The Election is nigh! Numerous Tory grandees live in our valley, so when a leaflet pops through my letterbox from my local Conservative candidate, I reckon the Election is near. So I’m grabbing the opportunity to do something to help myself and  lobby this prospective election candidates about what I want Even if you don’t get a reply, each morning someone in the Canditates’ office will have the task of monitoring which are ‘hot topics’ in voters’ minds If you and your friends have mentioned a local issue, it will be in the candidates’ mind. Lobby for better NHS care – and have some ..read more

Content goes here ;;;;;;;;;  Is cancer now ‘by Royal Appointment‘? Suddenly, our Royal Family is showing the reality that ‘one in two of us will get cancer in our lifetimes’. Cancer is no respecter of birth, or lifestyle, and both  King Charles and the Princess of Wales, are experiencing what so many now face – a devastating cancer diagnosis for a family member.  In their case, the father figure and a beloved daughter-in-law. A cancer diagnosis is never easy, but for the ‘Royal family, there is some small consolation in the fact that there are no worries about waiting lists. Ne ..read more

       USING YOUR VOTE FOR YOUR BENEFIT It is an election year, but how many of us are so disgusted with the shenanigans going on in Parliament, that we are saying we can’t be bothered to vote? The last straw for many came when watching the recent TV Drama series, “Mr. Bates versus the Post Office”.  This drama, based on fact, highlighted what has been called one of the worst miscarriages of British Justice. Viewers found themselves with one looming unanswered question, “how could this persist, at such a scale, for so long? How could hundreds of people face wrongful te ..read more

Next time you can’t face the thought of getting out into the kitchen, a Dietician has just suggested this simple milkshake, using Ovaltine. or Horlicks. This makes a nutritious alternative to making a meal, when you just can’t face the thought of cooking.  However, to ensure you get all your nutients, dfon’t forget to eat some fruit and/or veg. along with your Shake. The old stand-by Ovaltine or Horlicks has lots going for it, and if you make ithe drink with milk, not water, it contains lots of Protein.  This drink can be made cold in the summer, or with hot milk in winter, an ..read more

It’s the sanctimonious attitude the NHS exhibits when you try and find out when will you finally get an appointment, that drives me mad .  Have you noticed recently whenever you phone an NHS number, there is an announcement asking us to treat staff with “respect and courtesy”. The other day I was told that I would have to wait ten months to see a doctor about a painful condition.  I was so startled I just screamed “What?”  I couldn’t believe it.  “If you shout at me, I will terminate this call” I was told.  No apology – I was in the wrong. No wonder patients end up sho ..read more

Playing the NHS appointments system Recently two senior Consultants told me they don’t expect the NHS to be around in ten years’ time. So I just hope those 7 million plus of us on waiting lists get seen before this happens. Mulling this over, I reflect I usually see my doctors in a timely fashion, without long waits, because I follow my own advice on climbing up the waiting list;  a sneaky way of getting better health care using techniques I learned from family members in the forces. Recently I turn on TV, and am riveted by a documentary going behind the scenes of the Falklands War.  ..read more

The club no one wants to join Dear L This isn’t a fun place to be, in fact it is B……y confusing.  You see, there is no typical case, so no one is really able to tell you what is going to happen. You are going to have to suss it out for yourself, and – I hope – have a few wry smiles on the way.  And perhaps some laughs as you find out one thing for sure – you’ll have a good laugh with fellow patients. Llisten to your body.  It knows what is best for YOU”.  A very wise old Consultant toldf me this, and said the best way to get through treatment is to be Bxxxxy minded and stic ..read more

Don’t compromise on Skincare  Skin is our largest organ, but drugs used to treat us can produce nasty side effects on our skin Today’s medical treatments use strong drugs, which can leave patients with nasty side effects, such as itchy peeling skin, similar to the left side of this image;  We all want skin looking like the ‘nice’ right side, but anyone whose skin looks like the left side, probably knows a shortage of dermatologists in UK can leave us in despair. How I was I used to be Beauty Editor for an American trade magazine, so owned a cupboard full of freebie skincare.  At ..read more

Getting what I want!  Last January I posted this article, and a friend has just phoned to say it’s worked for her too – so here it is again!  ……… Last January my polio consultant gave me new instructions and said he would see me in May to check if they worked.  Come May, I phoned – only to be told “Dr. X’s clinic is full up to July, when it closes”.  And the person on the phone said there was no waiting list, or any chance of a cancellation and I had had been overr-looked; sorry !. Full stop! This was a wake-up call, so I went into overdrive sent email to my MP, with a cop ..read more

Feelings run high over private  medical care. In other countries,  private and state-funded care to run side-by-side, but here it can lead to bad feeling.When I lived in London, some private providers had seen opportunities and were providing sub-standard services to the NHS.  e.g. One had cleverly seen that I had had polio, so made this the excuse to provide cheaper X-rays rather than an MRI Scan.  I could quite easily lie on an MRI flatbed, provided I was given pain relief.  But that cost extra – and instead they tried to palm me off with useless X-rays.When I moved ..read more