Doctors Signature Requirements Cambridge Diet

[littledoris]

I think it is terrible that some Dr's won't sign the form and then if they do they have the cheek to charge for it. It took my Dr's a week to get the form back to me and then they wanted to charge me £22 for it. The actual Dr that signed my form was great and really supportive and when I asked if there would be a charge she said it was down to the admin manger. When I collected my form I argued my case saying that if I don't do this diet then surely I would be more of a drain on their resources. She let me take the form, with no charge, but said i may get a bill in the post. Four weeks on and no bill
Good luck on your Cambridge journey xxxx
****We can do it****
arty0038:

 

[suepat10]

I had an appointment with my GP this morning. She had never heard of the Cambridge diet, looks about 12 and also looks anorexic.

She was VERY anti the plan etc but could tell I was determined to do it etc so grudgingly signed the form with no charge.

 

[CW Consultant]

If your BMI is 40 or above you MUST go to GP for signature. Only if GP then says no can your Consultant put you on 1200 cal and this is only AFTER they get permission from the Cambridge Medical Department.

No Consultant should operate any differently than this otherwise they are breaking their Code of Conduct.

 

[Heaven can wait]

Its so sad to hear that still nothing has changed with regard to GPs charging to sign forms to start dieting. All mine ever did was say' lose weight' but then , 'its oh well I have to charge its practice policy'. Makes me mad. And its such a lottery, I know people who have had their slimming world or weight watchers paid for by the NHS. others myself included have been charged AND been made to feel a nuisance for asking. So much for tackling the obesity timebomb. One friend of mine actually put on an extra 3 stone so she could have weight loss surgery as she was so desparate to get some help. How much did that cost the NHS?
Everytime I see a advert for help to stop smoking I want to shout 'Yeah give all the money to the smokers! What about waiving fees for dieters who are being proactive and trying to lose weight at heir own expense. Makes my blood boil. I suspect that we people with weight problems will always be the cinderellas of the NHS, because they think we are just greedy or ignorant, whereas people like alcoholics, drug abusers and smokers are addicts and deserving of aid. Its predjudice pure and simple, they would never dream of charging someone to enable them to start a detox programe , stop smoking, or go into rehab.

 

[cornishkez]

Hear hear!

 

[colly strings]

if my BMI is under 40 and my docs get the letter saying I started CD,can they object in any way and stop me doing it? I can see my doctor saying no cuz they don't agree with "fad diets"...

 

[KD]

if my BMI is under 40 and my docs get the letter saying I started CD,can they object in any way and stop me doing it? I can see my doctor saying no cuz they don't agree with "fad diets"...

If they need to sign, they are not signing to give permission, just to say that the info is correct.

No, if they don't have to sign, then you should be able to do it regardless of their opinions.

 

[colly strings]

So for someone under BMI 40 and no medication/health conditions they won't need to sign/cant throw a spanner in the works? I'm probably being paranoid. Just wondering if its worth getting in touch with them, but don't want to upset myself if they won't have any say anyway!

 

[KD]

So for someone under BMI 40 and no medication/health conditions they won't need to sign/cant throw a spanner in the works? I'm probably being paranoid. Just wondering if its worth getting in touch with them, but don't want to upset myself if they won't have any say anyway!

No, but why would you get in touch with them? It really shouldn't be a problem. If you are feeling very paranoid about it, and sure your dr is going to try and sabotage it, there's always SS+ which doesn't even need a drs note let alone a siggy. Great plan, similar weight loss.

I've never had a dr refuse a signature for any of my clients, let alone brew up a storm over the SS letter. In fact, a department in the local hospital is actually recommending the diet to some of his patients.

Relax I'm sure it'll all be fine

I'm sure you'll be fine.

 

[Soon to be yummy mummy]

I am SO SO annoyed, I started CD SS a week ago and I went to the doctors on the same day to get them to sign my form. The doctor wouldn't do it there and then and told me to give it in to reception - no mention of any fee. I have been on the plan a week and by my scales have lost 6-7lbs! (woo woo!!), weighing reminded me about the form so I phoned the doctors to see if the form was ready to pick up and was told "yes it is, you can pick it up any time - but it incurs a cost of £30!!"

I nearly fainted! £30!! There's no way I'm paying that out of principle! Thats nearly my weeks' supply of CD!!

I phoned my CD consultant and she said that she will email CD but as I have no other medical problems (other than a BMI of over 45) and that the surgery have admitted that the doctor has happily signed it, there should be no problem with me continuing with CD SS/SS+ until the problem with my form is resolved. She's told me to write a letter of complaint to the practice manager and wait for a reply. During which time I'm allowed to follow SS+. I only have a stone to go until my BMI is under 40 so here's to losing that over the next week or two so I don't even need that bloody form!!

SO SO annoyed!

Here's a sample of my letter of complaint!! (I have obvsiously omitted some of the personal details / names etc so it doesn't read as well! but hoping to get a suitable response from them!)

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Dear Sir/Madam,

I am writing to complain about the recent information I have received upon telephoning the surgery.

I had an appointment with Doctor xxx on Tuesday 20th April to discuss my test results. Whilst there I discussed with Doctor xxxx my desire to lose a lot of weight in order to feel fitter and healthier. I also made Doctor xxxx aware of my decision to begin a new weight loss programme called the Cambridge Weight Plan.

