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Our health correspondent\u2019s account of receiving an endometriosis diagnosis via text message struck a deep chord with Independent readers.<\/p>\n
Following Rebecca Thomas\u2019 account<\/a>, our community has been sharing their own experiences of an NHS<\/a> that feels increasingly impersonal and overstretched.<\/p>\n Several readers echoed her shock and distress at learning serious medical news through a message on their phone, describing similar moments of confusion and fear on reading diagnoses with no explanation or follow-up. <\/p>\n One woman said she discovered she had stage 3 kidney disease via her NHS app, while another was told of a terminal illness through a two-line letter. <\/p>\n Others reflected on how the human element of healthcare has eroded, with one reader lamenting that after 60 years of NHS care, they no longer even know their consultant\u2019s name.<\/p>\n Several readers also expressed sympathy for doctors<\/a> and nurses working under huge pressure, warning that exhaustion, underfunding and low morale inevitably lead to rushed and impersonal care. <\/p>\n Yet there was also recognition that digitisation can help, with some arguing that SMS or app updates are preferable to long waits for appointments.<\/p>\n Amid the debate, readers broadly agreed that compassion and communication must remain at the heart of healthcare, no matter how efficient the technology becomes.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s what you had to say:<\/p>\n I found this out on my medical app<\/p>\n In August 2025, I was diagnosed with stage 3 kidney disease. I found this out on my medical app in the summary section \u2013 that was such a shock \u2013 and the month before I had a POCS stroke. Nothing else was added, no follow-up blood test, just left with that diagnosis. <\/p>\n I now have a follow-up blood test because I talked to a GP about just being left with the worrying two lines on the app. He said he has no control over what others write.<\/p>\n Pebbles<\/p>\n<\/p>\n A two-line letter<\/p>\n Firstly, I have the Wales NHS app. It doesn’t work. NHS helpdesk says, “see GP\u2019s reception”. They say, “contact NHS”. I have given up.<\/p>\n Secondly, my GP gave me my diagnosis of a terminal illness with a two-line letter from the radiologist. <\/p>\n Querying this got the explanation that no-one here knows much about this! Went private for an explanation and a referral to a specialist team. I have changed my GP.<\/p>\n Twlldupobsais<\/p>\n A scary business having health problems these days<\/p>\n I was born in the 60s with a life-long condition that affects my health, so I have had experience of the NHS for 60 years. I could name all the consultants that I have been under up to the past decade, when the service became far less personal. <\/p>\n Since Covid, I don\u2019t even know my current consultant\u2019s name and am not sure who to contact if I have difficulties. It has taken me four years to get my GP to take a deterioration in my mobility seriously, and another year before my referral to a specialist resulted in a first consultation. I am still waiting to find out if there is any treatment available, having now been passed between different consultants. In the meantime, my health has deteriorated quite substantially.<\/p>\n It\u2019s quite a scary business having health problems these days. One is faced with a nameless, shapeless organisation that seems so stretched that it can no longer treat its patients as individuals.<\/p>\n Slamps<\/p>\n A text would have been kinder<\/p>\n Years ago, my mother got her diagnosis of terminal kidney cancer that had metastasised to the bones from a doctor in person. The doctor had zero empathy, was constantly looking at her watch and actually lied to her when she told her that she would pass on peacefully in six months. She died in agony three years later as the cancer was busy breaking her bones open from the inside. A text would have been kinder.<\/p>\n Pomerol95<\/p>\n Automated emails<\/p>\n We receive automated emails telling us our NHS file has been updated, and we can then log in to read any updates or information.<\/p>\n I don’t imagine that’s any more time-consuming than a text, but it\u2019s certainly more confidential.<\/p>\n Nobodylistens<\/p>\n France\u2019s digital appointment system<\/p>\n Here in France, after any test, scan or X-ray, I receive the results personally with short notes giving the technician\u2019s summary. I then make an appointment with my GP (never more than 48 hours away) to discuss results and recommended treatment. France has a digital appointment system and is highly computerised, with a site listing my total healthcare costs, etc. I don’t understand why the UK doesn’t implement this. It saves so much time \u2013 and probably money.<\/p>\n SRKfan<\/p>\n Pressure and workload<\/p>\n I can’t comment on this case, but what the critics should bear in mind is the pressure some clinical staff are under. I have a son who is a consultant psychiatrist and regularly works a 50\u201360 hour week. He uses the app on his phone to record case notes as he drives between one case and another, which I think is unwise but is his decision (hence possible typos?). No one should have a workload like that, because it means the service given to patients is inevitably sub-standard \u2013 but mental health needs much more resources.<\/p>\n Barry Hughes<\/p>\n Paying to see a doctor<\/p>\n I had to pay to see a doctor after my local surgery told me there was no chance of seeing a GP. At least I was diagnosed within minutes and treatment planned within my time frame \u2013 but at a huge cost.<\/p>\n EnglishCastle<\/p>\n Damned if they do and damned if they don\u2019t<\/p>\n Doctors are damned if they do and damned if they don\u2019t.<\/p>\n It may not be ideal but, personally, I\u2019d sooner find out now by text than, say, wait a week for a face-to-face.<\/p>\n HoleyMoley<\/p>\n Terrible<\/p>\n This is terrible. Any diagnosis that is terminal should be given by an empathetic doctor. This doctor was obviously in the wrong job. The NHS is going to get worse. I hear stories all the time and I’m going through a health crisis right now where nobody can give me a diagnosis for the last seven months. Truly scary.<\/p>\n Skylazar<\/p>\n You cannot have it both ways<\/p>\n You can either get your non-cancer results by text and get referred straight away, or wait 4\u20136 weeks for an appointment to be told what’s in the text and to be referred on \u2013 delaying your referral and telling you what the signposted information is, which you can read yourself. You cannot have it both ways.<\/p>\n Nash<\/p>\n Not acceptable<\/p>\n It is not acceptable, and never has been, to be informed of an important diagnosis in any way other than face to face. Anything other is a serious slippage of standards and the doctor doing so should be ashamed. Care extends well beyond the physical and, when done well, is an art.<\/p>\n The hospital referral could have been made with no delay.<\/p>\n Tinworth<\/p>\n What\u2019s wrong with a text?<\/p>\n What’s wrong with a text? I prefer that to arranging an appointment, making my way to the surgery, and then hanging around for half an hour or more to be told exactly the same thing.<\/p>\n Yystrckl<\/p>\n Some of the comments have been edited for this article for brevity and clarity.<\/p>\n Want to share your views<\/a>? Simply register your details below. Once registered, you can comment on the day\u2019s top stories for a chance to be featured. Alternatively, click \u2018log in\u2019 or \u2018register\u2019 in the top right corner to sign in or sign up.<\/p>\n Make sure you adhere to our community guidelines<\/a>, which can be found here<\/a>. For a full guide on how to comment click here.<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":202639,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[43],"tags":[102,2960,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-202638","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-healthcare","8":"tag-health","9":"tag-healthcare","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom","12":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/202638","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=202638"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/202638\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/202639"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=202638"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=202638"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=202638"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}