"Follow up appointment from my surgery in 2008"

I had Neuro Surgery in March 2008 for a hind brain hernia. I had a few complications post surgery and was actually re-admitted 3 times in as many weeks. At an outpatient appointment a year later the doctor who performed the operation said they would "keep an eye on me" and send for me approximately every 2 years or so. However, for several months I had been experiencing some swelling at the site of my wound which was starting to concern me along with some periods of dizziness so I decided to ring the Hallamshire and ask if I had an outpatient appointment coming up. I was then sent a letter with an appointment for March 2011.

When I arrived for my appointment I was eventually seen by a registrar the doctor said he would also come in to see me when he had finished seeing another patient. However I saw a different doctor who was very friendly and asked me how I had been etc and then asked me what the outcome of the scan I had last year was. I was confused as I haven’t actually had a scan since leaving the Hallamshire in 2008. It transpired that this doctor had the wrong patient record open on his computer screen. When I explained my symptoms the doctor thought it would be sensible to send me for an MRI Scan to see exactly what was happening in my head and completed the MRI request form accordingly. Then the Doctor who operated on me in 2008 entered the room and it was his attitude towards me which I wish to "complain" about.

He asked the doctor I had been speaking to for a brief explanation of what I'd told him. He dismissed my dizziness as "probably" an inner ear infection and suggested I go to my GP. When I told him it was not merely a bit of dizziness but that during one particular episode of dizziness I had felt as though I was going to pass out. He said he would not give me brain surgery for a BIT of dizziness! This is not what I was asking for and said my main concern was the swelling I was experiencing at the back of my head where my wound site is. He put a couple of fingers at the back of my head and asked me to cough. This apparently showed him that there was nothing wrong (I cannot remember the medical terminology he used I'm afraid).

During this time he also made a comment about how much weight I had put on since he saw me last - which I feel is totally irrelevant to my reason for being there, not to mention insulting, personal & downright bad manners. He also inferred that why he should waste his time performing brain surgery on me to improve my quality of life when I was so obviously not taking care of myself - again with regards to my weight gain.

In conclusion, he said an MRI was totally unnecessary and gave the already completed form back to the doctor for him to dispose of and dismissed myself and my husband, leaving me feeling upset that I had wasted his time and that I still didn't really have the peace of mind that an MRI Scan would have given me.