In order to begin this plan I needed the signature of my doctor on the Medical Referral Form as my BMI is over 45. The MFR is not a “permission” or consent form for the doctor, it simply needs a signature to confirm that the medical details I have provided on the form are correct.

I asked Doctor xxxx whether she would sign the form and she said to give it in to Reception and she would have a look at it after surgery time that day and if I telephoned in the week it could be picked up.

There was no mention of a fee being charged and I definitely didn’t think to ask if there was one because I didn’t, for the life of me, think that there would be.

I telephoned the surgery this morning (26/04/2010) and was informed that Dr xxxx HAD signed my form and that it was ready to pick up but it would incur a fee of £30!!

I was asked if I had been pre-informed of the fee and I replied, most certainly not!

I asked what would happen if I could not afford to pay the £30 and I was passed through to someone else who told me that if I could not afford to pay then the form could not be released.

I find this absolutely ridiculous! I understand that in some surgeries they charge an admin fee for this sort of thing, but I have asked around and no one has ever heard of being charged £30 for a medical form to be signed!

I am a member of the Cambridge Plan Forum on the internet and no one else has ever experienced this cost for their doctors’ to sign their medical forms.

I am a mum who works part-time and there is no way that I can afford to pay that sort of money just to get a signature to embark on a weight loss plan!

Before turning to the Cambridge Plan, I was prescribed the prescription weight loss drug Orlistat / Xenical by one of the doctors at this surgery and even after following the low fat diet plan, I can honestly say that I did not lose any weight.

I understand that this prescription drug is very expensive for the NHS.

I am now spending my own money on the Cambridge Plan products and for the first time ever am experiencing a great weight loss (approximately 9lbs in the first two weeks).

Yet, the surgery is saying that they would willingly prescribe me Orlistat monthly at a cost far higher to the surgery and the NHS as a whole, and that would be free to me – but they want to charge me to start a weight loss plan that I, myself, am paying for??

As for the notion that if I can not afford to pay for the form it cannot be released – surely this is a double loss, both to myself and the surgery – as I do not receive the form which is already signed – yet the doctor has already taken the time to sign it!

I have tried other diet plans such as Weight Watchers and Slimming World, whereby I do not need a doctor’s signature on a medical referral form – and I have not lost more than a few pounds over a long period of time. I have tried just under 2 weeks on the Cambridge Plan and already lost 9lbs!

I have found something that works for me and I find it hard to believe that the NHS wants to charge me for that!

Surely if I continue to be obese I am putting more of a strain on the surgery’s and the NHS’ resources?

I would like you to consider the points I have addressed in this letter as I am a mum and I only work part-time so there is no way of me being able to afford £30 for a signature. I intend to stick to the Cambridge Plan 100% and get myself down to a healthy weight and BMI. I do not expect the surgery to PAY anything for me to do this, I am using my own money and my own commitment – I just did not expect to have to pay out any extra money than the Cambridge Plan costs.

 

[cornishkez]

Here, here! I think it is disgusting that so many doctors are so dismissive of CD. You have hit the nail on the head, you are doing something positive that is not costing the NHS a penny. In fact it is saving them future resources.

Let us know what the outcome is?

 

[Soon to be yummy mummy]

Thanks Kez, I will let you know how I get on.

After seeing LittleDoris' experience (post at the top of this page) I'm debating whether to just turn up at the surgery for my form and argue it out there???

But I hate confrontation! That's not to say I'm not any good at it - it just leaves me feeling stressed out and I'm trying so hard to stay positive whilst on CD that I don't need this extra headache! I might just deliver the letter and wait for a response!

xxxx

 

[DDT]

I feel sick at the thoughtof going DRs - when i wanted to LL they wouldnt even look at my form. my bmi is just over 40 - what should i do? im pretty gutted as i was really focused & determined to do this!

 

[DDT]

Hey!! Hey!! I am new, my doctor wanted to charge me £120 to sign a form for lighter life. Wow!! Hence i have gone onto the cambridge diet sole sorce with a bmi of 47, screw the doctors i cant afford it, but i feel cheated by the nhs as i would have prefered to go on a vlc diet with the assistance of my doctor especially after failing the lighter life medical in the summer. Anyway the cambridge diet is great i lost 15lbs in the first 5 days whoopie

Can you still do SS without DR's sig with bmi 40+???

 

[CW Consultant]

No the consultant would be breaking their agreement.

 

[DDT]

So am i right in thinking you could do the 1200 for a while then revert to the SS?? x

 

[CW Consultant]

You need to go down the GP route first if he says no then you can do Cambridge 1200 cals providing your Consultant has got the okay from Head Office to proceed.

You cannot just do Cambridge 1200 programme without following the above process.

 

[DDT]

Damn!! lol

 

[cornishkez]

Have you asked you CDC, my BMI was 44 and mine let me start no questions asked.

 

[Soon to be yummy mummy]

My CDC let me start SS/SS+ too (my BMI was 45) after she checked with CD head office.

My scenario was slightly different as my surgery admitted that they had signed my form and there were no medical problems etc - they just wouldnt release my form unless I paid £30! So my CDC let me start to get my BMI below 40 and then I dont need their signature anyway / dont need to pay £30!

Good luck hun! xxxx