Forum 
Rural Answers
Cost of getting to Hospital Appointments
Doing this once is tiring and expensive enought, but she has been called back again within 24 hours to have another test done. IN two weeks time she has to go in for a heart monitoring process which necessitates her having sensor pads attached to her on one day and returning the following day to have them checked and removed.
Then in 6 weeks time she has to drive for 3 hours each way to get to another hospital for an MRI scan which because of the distance and her health will require her to pay for overnight accomodation.
She has been told she is not entitled to any help with petrol costs because help is only available to those people in receipt of certain benefits. So in one week she has had to pay out £50 for two tanks of petrol, next month she will have to pay out the same, and for her MRI scan she will have to pay out even more and finance somewhere to say over night.
While I can appreciate that MRI scans cannot be in the local community, I can't beleive that specialist blood tests and 24 hour heart monitors can't be provided in a GO surgery or local community hospital.
If they are not, then surely since we have all paid our NHS contributions and continue to pay our council tax, there should be some form of reimbursement for those having to pay out to get treatment that is supposed to be free. It is not free when it is so centralised it cannot be accessed without paying out vast sums for petrol.
I have looked on the NHS Scotland site and tried everywhere to find information but cann't find any. I beleive that this is discriminating against people living in rural areas, who need to have frequent hospital visits.
Liz
2-Feb-2007 @ 11:50AM
Sue Sadler
You make a very good point about the cost to people in rural areas of getting to/from hospitals. I believe that in Highland, the NHS have a more equitable arrangement for reimbursing travel costs. This surely should be available to all - why not a maximum cost? At what point do people ask themselves whether they can afford treatment?
This issue can only get worse. If your neighbour had been unable to drive herself, what options would she have? There are hundreds of volunteer hospital car drivers, who give their time free to help people get to hospital - but there is little financial support for these groups. The Ambulance Service (non-emergency service)is trying to focus on patients with medical need, but someone surely has to help those patients who simply have no transport.
Sue
Our link of the month for February is to the Community Health Exchange (CHEX) website. They are a health sector agency who provide a resource in supporting community development approaches to health improvement and challenging health inequalities.
I'm not sure if the cost of getting to hospital appointments would be part of their remit, however it would probably be worth contacting them.
http://www.chex.org.uk/
Rural Health Care
13-Feb-2007 @ 13:51PM
Phil Armstrong
NHs services are under threat in rural areas. Badger your MSP/MP and MEP on this issue. Rural communities are facing attacks from all areas, lack of public transport, reduced services and increased cost of private transport.
Phil, Dumfriesshire