HI,
Went to the doctors yesterday because I have pharyngitis hence needed a doctors note from him for work because I've been too ill to work this last week. He used this appointment as an opportunity to try and cut many of the drugs I take for PA! Thankfully not my jabs though although I'm now scared that will follow too.
First of all he told me I no longer needed my 5mg daily Folic Acid as my last blood results (november 2011) showed my levels were very good, so I tentatively agreed to this. This does concern me though because I get symptoms of B12 deficiency just as my jab is due every month - shaky hands and fingers being one of them which I presume to be from the nerve damage we get from PA. As a midwife I need to take blood and give IM drugs so I am worried about how this will affect my practice and god only knows if I have much more time off sick lately I'm going to be in hot water!
He then told me that I no longer needed the 400mg Ferrous Sulphate which I take daily and have for the last 9 years along with the Folic Acid since being diagnosed.
I told him I thought this a bad idea because when I am ill or very stressed my symptoms become much worst and as has been the case lately, cutting back is not wise so I offered to try and half the dose and see how things go but refused to stop taking it, which he reluctantly agreed to.
He also told me that Pernicious Anaemia does NOT cause iron deficiency anaemia - interesting since at diagnosis of PA I had a haemoglobin of about 6 or 8 point something for the first time ever.
So my question is :-
1 If I didn't need any of these drugs why have I spent the last 9 years on them all?
2 Why suddenly cut my drugs after 9 years of being largely stable up until the last 2.
3 Is this a just a cost cutting exercise he has been encouraged to pursue without any thought for the cost of the health to the patients these changes will affect?
Forgive my rant but GP's know so little about PA and living day to day with it I cannot help thinking this is all likely to end badly for me.
I knew that giving GP's power over their own budgets was a bad idea because this is the end result.
Any help will be apprecited.
I didn't find the right solution from the Internet.
References:
https://www.pernicious-anaemia-society.org/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=13013
Thank you.