Doctors, Pharmacies and a Bento Box

So I might have jinxed myself with my last post, since I have been nothing but a ‘busy bee’ 🐝 this past week with a funny cheek infection. Initially, I thought it was just a minor scratch who turned out to have worsened over the weekend. Walking into work on Monday, I was bombarded by questions about whether I had gotten into a fight or burnt myself, and with that I realised maybe I should seek some helps about it.

When I visited the pharmacy for some creams/ointments after work on Tuesday, I was a bit taken back to hear the pharmacist to tell me that it may be an infection and I should see a doctor about it. Now, as much as I appreciate the work of NHS in the UK, I can’t help but get annoyed at times. Since moving to London, making an appointment with GP have been quite literally a nightmare for me with their long waiting times. After I was told there won’t be a free appointment until after 2 weeks (and I struggle with the ‘walk in’ times as they are during work in the morning), I hung up with a huff. 😤

After speaking to NHS on 111, I was suggested to go into a ‘walk in’ centre for a appointment. However, after spending a good 20 minutes on the bus to get to the medical centre nearby, I was told they have reached maximum capacity for the day and was turned away! 🤦‍♂️ This left me having to take another 20 minutes of underground going back to the opposite direction to a hospital which also has walk in services. 😕 Thankfully it wasn’t much of a long wait and the doctor was very attentive and helpful (who also had someone who was training with him which was quite nice to see.) They both told me my cheek infection was nothing too serious, and with some ointment and antibiotics, it would heal very soon. 😊

I thought my day was finally over as I headed to the hospital pharmacy for my prescriptions. But it turned out it was closed by that point! 😭 With no other choices, I thought this wasn’t too bad and I could just head to a pharmacy nearby. Because it was 6pm, almost all pharmacies in the area nearby were closed so I stopped by King’s Cross Station on my way home, which had a pharmacy open until late. But adding salt to the wounds, I was told the prescription form they wrote for me was a specific one for the hospital pharmacy so it would be illegal for them to give me any prescriptions! 😫😡 (Literally felt like I wanted to bang my head against the wall by that point…)

So I ended up going back to the hospital the next day after work (I took an Uber too because my work place was quite a distance from the hospital and I didn’t finish work until after 4 when the pharmacy was going to be closed by half 5.) But at least now, I finally got my prescription and ate at a nice Japanese restaurant nearby. 😁😋 I found often bento boxes in Japanese restaurants in the UK consisted of either a selection of teriyaki chicken or salmon. I usually prefer the latter, but sometimes do get disappointed by the salmon being too overcooked. But this one was nicely cooked, and I really enjoyed the tempuras and the simple avocado sushi rolls.

Have you also had problems with health services before? Feel free to share in the comments below.