Is there a (Charitable) doctor in the house ?

[Wisbech]

Hi

 

I am hoping there is someone out there who can help or advise me.

 

I am wanting to do a Tandem sky-dive for Charity (That has helped and continues to help a young Sheffield family) Problem is, as I am the shockingly advanced age of 56, I need a Declaration of fitness form stamping and signing before I can Jump. The form lists a number of medical conditions, all of which I have had the good fortune to avoid so no problem I thought.

 

I submitted the form to my GP (well receptionist, who said no problem call back in a couple of days, and added, the doctor has in the past, waived any fee if it was for a good cause) great I thought, more money can go to the charity.

 

Long story short, TWO WEEKS down the line, after being told four different things by four different receptionist and trying unsuccessfully to book an appointment to see my GP. I am told they do not have procedure in place to deal with such requests BUT they will bring it up at the next meeting, and I have been told it will need a double appointment time slot that would be considered a Private (Not NHS) case.

 

I have not named the practise as it wouldn't help the situation in any way I do not expect the service to be free I am happy to pay for their time I just need it resolving so I can start arranging sponsors.

 

Link to sponsor Page NB I am posting this link so you can see the cause is a worthy one, I am not asking for sponsors yet because without a signed form the jump will not take place.

 

 

If anyone can help or suggest a solution Please let me know

Edited June 30, 2013 by Wisbech
Link added

[Bludragonfly]

It's a shame you didn't just make an appt with the GP in the first place as they might have signed it there and then

 

Without having full access to your medical records it will be hard for a Doctor to sign the form

 

Hope you get it sorted

[Wisbech]

Thanks for your good wishes Bludragonfly,

 

One thing about being an old timer is my reticence to bother a doctor over a non-urgent, non-medical problem. As you will see from the charity I am supporting I have nothing but admiration for the medical profession.

 

The practice I am with is the result of two merged practices and I fear I may have become a bit of a political/procedural football which I think might explain the conflicting advice from the front desk.

 

I don't want to turn this into an appointment gripe free-for-all I just want a little common sense to prevail and above all I want to raise money for a cause I care passionately about.

 

If I am reading the form correctly it is a kind of self certification that is confirmed by a GP with access to my records or after an examination that I would willingly pay for, but I haven't got a month to wait for an appointment

[Mr Bloom]

Is there an ATOS "Doctor" in the house? They'll declare anyone fit for anything.

 

Oh sorry, I missed the word "charitable".

[julado]

Is there an ATOS "Doctor" in the house? They'll declare anyone fit for anything.

 

Oh sorry, I missed the word "charitable".

 

Sheffield Forum REALLY does NEED a "LIKE" button

[Wisbech]

Yeah - Great Idea, We could fit it where the pointless post button used to be, before it wore out

[maccapacca]

A lot of GPs choose to decline these requests simply as its a shameless piece of buck passing by the sky-dive operator. If you said no to everything on the questionnaire then i don't see why you need a letter from your Dr unless the operator is trying to pass on the liability in the case of injury toward your GP and their (very expensive) indemnity insurance. Why don't you ask the operator to recommend a GP or occupational health doc who specialises in this area of medicine.

 

You may also be interested in this study which suggests that you have an 11% chance of injury. The costs of this (to the NHS) are likely to outweigh any money you may raise by jumping

 

http://www.injuryjournal.com/article/S0020-1383(02)00100-6/abstract

 

I do wish you the best and hope you have fun.

[bare footer]

A lot of GPs choose to decline these requests simply as its a shameless piece of buck passing by the sky-dive operator. If you said no to everything on the questionnaire then i don't see why you need a letter from your Dr unless the operator is trying to pass on the liability in the case of injury toward your GP and their (very expensive) indemnity insurance. Why don't you ask the operator to recommend a GP or occupational health doc who specialises in this area of medicine.

 

All UK tandem parachute jumps require you to self certify your health if under 40 years of age. If 40 years and over you require a doctors health certification like the OP is trying to obtain. If you want to do a jump then do one before you reach 40, not that this will help the OP.

[Wisbech]

Hi

 

Thanks for the suggestions, it looks like I will have to contact the BPA to see if they can point me in the right direction.

 

This is the form Form F115 (Top One) It doesn't look like a buck pass to my untrained eye. I would think its like an MOT its only a valid document on the day issued.

 

Barefooter, I think the under 40s sign a self certify form on the day (If I have read it correctly)

 

I am happy to state on a public forum, that if I die, I won't ring injurylawyers4u , Seriously I'm from that era where when you have tripped over something, you should have looked where you were going.

 

Maccapacca At the ripe old age of 56 I have been hospitalised overnight just once (Tonsils out aged 10) Come August, I will have been working & paying NI contributions for 41 years. I have been told part of the problem is that I haven't visited the surgery much so they don't have recent data. I am happy to work with an 89% risk of success. Its the 1 in 175 main chute malfunctions statistic that I heard on Calender recently, that has raised my eybrows the most.

[Wisbech]

Hi All,

 

Just a quick update, after close on 5 weeks, my practice have finally held a meeting addressing the will they , wont they, sign issue and have informed me of their decision NOT to sign the required form, reason given. They don't have to !!!

 

On the plus side I was given the name of a private GP willing to examine and certify me. 24 hrs later, after being given a refreshing choice of appointment slots, I am now examined and certified fit for one so elderly although £80 (Sadly not lbs) lighter, I finally have the thumbs up to make the jump on the 28th July.

 

I am now 5 weeks behind in a quest to recruit sponsors so if anyone out there would like to help me make up for lost time, please take a minute to visit the link in post # 1 and help me to help a very worthy cause.

 

Thank you for listening to my gripe.