NHS - I am Confused?

I have a pain in my lower abdominal area/a bit above my groin. It hurts when I sit up from a laying down position or sneeze after a run. There is also a tiny lump 3-5mm sort of in the area and this is not present on the other side.

So I call the doctors, no appointments, but the doctor will call me between 11 & 12, which he does. I struggle to describe the area and the pain as I really need to actually point to it, but he tells me to take Ibruprofen and if it is still bad in a week get an appointment.

A week gone same issue, so I call for appointment. Again I can't get one but get offered the telephone triage service again, so I go through it all and then get offered an appointment with the nurse practitioner.

She checks me over, blood pressure etc, feels around and also notices the lump, tells me it is a lymph gland and tells me to do a urine sample and bloods, she also puts me on a course of anti-biotics.

Blood test on another day at the doctors, on time, walked in "oh Cr@p" it was the receptionist taking the bloods!!!

Wait one week for the results and am told I need to book a non-urgent appointment, which turns out to be 2 weeks after I called, again with the nurse practitioner.

Went in this morning and was told:

1. I have low white cells.
2. I have low something else, to do with white cells.
3. I have a cholesterol of 5.6

...and nothing said about my original issue which I still have, until I mentioned it.

Then they said they are referring me to a surgeon, for what though?

Is this good service? Am I starting to worry about nothing?

What can I do about my cholesterol?

didn't you ask them? my experience of frontline public services is that they take the minimalist approach - you have to be a bit more proactive and demanding to get an adequate response.

In response to the medical questions, there's plenty of advice online about managing cholesterol - mostly to do with diet and exercise. On the surgery front, did they mention the possiblity of it being a hernia?

They said it is not a hernia, it is tiny too!

My first thought was a hernia, ring the GP and ask exactly why she`s referring you

I think you need to be a bit more demanding from your GP! I speak from experience and as such my experiences are mine and do not apply to everybody.

As such - the results from your blood tests could be something could be nothing. Could be related to the pain and the lump or not. That useless piece of GP that you saw should have given you all this info and explained what you might have or why she/he is referring you to a surgeon!!

Go back and DEMAND to get a proper service! They get paid to do a job! Demand they do it right.

regarding your cholestrol, the figure is not horrendous nothing to panic about just be a bit more careful in what you eat maybe. cheese, mayonaisse, butter that kind of deal try to minimise as much as you can.

My cholesterol level is 3.7 and i need to keep it as low as possible due the fact as a diabetic i am more at risk to heart disease.

I eat as healthy as possible but allow myself occasional treats. Look at the nutrional info at foods when you go shopping so you can pick a product lower in fats etc. Also ride a push bike a few times a week and other forms of excercise. Your level is at borderline/high and i would think about doing something about it now and not put it off.

I sometimes get painful lymph nodes / glands in my groin area or under armpits when I am a bit run down. If they have done blood tests and not highlighted a specific issue then I wouldn't worry about them. My Mrs had one in her neck a few years ago that they actually removed and tested on as they thought it may be cancerous but in the end (fortunately ) nothing was wrong and they put it down to being enlarged due to some other minor infection.

Of course I'm not a doctor so don't really know but I wouldn't mind betting that you're just a bit run down, possibly fighting off some minor infections, upset with the weather, etc, etc.

Originally Posted by TC3

I eat as healthy as possible but allow myself occasional treats. Look at the nutrional info at foods when you go shopping so you can pick a product lower in fats etc.

Also ride a push bike a few times a week and other forms of excercise. Your level is at borderline/high and i would think about doing something about it now and not put it off.

I am not the healthiest eater, but I'm not overly unhealthy eating either. I run about 50 miles per week too.

Having said that both my parents have high cholesterol and I don't want to have an issue with it when I am older, so from Monday I am going to start looking after my eating a bit better. It may also help me lose a bit of weight and therefore help my running.

[appollo1]

i'd be more concerned with the bloods being taken by a receptionist!!!!!