Want to see your local Doctor? No, you don’t have an appointment

Have you ever had a headache experience? The type of headache that would leave you with no doubt that if you don’t seek immediate treatment you will depart this life? You pick up the phone to your local GP asking to see him/her (or him/her to see you whatever the case might be) straight away. To your immense surprise you are told you have no appointment and the only space available is the next day. You then start to have a conversation with your head asking why it didn’t forewarn you of the impending pain.
I can tell you this much: your head has greater chance to give you a useful answer than those who design the health services.
You will be left with a few options. One of these is to ring the ‘doctor on call’ and fork out extra 10+ euros and you will be lucky if s/he arrives at your door step within two hours. The other option is to ring ambulance services that will arrive at your door step in no time, and get you to Tallaght hospital where you will most likely join the Q.
This is unnecessary and avoidable if our primary care services are reviewed and sufficiently resourced.

Why primary care services aren’t adequately resourced to match local populations is beyond me. These are and should be the first port of call for local communities in accessing health services. Health is number one priority for every one hence mechanisms should be put in place at a local level to protect and enhance it.

Ways you can influence local decisions

• Register to vote, and vote for local representatives who have a genuine understanding of your perspective and will deliver. Remember, delivering isn’t just about sending out press releases or just asking questions in public spaces in order to score points. Delivering is about mobilising resources that will bring about lasting change to you and those around you.
• Actively participate in local lobby groups or networks. The change that you want to see will come if you set out looking for it. In Tallaght a health related lobby group is THAG, www.tallaghthospitalactiongroup.org.
• Lobby your local representatives. They are elected to represent you (not just themselves – which is what I see often times). Hold them to account
• Monitor and record issues pertaining to your community and feed them into the right spaces.
• If there isn’t a network create your own.
• Network within your means, speak to positive and progressive people who want to see change and particip

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