Finally an ECG ‘more than a month after my alerting the NHS to my heart hiatus’

• IN late September I hand-delivered a letter to my GP to describe a seriously concerning heart incident that I had suffered. I cannot fault the subsequent service I’ve had from him at the Caversham Practice, but…

In a phone consultation on October 6 he wanted to arrange for me to have an ECG and, more importantly, what’s known as a Holster 24-hour ECG monitor, this to detect whether I have arrhythmia.

But none of our local hospitals now offer such services as these have been contracted out to an NHS provider called “In Health”, who in consequence are totally over-stretched.

I’m set to have the ECG on October 30, more than a month after my alerting the NHS to my heart hiatus, and I will have to travel to “In Health” in Stratford on public transport.

Two weeks on from contacting “In Health”, I still have no appointment for the 24-hour monitor, though I was offered a cancellation 10 miles away in Enfield at short notice which I couldn’t make.

I alerted my GP to these unsatisfactory failures by “In Health” and he phoned me very promptly and escalated my case. On Friday October 9 he referred me to UCH’s so-called “Urgent Chest Pain Clinic” to investigate.

As of October 20 I’ve heard not a dicky-bird from UCH. I have written again to my GP. I really don’t think this is an adequate NHS service.

Flu and winter illnesses have hardly started. I live within two kilometres of three teaching hospitals, Harley Street, and several private hospitals in the “medical mile”.

Like most other citizens I’m loth to be a burden on A &E and frankly (perhaps unreasonably) I fear the fact that both the Royal Free and UCH are Covid-19 hospitals.

Surely Camden’s NHS could and should avail at least one alternative provider to address what may be serious early warning heart condition symptoms?

PAUL BRAITHWAITE
Bartholomew Villas, NW5