Asthmatic 'denied inhalers' over New Year break
A SINGLE mother with asthma has slammed her doctors' surgery which she claims "left her to die" by refusing to give her an inhaler.
Kerry Reeves was left without the medicine she so desperately needs for four days over the new year break because her practice – which she has attended for 13 years – said she "didn't have asthma".
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Kerry, left, with her daughter Frankie and some of her spent inhalers
The 32-year-old, who has suffered with the disease since her early teens, claims Parkway Health Centre in New Addington would not hand over her regular prescription because she had not ordered it for six months.
Kerry, from Corbett Close on the estate, said: "Just because I hadn't ordered a repeat prescription in the last six months they turned around and said I didn't have asthma and wouldn't let me see the doctor.
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"I told them I'd been in hospital and been given the inhalers there twice this year.
"They were so rude to me – I feel like they were quite happy to leave me to die.
"I was absolutely fuming."
Despite Kerry putting in countless repeat prescriptions for Ventolin and Becotide inhalers over the years, she claims she was sent away from the surgery empty handed on Friday as it closed for the holidays.
She said she had recently been sent a letter by the surgery inviting her to go for a flu jab because she suffers with asthma, which she went for.
Kerry continued: "I use inhalers every day and I don't drive. If I had an attack I wouldn't be able to drive myself to hospital and I wouldn't be able to talk on the phone to call one. Both my A&Es are half an hour away.
Left without medicine and suffering with a cold, Kerry warned her 13-year-old daughter Frankie to be extra wary of her condition. "I said to her 'you've got to be very aware tonight and be there to call an ambulance if I can't breathe'," recalled Kerry.
Responding to the claims on behalf of the surgery, a spokesman for NHS South West London said: "We would always advise people with long term health conditions, such as asthma, diabetes, lung and heart disease, to help themselves to stay as well as possible by planning ahead over the holiday period to make sure that they have enough of their medicine to cover them if their GP surgery is closed.
"There is also a range of accessible healthcare services in Croydon should a patient need urgent healthcare out of hours or over bank holiday periods."
Comments
by Misterkipling
Thursday, January 12 2012, 1:00AM
“bet you manage to be motivated enough to get a repeat prescription more often next time eh love
Generally if you require regular medication then only an idiot wouldn't prepare for the Christmas/new year season while thinking about all those bank holidays you have off
How many spent inhalers does it take before you consider getting some replacements if they are that important?
You are a time wasting idiot that didn't get the drop everything answer she wanted so has complained to the papers, if you had an attack I bet the Ambulance or hospital would have an inhaler
I am type 1 diabetic, and if I was think enough to run out of medication on christmas eve knowing a repeat prescription takes three days then i would be just as big an idiot
Hasn't ever happened though”