the consultant was not there and it had been arrange for a specialist urology nurse to see me and teach me how to self catheterise myself to ensure my bladder was emptying fully as required.

This was fine and I left with a new date to see the consultant at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (Southern General) in Glasgow, where we met and discussed the issues and advised on options on what they would like to do in terms of self catheterisation and that we would pick up at a next appointment and progress with a pathway of treatment.

To date a mere 9 months later, I have never been seen again. My symptoms have not improved in any way and I would also add in that time I have had 6 urine infections, one of which has been (and is currently in place) so severe that it has also traveled within my kidneys, for which I am on my 3rd course of antibiotics.

During this 9 month period, I have had 3 or 4 (I think 4) appointments with the above mentioned consultant cancelled on me, not once have I been the one cancelling.

Upon calling to query this issue I finally had a conversation with a secretary who informed me that the consultant had left their post and moved to a new job and that I had not been assigned to a new consultant yet. The secretary asked that I contact the referring consultant who had originally asked for me to been seen by urology to send in a new referral to try and speed up the process.

I know that this has been sent in by the consultant neurosurgeon again, this time however it was sent to Wishaw General in NHS Lanarkshire, as this is the closest hospital to my home, again with a request for me to be seen and outlining the fact I had been messed about over the past 9 months.

This was received in June  and via a conversation I had with a urology secretary in Wishaw General, it was confirmed that upon vetting within the urology department my case has now been marked as routine and was in a waiting list to be seen within the next 12-16 weeks. How can this been seen as routine?

This could mean that I may need to wait into October  to be seen again, a full calendar year since I initially sat in front of a Urologist.

This whole experience has been completely demoralising. I feel that I am in complete limbo and cannot see any light ahead. I am aman in his 30s who is having to drain my bladder manually every day, which has lead to me having to plan where I can and cant go, plan in toilet breaks to be discreet about my ongoing issues and has had a major impact on my self confidence.